Golf as craft beer

[James Reader]

Well worth a read - as with most of what Andy writes...


https://thefriedegg.com/golf-course-architecture-craft-beer/

[Kalen Braley]

Excellent article, a very nice analogy.

As one who stumbled onto craft beer more than 15+ years ago, it was indeed an eye opener as a whole new world opened to me.

P.S.  The one benefit to beer geeking is it can come to you 99% of the time as opposed to you going to it!   

[Mike Sweeney]

I follow Andy's website, I get his stuff, and I genuinely appreciate his love for Muni golf. That said, this was a stretch. When he drinks Rolling Rock at Walnut Lane on a Thanksgiving morning, then and only then will I listen to the "craft beer" conversation


http://golfclubatlas.com/courses-by-country/usa/walnut-lane/

[Terry Lavin]

Meh.

[Kalen Braley]

Mike,

I don't follow.  Are you claiming Rolling Rock is craft beer?

[Peter Pallotta]

Mike S - you reminded me of the time I had a couple of Philly cheese steaks and a few Rolling Rocks at a bar in midtown Manhattan, watching the Jays win the World Series off Carter's home run. At that moment, with those sandwiches, I thought the Rolling Rock the best beer ever made! It served its purpose admirably, with nothing that I didn't need and everything I did. Rolling Rock - the bunkerless muni with canted fairways, a walkable routing, dry turf and hard greens!

[Sean_A]

Meh.

+1


It seems the more complicated and geeky beer becomes the less I drink. Its getting so hard to find a good ole fashion bitter with all this fruit, ipa, bock etc nonsense crowding out the market.


Ciao

[Mike Sweeney]

Mike,

I don't follow.  Are you claiming Rolling Rock is craft beer?

It was a different era in terms of shipping cost, so when I walked into Kostka Hall at Boston College in 1980 with a case of Rolling Rock, I started the "craft beer" movement in Boston.  Sam Adams Beer started in 1984. Another "missed opportunity" in the words of Ran. Oh well.

To be fair, Coors from Colorado and Molson from Canada were also big stuff too, but the Rolling Rock bottle and name were "next stuff" in beer crossing boundaries:




And if you have not been hit by a ball from another fairway at Newton Commonwealth GC, home of the 2019 Green Plaid Golf Tournament, then you really have not played Muni golf:

[Kyle Harris]

Mike S - you reminded me of the time I had a couple of Philly cheese steaks and a few Rolling Rocks at a bar in midtown Manhattan, watching the Jays win the World Series off Carter's home run. At that moment, with those sandwiches, I thought the Rolling Rock the best beer ever made! It served its purpose admirably, with nothing that I didn't need and everything I did. Rolling Rock - the bunkerless muni with canted fairways, a walkable routing, dry turf and hard greens!

What are these heretic ramblings? MODERATORS! I'm triggered.

Signed,

A bitter Phillies fan.


Speaking of:

Sean Arble,


Nothing is crowding out your market.

And finally:


Mike Sweeney,
Yuengling at Walnut Lane.

[Sean_A]

Mike S - you reminded me of the time I had a couple of Philly cheese steaks and a few Rolling Rocks at a bar in midtown Manhattan, watching the Jays win the World Series off Carter's home run. At that moment, with those sandwiches, I thought the Rolling Rock the best beer ever made! It served its purpose admirably, with nothing that I didn't need and everything I did. Rolling Rock - the bunkerless muni with canted fairways, a walkable routing, dry turf and hard greens!

What are these heretic ramblings? MODERATORS! I'm triggered.

Signed,

A bitter Phillies fan.

Speaking of:

Sean Arble,

Nothing is crowding out your market.

And finally:

Mike Sweeney,
Yuengling at Walnut Lane.

Kyle


I don't hang out in pubs that often anymore (partly because the beer isn't as good as it used to be), but I am confident that IPAs (and sometimes higher alcohol content beer including lagers) have replaced barrel space from old fashioned bitters and mild. I recall most pubs back in the day had a proper pull bitter...at least one and often a mild.  Sure, some areas were more blessed than others with the quality due to proximity of breweries, but a bitter was always available.  Now, it is becoming rare.  I think its a shame and not only because these new beers are often sold at stupid prices. 


Ciao 

[Kyle Harris]

Mike S - you reminded me of the time I had a couple of Philly cheese steaks and a few Rolling Rocks at a bar in midtown Manhattan, watching the Jays win the World Series off Carter's home run. At that moment, with those sandwiches, I thought the Rolling Rock the best beer ever made! It served its purpose admirably, with nothing that I didn't need and everything I did. Rolling Rock - the bunkerless muni with canted fairways, a walkable routing, dry turf and hard greens!

What are these heretic ramblings? MODERATORS! I'm triggered.

Signed,

A bitter Phillies fan.

Speaking of:

Sean Arble,

Nothing is crowding out your market.

And finally:

Mike Sweeney,
Yuengling at Walnut Lane.

Kyle


I don't hang out in pubs that often anymore (partly because the beer isn't as good as it used to be), but I am confident that IPAs (and sometimes higher alcohol content beer including lagers) have replaced barrel space from old fashioned bitters and mild. I recall most pubs back in the day had a proper pull bitter...at least one and often a mild.  Sure, some areas were more blessed than others with the quality due to proximity of breweries, but a bitter was always available.  Now, it is becoming rare.  I think its a shame and not only because these new beers are often sold at stupid prices. 


Ciao

Coincidentally, the local pub where I hold court with myself has two English Bitter drafts among their 16 taps at present. The market here in the colonies is moving toward many taps and high turnover of different beers.

[Sam Andrews]

Meh.

+1


It seems the more complicated and geeky beer becomes the less I drink. Its getting so hard to find a good ole fashion bitter with all this fruit, ipa, bock etc nonsense crowding out the market.


Ciao

Harveys.

[Kalen Braley]

MIke,

I suppose every new beer is "craft beer" when they first start.  Rolling Rock started in 1939 and has since between bought by Anheuser-Busch so I certainly wouldn't consider them such anymore as its just another watered down American Lager bud/coors/miller clone. 

Sam Adams thou has a few decent offerings...

[Bernie Bell]

I’m a fan of Fried Egg.  But I’m also loyal to Budweiser and, like 70% of the US market, prefer macro to craft.  I have some questions about the article.
What are the “new values/ideals” of the craft golfers?  Accessible, affordable, sustainable, enjoyable for all abilities?  Isn’t craft beer sold as more complex, sophisticated and therefore worth an upcharge?  If the craft golfer demands bespoke subtlety in every fairway, bunker and green complex, isn’t that just as fusty a code as a ban on pull carts? 


Is craft design cheaper?  For how long?  Do the craft designers need to stay small and risk much on each job to stay “authentic”? 


What are the “new means” by which the craft GCA tastes are developed?  Social media affiliate cross-marketing among the like-minded?  To what architectural effect?


If we’re to usher in a Second Golden Age, weren’t the best designers of the First Age macro?  What is Ed Ault, from the so-called “dark ages”?  My Maryland county runs 5 courses by Ault or Ault/Clark.  All popular, affordable, walkable and sustainable over decades.  Aren’t they “special craft playing fields,” even if no one Instagrams their bunkers?  Isn’t Ed Ault’s time-proven work at least as good a model for public golf as that of more fashionable current guys?
 

[Kalen Braley]

Bernie,

High quality craft beer is not cheap at all, its about quality over quantity.  Its about saying I'll take one 22 oz bottle of exceptional beer, over a six pack of the low end stuff at the same price.  And certainly the Bandons, Streamsongs, and other high end publics vs the low end munis have similar pricing structure.

They key is, as these high quality offerings become more popular and more available, price almost always comes down, and I think that's one of the main points the article was driving at.

But just like most people will continue to drink budweiser (and equivalents), most golfers will still play their low price golf....so that market segment will never go away, even if the overall market share (hopefully) slowly evolves towards better quality....

[Phil McDade]

Mike S - you reminded me of the time I had a couple of Philly cheese steaks and a few Rolling Rocks at a bar in midtown Manhattan, watching the Jays win the World Series off Carter's home run. At that moment, with those sandwiches, I thought the Rolling Rock the best beer ever made! It served its purpose admirably, with nothing that I didn't need and everything I did. Rolling Rock - the bunkerless muni with canted fairways, a walkable routing, dry turf and hard greens!

What are these heretic ramblings? MODERATORS! I'm triggered.

Signed,

A bitter Phillies fan.


Speaking of:

Sean Arble,


Nothing is crowding out your market.

And finally:


Mike Sweeney,
Yuengling at Walnut Lane.

Second-best post of the year, after the one that Cavalier posted of his dog.


(He says as he glances longingly at the lone Yuengling remaining in his fridge, knowing he's a month away from being able to buy more. )

[Greg Clark]

New Hotness - Craft Whisk(e)y
Old and Busted - Craft Beer

[Kalen Braley]

New Hotness - Craft Whisk(e)y
Old and Busted - Craft Beer

Not sure where you're getting your info from Greg....craft beer is certainly not busted, even if traditional beer is not seeing gains...

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2019/04/02/beer-sales-stay-flat-craft-beer-grows-share-114-b-us-market/3341312002/

[Phil McDade]

New Hotness - Craft Whisk(e)y
Old and Busted - Craft Beer

You meant craft gin, yes?


I had a gin -- not a single malt -- from Islay the other day that knocked my socks off.

[Greg Clark]

Of course it isn't Kyle.  And it will continue to grow as craft beer is finding a broader mass audience.  That makes it less hip, and a less interesting world for the afficianados.  The cool kids are moving on from their gateway drug to the exploding international whiskey market.  Many craft beer distillers are getting in the game as well. 


It's no longer about how many IBU's your double IPA has, but whether your whiskey is grain to glass and not sourced, what your mashbill is, what type of barrel you are aging your product in, and what cigar pairs well with it.  Catch up man.

[Daryl David]

New Hotness - Craft Whisk(e)y
Old and Busted - Craft Beer

I had a gin -- not a single malt -- from Islay the other day that knocked my socks off.

The Botanist Islay Dry Gin. Most definitely!

[Bob Montle]

And if you have not been hit by a ball from another fairway at Newton Commonwealth GC, home of the 2019 Green Plaid Golf Tournament, then you really have not played Muni golf:

So - do you really have to cross the 7th fairway to get from the 4th green to the 5th tee?

And across the 13th to get from 9 green to 10 tee?

Looks like a long walk from 12th green to 13th tee also unless you cross the tennis courts. 

Fun!