As Big Beer creeps into town, locals want to change the lingo. Craft is dead. Now we drink Indie Beer.
The term Craft Beer may be in need of a makeover. Last week, the Union-Tribune reported that Bend, Oregon’s 10 Barrel Brewing Co. has proposed a 10,000-square-foot brewpub in East Village. In response, local beer industry podcasters have doubled down on a push to describe independently owned breweries as Indie Beer companies, rather than craft.
Not because 10 Barrel hails from Oregon but because in 2014 the company was purchased by AB InBev, the conglomerate responsible for one-third of the planet’s beer supply, including core brands Budweiser, Corona, and Stella Artois. It owns 10 Barrel brewpubs in Oregon and Idaho and recently announced plans for one in Denver.
The podcasters believe consumers who patronize 10 Barrel brewpubs mistakenly believe they are supporting small business rather than a global entity.
The Indie Beer designation (and social media hashtag) arose during a November 17 podcast on ThreeBZine.com, a blog devoted to local beer, music, and food, during a discussion in which podcasters Cody Thompson, Dustin Lothspeich, and Tom Pritchard decried the efforts of “Big Beer” to enter the craft beer marketplace.
“Is craft beer even a thing anymore, or is it just marketing?” asked Pritchard. “It’s been appropriated by corporations.”
Taking a cue from the concept of Indie Rock in the music industry, the trio settled on Indie Beer as a way to distinguish small, privately owned businesses.
ThreeBZine’s use of Indie Beer was quickly picked up by fellow podcasters Perfect Pour, out of Fresno, and SD BeerTalk. BeerTalk co-hosts Greg Homyak and Brian Beagle have been active in promoting the Indie Beer concept, locally and online.
“It immediately resonated with me as a craft beer drinker,” says Homyak, who points to the 10 Barrel brewpub as a prime example of the need for new terminology. “It is something that looks like Independent Beer and will sell itself as that, but in actuality it is not.”
The podcasters hope the term will encourage local beer fans to support small businesses like Monkey Paw Brewing, which sits just a block from the proposed 10 Barrel site. Monkey Paw owner Scot Blair also addressed the dilution of the term “craft” in a January newsletter sent to patrons of his South Park taproom Hamilton’s Tavern.
He declares “Craft is dead.”
Blair states that the encroachment of big beer is “making it impossible to not find new terms to define things that I do versus AB or giant restaurant groups,” and pledges, “We will continue to make top-shelf, award-winning, world-class indie beer for our beloved fans of micro brew.”
A recent wine survey commissioned by online wine service Taste4, a wine subscription service that delivers four bottles a month to its customers, revealed the 10 wine terms that customers are least likely to understand when deciding what wines to buy.
The survey, which questioned 2,000 wine drinkers, revealed that 32% of participants didn’t realise that the word “tart” is used to describe a more acidic wine. In fact, as many as 11% thought it meant a “cheap, brash wine unsuitable for respectable company.”
On top of that, just 23% understood the term “terroir“, which refers to the degree to which a region’s geographic qualities affects the taste of wine. Similarly, only 20% knew of drinkers knew that a wine “with legs” referred to its increased alcohol content.
Tom Laithwaite of taste4 believes that the lack of knowledge in wine terminology is due to its antiquity.
“The way we drink wine has become more casual, informal and leisurely, but the language wrapped around it hasn’t moved with the times.”
So, without further ado, here are the 10 least understood wine terms, and the percentage of customers likely to use them:
Bouquet – 21%
Nose – 11%
Tart – 10%
Quaffable – 10%
Legs – 5%
Terroir – 3%
Unctuous – 3%
Herbaceous – 2%
Hollow – 2%
Vegetal – 2%
Other interesting survey conclusions were that 25% of drinkers found shopping for new wines an intimidating experience and that almost half (45%) tend to stick to the same grapes, such as Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay when choosing wines at supermarkets. Tom Laithwaite has thoughts on this as well:
“People want to learn more about wine and discover new tastes without being confused or awkward when buying it or talking about it with their friends.”
As a result of the survey findings, taste4 has banned all of these terms from being used on its website.
From California doubling down on Tuesday night wines to Oregon’s embrace of a new muse to the Savoie finally climbing out of the Jura’s hip-cocked shadow, Jon Bonné lays out the wine stories that will make a difference in 2016…
Why did this year in wine feel so off-kilter? I was wondering that the other day as I took quiet satisfaction in browsing photos of U.S. marshals crushing Rudy Kurniawan’s fake bottles into shards of glass, an epilogue to the era of overkill that brought us the wine world’s biggest fraud. I had that same disorientation, and not in a bad way, when I heard that a major Champagne house, Taittinger, was founding its own sparkling wine property on English soil.
For sure, their move was an affirmation of the surging quality in English sparkling wine, something that’s been happening for years. But it was also upending an 800-year tradition. For centuries the British had crossed the water to opportunistically slake their thirst; now France is reversing the trend. In part, at least, because young growers and small firms in Champagne have captured most of the attention at home. The old guard is now scrambling to find somewhere else to play.
And speaking of those 800 years of pilfering France’s bounty: Bordeaux this year seemed at ends about how to deal with much of the modern world no longer caring about it. The region, which loves prestige and scores like no other, still doesn’t quite seem to have comprehended that Robert Parker, after nearly four decades, wasn’t going to rate its new vintage, having handed off that duty to Neal Martin. (Martin is a terrific critic, and the changing of guard should have been welcome. But Bordeaux doesn’t do change well.)
There was the rosé craze, again. Many of us had spent years pleading its case, only to find in 2015 that those dreams came just a bit too true. From White Girl Rosé (please, no) to brosé (really, no), its popularity didn’t just peak-it crested and began spiraling out of control.
Inevitably, a pink-wine backlash ensued, which wasn’t really fair, because rosé never asked to become a worn-out meme.
And, as if we needed one more confirmation that the wine world’s axis was tilting, Georges Duboeuf, the Beaujolais firm, parted ways with Deutsch Family-the U.S. importer that, together with Duboeuf, created the American thirst for Beaujolais Nouveau-in favor of an importer who plans to focus on Duboeuf’s higher-end cru Beaujolais and other wines. Yeah, Beaujolais is a serious wine now; and yes, we’ve talked about it plenty. But here is the final kicker: Even the king of Nouveau got the memo.
All of these are symbolic milestones on their own. But together, they add up to larger shift that’s been building over the past half-decade: 2015 was the year when wine-good wine-stopped being so damned elitist. It’s no longer a game to be played by dudes in ties or a principality governed by arcane and archaic rules. The old tropes, most of which had been worn out for a while, are now set to be fully retired-as are all those complaints about would-be wine snobs. (Who, pray tell, might these “snobs” be? Anyone who spots the flaws in a load of populist claptrap?)
Even if we’re still sorting out the new rituals and language-please, let us never again say we are “crushing” a bottle of “juice”-wine can now be loved in ways that are both serious and casual. So perhaps 2015 was the last hurrah for the old guard, of a generation consumed by ambition-one that viewed both winemaking and wine buying as a score-driven charge to some arbitrary finish line.
Now to the fun part: What happens next?
Here are five wine stories that will make a difference in 2016.
Muscadet Grows Up
For years, a small band of wine people have been suggesting that Muscadet, the eminently mineral wine of the western Loire, had more to offer than sheer drinkability and friendliness to seafood. We’ve put forward bottles like Luneau-Papin’s Excelsior and Domaine de la Pépière’s Clisson as evidence that these wines can evolve and age just like many white Burgundies, despite the fact that it’s made from the humble melon grape-which isn’t so lowly after all.
But what’s happening today in Muscadet is essentially the white-wine equivalent of what has happened in Beaujolais. A raft of serious-minded producers are discussing not only the terroir of the nine crus communaux (much like a village designation in Burgundy), but specific vineyards and parcels, too-their nuances perceptible thanks to the region’s generally transparent winemaking. (The naturalists are at work, too, making unsulfured and skin-fermented Muscadet.) Since even Chablis has become a bit expensive for daily life, Muscadet is our new white-wine salvation.
Drink these: The wines from : The wines from Vincent Caillé have all the right cred for this new era: organic farming in several of the crus, and minimal work in the cellar. (There’s even an amphora.) Look for his Domaine le Fay d’Homme Monnières-Saint Fiacre ($25), from a cru known for its mix of acidic gneiss and sandy loam; at five years old, the 2010 is flinty and still very young, with a hint of oiliness from four years on its lees. Similarly, the Les Bêtes Curieuses project from Jérémie Huchet and Jérémie Mourat seeks old parcels to show the terroir. Their 2014 La Perdrix de L’Année ($16) finds the right balance of richness and a coppery minerality from a sand-and-granite parcel in Clisson.
Oregon Embraces Its Loire Fetish
As Oregon’s pinot noir industry celebrated its 50th birthday this year, it finally hit a sort of tipping point with the arrival of big players like Burgundy’s Louis Jadot and, perhaps less auspiciously, California’s Caymus (with its big Elouan project). The state’s small-is-good mentality has, thus, come up against the boom that places like Sonoma faced 20 years ago. That left some of the state’s true believers wondering what would come next. Riesling? Yes, in a small way. Chardonnay? Perhaps, but expanding the chardonnay universe is a bit of a fool’s errand.
Instead, some folks on the fringe have advanced a different theory: What if Oregon’s legacy lies not in the echo of Burgundy, but in channeling the Loire? Portland-based wineries like Bow & Arrow, Leah Jørgensen Cellars and Division Winemaking Company have all been pursuing that notion for several years now. But with the indie status of Oregon pinot beginning to tarnish, 2016 may be the year where their notion catches on. In their telling, it’s cabernet franc, gamay noir and chenin blanc that could be the Northwest’s great hope. True, some of them also work with pinot, although their inspiration is still more Loire-where the grape also grows. (Other alt-Oregon proponents will likely rise in this, too, including Brianne Day, who has caught attention for her malvasia and côt-tannat blend; and Teutonic Wine Co., inspired by a region of Europe you can probably guess.)
Drink these: I’ve been admiring Leah Jørgensen’s wines for a few years, especially her Applegate Valley Blanc de Cabernet Franc ($26), which highlights that grape’s peppercorn character, but in the form of a vibrant mostly-white wine. Bow & Arrow’s Air Guitar ($27), a mix of cabernets franc and sauvignon, makes a strong case for both varieties on Oregon soil.
Pét-Nat Lives!
Pétillant naturel is sparkling wine in which the fizz comes from finishing the primary fermentation in a bottle, where gas is trapped. After having its moment for the past couple of years, there’s a growing drumbeat that it is set to fade.
Not so, my trend-spiking amigos. If anything, pét-nat is expanding. Every time I turn around there’s another winemaker trying their hand from California and Oregon to Long Island and the Finger Lakes to nearly every corner of France. (The Loire area of Montlouis even now has its own appellation for so-called pétillant originel, made without added sugar.) In many cases, pét-nat is their opportunity to make something a bit more freeform in nature, closer to craft beer than wine. And good for them: These are pleasing and uncomplicated wines, and yet they have a seriousness-even with the crown caps-that goes completely the opposite direction from the cheap cava and prosecco that once stood for bubbles you could drink when not drinking Champagne. A handful of traditional prosecco makers are even expanding their work with col fondo, a cousin of pét-nat that retains its lees in the bottle.
Drink these: La Grange Tiphaine’s work in the central Loire shows the best aspects of chenin blanc, including their Nouveau Nez Montlouis-sur-Loire Pétillant Originel ($27), as does the Les Capriades Pet’Sec ($26), both of which show the fresh and mineral side of the grape more than its apple-like aspects. In California, look for new versions from Onward, Los Pilares, Scar of the Sea, Cruse Wine Co. and more. From New York, Bellwether (Finger Lakes), Southold Farm + Cellar and Channing Daughters (Long Island) are names to watch, as are Casa Belfi, Costadilá and Casa Coste Piane on the col fondo front.
A Spotlight for The Region That’s Not the Jura
The Savoie is often lumped together with the Jura, even though they share neither proximity nor geology. (It’s a two-hour drive, or about the distance from Meursault to Côte Rotie.)
The Savoie finally seems ready for its well-deserved shot at Jura-like exposure. Some credit can go to Dominique Belluard, whose sparkling and still wines have found a willing audience among serious wine buyers-including a lot of Burg-philes-and to naturalist producers like Jean-Yves Péron. A bit also goes to the oddball parade of grapes, including jacquère and mondeuse, which are propelling that newfound interest. And whatever is left to the fact that the alpine Savoie and nearby Bugey-annotating the western edge of Switzerland as they do-seem like two rare places still untrammeled by a wine world that’s kicking over every stone.
There are plenty of regions trying to rewrite their elevator pitch, whether it’s the New Australia (super exciting, still rather expensive) or Canada or elsewhere. But California’s reformation is still paying dividends, including a bit of progress on one of my major worries about it: that the interesting new wines are too expensive.
Price remains a big concern for California, but the universe of compelling, small-production wines in the $20 to $30 range keeps growing, thanks in part to things like pét-nat, but also the realization that the only way many drinkers will come back to California is if there are wines that share not only their values (usually, a repudiation of Big Wine) but their budget. There’s plenty of work left to do, but we’ll take progress where we can.
Drink these: The La Clarine Farm Jambalaia Rouge ($26) from the Sierra Foothills jumbles up red (mourvedre, grenache), and white (marsanne, fiano, arneis) grapes for a chuggable specimen that’s neither quite red or white, while wine like the Brea Chardonnay ($14) from the Central Coast offers a more virtuous choice for an everyday table wine. And look for bottles from Birichino, Rootdown, Tendu, Jolie-Laide, Leo Steen, P’tit Paysan, Broc Cellars, Ryme Cellars and many more.
Other Stories to Watch
The New Australia, as mentioned above, will finally catch the attention it’s been seeking. Greece, after years of being patted on the head, will rise from its economic muddle to become a serious contender to Spain and Italy-especially with its underappreciated red wines. And finally, as the coverage of sommeliers continues to mature, we’ll see more serious coverage of wine lists, which generate a lot of restaurants’ revenue, and remain a disproportionately small part of the conversation.
From California doubling down on Tuesday night wines to Oregon’s embrace of a new muse to the Savoie finally climbing out of the Jura’s hip-cocked shadow, Jon Bonné lays out the wine stories that will make a difference in 2016.
As an addition to our interview with Dustin Lawlor, head bartender at The Kitchen, here’s the recipe for his craft cocktail ‘Las Vegas Turnaround’. This bourbon-based drink with lemon, basil, and ginger ale is a refreshing cocktail with vibrant flavors that is guaranteed to satisfy!
We sat down with Dustin Lawlor, Head Bartender at The Kitchen Denver, one of Denver’s most popular restaurants, to talk bartending, how he’s found success, and get his take on the transformation underway in and around this booming city. Check out what this industry heavy-weight had to say.
How did you get started in the industry?
Anika Zappe, Sean Kenyon and Matty Clark are the three that gave me my first chances to step behind the bar and I have learned different things from each of them and from the bars that they work/worked behind at the time.
Anika gave me my first chance to actually work with her behind the bar at Root Down and she taught me so much about classic cocktails and technique. I used to sit at Sean’s bar at Stueben’s and then later at Squeaky Bean. He is like an encyclopedia of knowledge. I love sitting at his bar still and always learn a few things. I bar-backed for him briefly as well. He set up a study group for everyone when BarSmarts did their Denver advanced certification and that was a big help to a lot of us.
Matty Clark now owns the Hi-Dive. When I met him he worked at Sputnik and Lost Lake Lounge as well. I started picking up shifts with him at Lost Lake when he was the bar manager there and he helped me learn to work a dive bar effectively. I worked Sundays usually by myself from start to finish. That was a daunting task as young bartender and I don’t know if I could have done it without his help.
Everyone getting behind the bar for the first time needs to have a mentor to learn from.
You can learn recipes from a book. You need a bartender to teach you to bartend. It’s something you can’t rush if you want to be good at it. I still pick up little tricks the learning process doesn’t end.
What is your favorite part about your job?
I enjoy the constant change in the restaurant industry. You always hope to have a good base of regulars but, every night is completely different.
Then on the other side, cocktails are constantly changing. Ingredients, cocktails themselves, new spirits… It’s ever changing and I love that.
In your eyes, what is the #1 quality that makes a good bartender?
Passion and a desire to create a perfect guest experience every service. Over everything, to be good at this you have to love to be hospitable. Hospitality should be at the root of every team member’s skill set.
How do you deal with difficult guest situations? Do you have any tricks you use in those situations?
Every case is different when it comes to that. [With inebriated guests], the first defense is not to be the bar or bartender who over serves them. If they walk in the front door intoxicated, I usually try to get to them before they have a chance to sit down. Communicating with my team so no one else serves them is also key.
Being honest, kind and discreet with a guest who has had one too many is always the first step. The last thing I want to do is embarrass or “call out” a guest who drank too much. Most of us have been drunk. There is no reason to make someone feel like an idiot for over indulging. It just escalates the situation. If they have a sober friend with them, I will enlist their help to get them home safely.
How do you try to connect with your guests?
As far as connecting with guests the biggest thing is listening. One guest may want to talk and know everything that’s going on behind the bar etc. another guest may have had an awful day and just wants his Steak and his scotch and no conversation.
The best tool you can have in your arsenal is being able to assess the needs of your guest.
The faster you can do this the better. Having a server or bartender know how to handle your experience without having to explain it is what separates good service from excellent service in my eyes.
What are some tricks to maximize your efficiency behind the bar?
When it comes to bartending, I think the biggest efficiency trick is putting bottles back in the same place every single time. Using muscle memory when you are very busy and not having to race around to find bottles is my biggest time saver. Organization and cleanliness are bartender’s friends on a busy night.
Is there a particularly crazy story that’s happened to you while working?
There is a lot I could put here. But, I had a guest throw an old fashioned glass at another guest. It missed his target but hit the bar and shattered. A shard of that flew up and cut another guests neck that was sitting near the guy he intended to hit.
It was nothing life threatening, but it happened very fast and everyone heard and saw it and the whole place went crazy. The two parties’ friends got them both out of the bar without further incident. It was touch and go for a few minutes, though. Thankfully no one was seriously injured.
What do you feel makes Denver and Boulder unique in the food and beverage industry?
We are a “bigger” city and we continue to grow in Denver. But, we aren’t and hopefully never will be a “big” city like San Francisco, New York or Chicago.
I think our size is currently our greatest asset.
We are big enough to keep things exciting but, small enough that chances are my bartenders and I know someone working behind the bar at your next stop.
How do you feel the rising population in Colorado will affect the industry?
Overall I think it will be for the better. The more talent in the city the better. It makes everyone step up their game. The hard part is on the hiring side of things. Finding people who actually love this and want to do it for a living isn’t always easy.
What are some of your favorite watering holes around town?
