TOPIC:

I took the post in the way it was intended. I know that there are further qualifiers- ie what's the number of barley rows...

&amp;quot;muirgheasa&amp;quot;:2zn3ti16 wrote: you pretty much can't ever say "this brewery was great since February 22nd" or "this brewery was great until that one bad batch on March 10th"[/quote:2zn3ti16]That just made me imagine a sign in the brewery, a bit like those "Accident free since xxxx" <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

&amp;quot;Diablo&amp;quot;:2iz5wolo wrote:

&amp;quot;TheBeerNut&amp;quot;:2iz5wolo wrote: Sorry, no offence meant. It is a perfectly valid way of judging beer.

'Gebot/non-'gebot lager blind tasting, anyone?[/quote:2iz5wolo]

Likely to be more conclusive than the stout blind tasting.[/quote:2iz5wolo]
I'm staying out of this one <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

[size=75:2iz5wolo]Shit, that wasn't really staying out, was it?[/size:2iz5wolo]

Another good yardstick is if the words used to describe the "beer" in advertising could also be used to describe a glass of cold water- then avoid (you know the ones "cool, crisp, refreshing")

Well, my original question was: What defines a great [b:2v1uc2du]brewery[/b:2v1uc2du]?

Some answers I got on Twitter are as follows:

"solid technical ability, a mix of everyday drinkable & experimental, corporate social responsibility, a commitment to wider category"

"A great brewery has personality, creativity, & some playfulness. They are restlessly innovative and consistent in quality"

"great beer, great people and great times!"

"A great brewery flogs delicious and dirt cheap grog" <!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt="" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->

I can understand the arguments above along the lines of, is a brewery only as great as it's last beer, or something. If I start thinking about it, a brewery is like any company, so maybe that kind of company-level stuff is what makes it great. But, can you have a great brewery that makes crap beer then? Or is the beer just one, albeit a major part of what defines a great brewery?

To be honest, i was looking for other views, as I'm not sure I can answer myself, as I kinda feel there are great beers, and if a large proportion of output from a particular brewery happens to be beers that I personally think are great, then does that make it a great brewery? Kinda the opposite of my previous suggestion. Can you have a crap brewery that makes great beers? <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) -->

Carry on!

&amp;quot;Barry M&amp;quot;:2dlz28vh wrote: Can you have a crap brewery that makes great beers? <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) -->[/quote:2dlz28vh]

I certainly hope so or I'm doomed!