Comments on: Beer Wars Live Redux

By: daniel

daniel — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 20:20:49 +0000

Good point. A few battle scared veterans would have added another element to the picture, especially someone like Nick Matt who has been in the trenches for quite awhile. It’s very complex and not easily grasped in one film. Thanks for reading, and for writing, Miles.

By: Miles Wilhelm

Miles Wilhelm — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 20:16:29 +0000

I would have enjoyed hearing the perspective of someone like Ken at Sierra Nevada or Kurt or Rob at Widmer. They have been around a bit longer than Stone or Dogfish and besides Anchor and a handful of others, they really entered the market at time of complete big 3 domination.
Thanks for your thoughts Daniel.

By: daniel

daniel — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:41:13 +0000

Capitalism isn’t a static entity and winners change from epoch to epoch. What if in ten years Sam or Greg are sitting on top of the 6th and 7th largest breweries in the United States, running them the same way and making the same beer, and the world’s largest brewery has yielded market share because diminishing returns suggests they are substantially more profitable at 40% than at 50%. Capitalism isn’t a steady state entity, but punctuated equilibrium. Isn’t predicting the future a lot of fun, Maureen!

By: Maureen Ogle

Maureen Ogle — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:34:59 +0000

My “dour” predictions have nothing to do with the BEER — they are based on my reading of history and the nature of capitalism. All the good beer in the world ain’t gonna change the way capitalism works.

By: daniel

daniel — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:44:16 +0000

Thanks, Craig. The conversation continues. I appreciate you following this discussion.

By: Craig

Craig — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:32:43 +0000

Excellent points. I couldn’t agree more with your views of this film and discussion. I too felt that too much time was spent on Moonshot. I see the value of the startup business, where Stone and Dogfish have already arrived. Additionally, there is interest in a beer star from Boston Beer finding trouble breaking-in. However, it would have been more insync with the craft industry to have a real craft brewer start-up as the focus. The A-B points in the film are not surprising. A-B is in competition just like any other business in America. The only key to sucess is inovation. If A-B want to follow, it just proves we’re doing something right.

By: daniel

daniel — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 21:45:29 +0000

Thanks, Paul. It was interesting and the consensus is Rhonda’s in a different line of work that Greg or Sam. She has her own challenges. What would have made the movie even more interesting would have been a discussion of why those two guys have succeeded, given the access to market challenges outlined in the film, and what are their challenges coming up given the Bigs. vs. Littles thesis of the movie. Maybe that’s the next film!

By: Paul

Paul — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 13:58:12 +0000

Nice review. I found this film entertaining, but also a bit one sided and focused. It had some neat statistics, but did belabor some points and, I believe, focused too much on certain personalities in the film. The Moonshot gal, for example, took up far too long in the film. Especially given that she seemed out of place when compared to unique brewers like Dogfish and Stone.

By: Beer Wars Movie Friday Wrap-up | Beernews.org

Beer Wars Movie Friday Wrap-up | Beernews.org — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 12:25:03 +0000

[...] Update: Another review that I enjoyed reading, this one also from an industry veteran, All About Beer’s Daniel [...]

By: daniel

daniel — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 10:51:34 +0000

Thanks for the comments, Tom. Dinner Tuesday. Coffee Friday? Coming home Saturday for peculiar reasons.