What's More Important: Definitions or Beer?

What is a gypsy brewer?  How do they differ from regular brewers? Should they be held with the same regard as regular brewers?  These questions have come up, either directly or indirectly, in a recent blog from a brewer in Massachusetts. A gypsy brewer (or contract brewer) is one who uses other breweries' equipment to brew his/her beer.  Mikkeller is probably the most commonly known one, but there are many others. So why are they getting some heat?

The gist is that gypsy brewers are not real brewers since they do not brew the beer themselves and/or are not present when their beer is brewed. They do not own brick and mortar localities and rely on the talents of others for brewing their recipes. Financially, they have not invested or risked as much as those regular brewers, which makes them seem as just trying to get a piece of the pie with less effort.

These are opinions, based on facts.  It is a fact that gypsy brewers use equipment that is not theirs (or the bank's). It is true that sometimes they are not present when their beer is brewed. The opinions rise from there. 

But what is also true is the common claim, by brewers, that beer isn't beer until the yeast has done it's job: brewers make wort, yeast makes beer.  So, who are the real brewers?  Ok, so this is nitpicking a bit.  Yet, I think it's important to acknowledge the whole process before rendering opinions of absolute labeling.

Of course, we could look at new technologies and ask ourselves who the brewers really are. Push button computer software can follow the progress of the brewing cycle and make minute changes when need to follow a recipe. Some software can even be overseen and controlled off premise: that is, by the brewer from his/her couch at home. In this case, is the brewer still a brewer?

My answer is, who cares?  What's the deal with the focus on definitions of such trivial scale? Sure, I can understand the difference between sweating all brewing and picking up wort. I'm not saying brewing and gypsy brewing are the same. My question is why should it matter? Maybe giving credit where credit is due is the underlying issue.  If so, then perhaps labels on the bottles/cans can provide satisfaction.  I'm sure they are options to consider.

The bottom line for me is that if you admonish some beers for being "contracted", then you are missing some great beer.  AND doing disservice to those who actually did sweat all day making the wort. It's still great beer, those who worked on it got paid, and the yeast finished it off.

Craft Brewing: Cease and Desist

Now, before you get your hops in a bunch, I'm not suggesting the craft brewing industry stop what it's doing and discontinue its rapid growth.  Quite the contrary.  This little post aims to help (even a wee bit) the craft brewing industry by highlighting a small, yet worrisome problem: Cease and desist letters.

With this boom in craft beer comes the increasingly complicated task of each brewery naming a beer, creating artwork, and the business of branding.  Problem is, craft breweries are small and, thankfully, quite numerous. Their economic footprint rarely goes beyond a county, and as such attention to the aforementioned tasks is a bit lacking. That is, a small brewery in South Carolina has little means or motivation to research if a certain name (say, "Hopolicious IPA") is being used by another brewery across the country in Oregon. If a trademark was filed by the Oregon business, the its infringement can cause quite a stir.  To many people, it is difficult to justify trademark infringement against a small company thousands of miles away that is not in the same market, and does not plan to be.

But as a business, the Oregon brewery has a concern, and every right to defend its brand.  If it chooses not to pursue an infringement grievance, then it can be shown later on that it does not really care about its brand.  With that, another brewery years later (perhaps one in Oregon) can claim naming rights that this brewery might already have. In other words, protect the brand now to stave off future challenges--which may come from much larger, macro breweries.  Protecting a trademark is necessary, and understandable.

Unfortunately, the methods used for protection can incur damages. For one, a cease and desist letter from a lawyer is impersonal, which is anathema to craft brewing. For the most part, brewers are not business managers. If they encounter a problem, they like to handle it personally. Getting attorneys involved is seen as steely and cold.  It seems aggressive, and brewers do not react well to these perceptions (who would?).  In the age of social media the reaction can be swift, intense and ugly.

Still, legal counsel may be needed…just not right off the bat. For one thing, legal counsel is expensive. It can be slow and confusing. It takes control of the situation out of the hands of the parties involved. Probably the most unnerving is the fact that adjudication, if it comes down to that, is one-sided and the decision of one person: the judge. Who knows how a case will turn out? 

But options exist between not challenging infringement (doing nothing) and going to court. Personal contact is recommended first.  This can be easy, or rather challenging. If the latter, then many go directly to "lawyering up", but they don't have to. Mediation, facilitation and conferencing are options that are becoming more readily available to craft brewers.  These methods are cheaper than legal/court fees, quicker and retain control of the situation to the parties.  It's a good idea to at least give them a chance. Legal counsel is not refused or negated by these methods, so that is still an option if needed.

The hope is that name, branding, trademark dispute can be settled amicably, efficiently and effectively, while maintaining and strengthening relationships and perhaps create new ones.  There is no backlash to these approaches, whereas a cease and desist letter can (and has) create a firestorm or two.

What's the Matter with Craft Beer? Cracks in the Foundation

The Craft Beer industry is taking off; sales are rising, approaching 10% of overall beer sales, which interestingly have dropped. Craft Beer is growing, even through Recession. No doubt this is time for rejoicing for craft beer, craft beer geeks and tap rooms. But there are fractures in the foundation that are coming to light. How these are managed can either fix the cracks, or expound them.

It is important to note that craft brewing is a business and must take on certain business responsibilities. One is establishing and protecting a brand. For the most part a brand is a name. To differentiate beers consumers (for the most part) identify with names: Sam Adams (by Boston Beer Company), Budweiser (AB-InBev), Coors (MillerCoors).  If Boston Beer Company labeled one of their beers "Bud", AB-InBev would see this as trademark infringement (and so, too, would a judge).  This blatant example illustrates why trademark laws are in place.

However, in the business world of trademark infringement the devil is in the details. While "Bud" is an obvious example, Righteous is not, nor is Seven Seas. In these cases the breweries involved are geographically separate, their markets do not overlap. Ostensibly the struggle is to keep other craft breweries from copying each other, stealing names and taking advantage of others' successes.

While some of this might be true, we must look at the business side: protecting trademark.  For if a company does not protect its trademark, then it could lose it, if not now then later. So a brewery on the west coast must keep an eye out for similar beer names/labels emerging on the east coast, not for fear of theft of customers, but of losing trademark. If that happens, then larger companies that are closer can start using that same name/label, and no infringement of trademark can be claimed.  

So, to take "Bud" as an example (which was actually contested in court), if Boston Beer Company started using "Bud" to label a product, and AB-InBev did not claim infringement, then anybody could start using "Bud"…even MillerCoors. Brand recognition would be out the window as would fair competition.

While this may sound easy to avoid, it certainly is not. Trademark infringement disputes are going to happen. In a growing industry full of small companies, it is inevitable that names/labels will fly under the radar, only to appear in the form of cease and desist (CD) letters.

And this is how management of these disputes can either fix the cracks, or widen them. Sometimes the business decision is not best for the business, especially in a personal industry like Craft Beer, and with the explosion of social media.  Trademark protection is necessary, but it's not as black and white as a CD letter.