The line between macrobrew and microbrew has been blurring in recent years. Macro-breweries have begun to create fuller bodied beers (see Budweiser American Ale), some micro-breweries have grown so much in size that they now are dubbed craft brewerie
s (see Sierra Nevada Brewing Company), and some breweries have formed alliances and mutual investment agreements in an attempt to tap into the micro and macro brew markets. (see Redhook brewery).
Redhook use to be a small Washington brewery that has since formed alliances with Budweiser and Widmer and has expanded its distribution and line of beers. Redhook's most recent creation is a "Light Ale" known as "Slim Chance". I was intrigued by the idea of an ale with a lighter body so I gave the beer a shot. Don't make the same mistake as I did; Slim Chance is no light ale. It's a run of the mill light lager. It looks and tastes like many light lagers: think Amstel Light or Modelo Light. While Slim Chance doesn't have the metallic taste of some light beers it lacks any significant body and has a watery aftertaste.
I probably gave Redhook took much credit when I purchased this beer. I love Redhook's Winterhook and Copperhook and assumed they wouldn't create the traditional light lager. But they did. As America becomes re-obsessed with beer it will be interesting to see how this micro/macro balance progresses. More and more research, books, and movies are being done on the beer industry and I'm excited to learn more. In the meantime, I think I'll grab a real ale with more flavor. Cheers.
s (see Sierra Nevada Brewing Company), and some breweries have formed alliances and mutual investment agreements in an attempt to tap into the micro and macro brew markets. (see Redhook brewery).Redhook use to be a small Washington brewery that has since formed alliances with Budweiser and Widmer and has expanded its distribution and line of beers. Redhook's most recent creation is a "Light Ale" known as "Slim Chance". I was intrigued by the idea of an ale with a lighter body so I gave the beer a shot. Don't make the same mistake as I did; Slim Chance is no light ale. It's a run of the mill light lager. It looks and tastes like many light lagers: think Amstel Light or Modelo Light. While Slim Chance doesn't have the metallic taste of some light beers it lacks any significant body and has a watery aftertaste.
I probably gave Redhook took much credit when I purchased this beer. I love Redhook's Winterhook and Copperhook and assumed they wouldn't create the traditional light lager. But they did. As America becomes re-obsessed with beer it will be interesting to see how this micro/macro balance progresses. More and more research, books, and movies are being done on the beer industry and I'm excited to learn more. In the meantime, I think I'll grab a real ale with more flavor. Cheers.
1 comment:
What a strange development. Unless they lower the price to compete with the megabrews, I don't really see how Red Hook expects to compete in this category. Maybe they think that craft-beer snobs are so snobby that they would rather pay an extra 50% for the benefit of a craft label when they are drinking light lager. Even I'm not that big of a beer snob.
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