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Crafting
Collaboration
Learning
From
And
Growing
With
Craft
Beer
by Alexandra Katona-Carroll
and Christopher Schooley
Comparing two handcrafted products can be
pretty tricky. As artisans, we mostly want
to promote the uniqueness of the product
with which we’re professionally involved and invested,
rather than tie it imperfectly to what on the surface is a
very different product. Over the years, specialty coffee
has been compared to fresh produce and wine. But the
product that may be the most sympathetic and helpful
to specialty coffee is craft beer.
One of the biggest hurdles for this comparison is
that craft beer is a product that can be easily enjoyed
without many complications (consequences aside).
Coffee, on the other hand, is not always sold as a
finalized product and has numerous opportunities for
error, as we know all too well. However, the similarities
between these two industries are vast, and there are
several areas of the beer industry from which specialty
coffee can learn and thereby flourish.
continued on page 40
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Crafting Collaboration | Learning From and Growing With Craft Beer (continued)
Craft Beer History
First, let’s start with some history of the craft beer movement.
The American Homebrewers Association formed in 1978, dedicated
to promoting and protecting amateur and professional craft
brewers. In 1982, the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) debuted,
and the formation of the Association of Brewers followed a year
later (eventually in 2005 they joined forces to create the Brewers
Association). It’s safe to say that the development of the Specialty
Coffee Association of America (SCAA), which formed in 1982, and the
Barrels of beer | photo by Alexandra Katona-Carroll
Brewers Association have had unique paths: SCAA is made up purely
of companies within and aligned with the specialty coffee industry,
while the Brewers Association has focused on all levels of craft beer,
from home brewers to craft breweries, retailers and consumers.
The Brewers Association defines an American craft brewer as
“small, independent and traditional” (for the full breakdown, visit
www.brewersassociation.org). The first GABF had just 850 people in
attendance and featured brews from Sierra Nevada, Anchor Steam and
Coors (yes, Coors). Flash forward 30 years and in 2011, the GABF sold
out in a week, had almost 50,000 people in attendance and featured
2,375 craft beers.
Over the past several years, craft beer has experienced explosive
growth. In 2010, the craft brewing industry grew 11 percent in volume
and 12 percent by dollars compared to the growth in 2009. Craft brewer
dollar sales rose by 15 percent in 2011, while sales of large, massproduced
beers like Coors and Budweiser (or, as the craft beer industry
calls them, “fizzy yellow beer”) dipped. In addition, nearly 1,000 craft
breweries are in development for 2012. But before you drop your triers
and run out the door to start your own brewery, it’s important to note
that, like specialty coffee, craft beer only comprises about 5 percent
of the total market. It’s certainly growing, as the numbers indicate,
and one day Charlie Papazian, head of the Brewers Association, hopes
to see craft beer owning more along the lines of 15 to 20 percent of the
market.
continued on page 42
Cupping and tasting in the Odell Brewing Tap Room in Fort Collins, Colo. | photo by Christopher Schooley
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Crafting Collaboration | Learning From Craft Beer (continued)
Those are certainly lofty goals, but the Brewers Association encompasses a number of
activities that could help the industry get there. “The Brewers Association offers many different
avenues for communication, cooperation and learning,” says Doug Odell, a co-founder of
Odell Brewing Company in Fort Collins, Colo. “They also help connect small brewers with our
customers and potential customers through public events.”
The GABF and Savor, another festival put on by the Brewers Association, are just two
consumer-focused festivals among hundreds throughout the year. The craft beer industry has
done an incredible job of creating community within the industry and engaging consumers
through different types of events, including beer dinners, festivals and American Craft Beer
Week. Additionally, the industry has a plethora of accessible media, including online forums,
blogs, magazines and review sites, such as Beer Advocate, which has 1.5 million unique
monthly visitors. In return, they have a devout, passionate following that continues to learn
and grow simultaneously. As the industry continues to gain momentum, more sites have
become available that make finding and learning about craft beer even more accessible and
approachable.
Conversely, much of the tone of the interactions between specialty coffee professionals
and consumers is geared toward trying to convince the consumers what they should be tasting
instead of asking them what they’re tasting and what they do or don’t like about it. The
language to describe great coffee has to become more widely used and useful to consumers,
and avenues for consumer feedback need to be made not just more accessible, but actually be
created in the first place.
Collaborating for
Long-Term Success
According to Papazian, collaboration among brewers has also played a key role in craft beer’s
success. “Craft brewers are all on the same page,” he says. “They’re willing to collaborate for
common goals.”
Many craft breweries get together to release a collaboration brew, which combines
several ingredients and ideas from two or more breweries for one common product. And some
collaborations between specialty coffee and craft beer have also been great successes for both
participants. Several specialty coffee companies—including Brooklyn’s Gorilla Coffee, Austin’s
Cuvee Coffee and Chicago-based Intelligentsia—have been successfully collaborating with local
brewers.
Let’s not sell the specialty coffee industry short. With SCAA events like the Roasters Guild
Retreat, Camp Pull-A-Shot, Symposium and the annual Expo, the industry comes together
several times a year to share information and collaborate for long-term success. There’s also
a handful of regional roaster groups around the country, regional barista competitions and
Comparing coffees and beers in the Odell Brewing Tap Room in Fort Collins, Colo. | photo by Christopher Schooley
Cupping and tasting in the Odell Brewing Tap Room in Fort Collins, Colo. | photo by Christopher Schooley
barista jams that increase community and allow participants to focus on and talk about
quality, characteristics and uniqueness of the product. Coffee Common has been extremely
successful at showcasing the top baristas in the world at influential non-coffee-themed
events. And with events like Cup of Excellence and Roasters Guild Coffees of the Year,
producers and farms are being recognized for their craft and dedication to quality.
discovering similarities
The challenges that the craft beer and specialty coffee industries currently face are strikingly
similar: preserving authenticity, driving innovation, and maintaining freshness and quality.
Both use price to differentiate themselves in a competitive market and provide more in-depth
information about the product. One of the most important pieces of information either
industry can put on its packaging relate to a freshness date. Several craft breweries, including
well-known companies like Dogfish Head and Allagash, are even eliminating sales in certain
states to focus on smaller distribution and more local markets (and, ultimately, to gain better
quality control).
And while freshness and having indicators of freshness are key, using other information
to tell the story of the product also plays a role in setting craft beer apart. Printing the alcohol
by volume percentage (ABV%), hop varietals, and origins of grains and other ingredients
serves a similar purpose to varietal and farm information on specialty coffee packaging.
Talking about process and ingredients is integral to designating a product as craft and
specialty. And while maintaining authenticity and passion through the story behind the
product is critical, it’s a delicate balance to reach without sounding too gimmicky.
There’s an impetus for the two industries meeting and collaborating with each other,
which truly shows great promise. The conversations between the two industries can be
at quite an elevated level since people who work in both industries already have such a
deep understanding about the importance of quality ingredients and materials as well as
craftsmanship and skill. There are also many similarities in our processes.
continued on page 44
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Crafting Collaboration | Learning From and Growing With Craft Beer (continued)
Both beer and coffee are tied to agriculture and the impact of the
of specialty coffee, and vice versa, it would be
commodities market on supply. Craft beer has an opportunity to elevate
equally beneficial for both industries. In these
and celebrate the grain and hops producer in a way that specialty coffee
segments, we potentially have and can be the
has done for coffee producers. Also, coffee processing parallels in many
perfect customer.
ways with the cleaning, grading and malting of grains for brewing—if
not literally, than at least on a level of value that’s added to the
agricultural product through these procedures.
One of the biggest parallels between the two industries is in roasting.
Most beer styles have a base produced from the kilning of pale malts, but
in certain styles of beer, grains are roasted to become “specialty malts”
common
challenges
Hops before harvest.
in order to add certain flavors and characteristics to them. Beer styles,
such as porters, amber ales, brown ales and stouts, are determined by
the roast level of the grains. The malt roasters used can be very similar
to coffee roasters, and you would certainly recognize the names of the
manufacturers of these roasters, such as Probat or Barth. It would be a lot
of fun and very educational to compare grain and coffee roasting.
The idea that we have so much in common with craft beer is not
only inspiring in the context of starting dialogue about our processes,
but also in looking at the craft beer industry as a consumer category in
and of itself. Both products have very little of the market share in their
respective categories, but since both are specialty and craft, we are by
definition not ever going to own a large chunk of the greater market.
There is still a lot of room for growth, though, particularly in specific
segments. If we can focus on getting a large percentage of the people
who work in craft beer to be able to identify and be regular consumers
So how does the specialty coffee industry
continue to increase culture around our beloved
product? We’ve seen a shift from retail- to
home-brewed coffee, and it’s essential that
the process is accessible. After all, brewing
coffee in one’s home, for many, is a ritual that
carries contentment, sacredness and nostalgia.
Increasing access to home roasting could be
another way to build culture and momentum,
as it sparked the craft beer movement years
ago (via home brewing). There is tremendous
value in putting the craft process directly
in the consumer’s hands, giving them the
continued on page 46
Home brewing and home roasting equipment at Hops and Berries in Fort Collins, Colo. |
photo by Christopher Schooley
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Crafting Collaboration | Learning From and Growing With Craft Beer (continued)
opportunity to watch the coffee turn brown right
in front of their eyes.
Jones Coffee Roasters in Pasadena, Calif.,
invites customers to bring in their home brewing
equipment for a hands-on workshop. The
company makes learning about home brewing
incredibly approachable; with guided instruction
and calibration, it allows customers to use their
existing equipment much more effectively
and confidently. Ultimately, this can increase
wholesale revenue and have a high return on
investment. However, many of us are facing a
similar competitor, and it’s not the other specialty
coffee retailer down the street.
We’re facing growing competition from the
single-service pod, “press a button and it’s done
even though the taste leaves much to be desired at
such a high price point” coffees. As the co-founder
and director of Square Mile Coffee Roasters,
James Hoffmann, stated on his blog in February
2012: “I don’t think we should be beating the
drum of anger about Nespresso and K-Cups retail
prices, unless we never aspire to them ourselves.
We should be learning the lessons they provide
us—how to sell coffee effectively, how to make
coffee at a higher price point more accessible—and
answer some less comfortable questions such as
Hops varietals at Hops and Berries in Fort Collins, Colo. | photo by Christopher Schooley
Malts at Hops and Berries in Fort Collins, Colo. | photo by Christopher Schooley
why we’re considered overpriced, and why we might be inaccessible
in comparison.”
In an effort to become even more accessible, craft beer started
its own canned beer revolution recently and had to battle many
preconceived perceptions about canned beer. “When we started, the
idea of canning beer was blasphemous,” says Dale Katechis, founder
of Colorado-based Oskar Blues. “It was frowned upon as a cheap
way to deliver lager-style cheap beer. The fact is, if you put bad beer
in a can, it’s going to be bad beer. But our goal is to deliver beer as
fresh as possible, and the can is the best.” Cans preserve freshness
and are easier on the environment, and consumers have embraced
the trend. Now, nearly 200 craft breweries have started to can their
products, making them more portable and open to certain venues,
like stadiums and tailgating.
Creating a more accessible route for our products to be enjoyed is
essential to staying competitive, and they should always be preserved
for freshness in the most effective way. Certain companies have
supported this approach by selling cold-brew coffee in bottles, and
many are starting to come up with other portable options for their
products, which is certainly a step in the right direction.
Moving forward, the specialty coffee industry could focus
on offering increased opportunities for consumers to both learn
and share their opinion about products. Flavor notes are usually
provided, but that’s usually a one-way conversation without input
continued on page 48
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Crafting Collaboration | Learning From and Growing With Craft Beer (continued)
from the consumer. Offering a more
approachable path for consumers to
engage and understand our products, and
provide feedback, is integral to developing
a collective of devout specialty coffee
enthusiasts. More consumer-driven events
will certainly help spark interest and engage
larger crowds about what’s behind the
product, why it’s so special and what makes
it unique.
And what about shared events? There
is much ground to be gained by addressing
consumers as a unified front of craft goods
purveyors: making connections not just
for ourselves and our own understanding
of other craft products, but encouraging
consumers to make those connections.
Being enthusiastic consumers of one craft
product has a great chance of leading fans
Three Floyds’ Dark Lord stout and Intelligentsia coffee | photo by David Leep
to be enthusiastic consumers of another.
For the annual Roasters Guild Retreat, the
Roasters Guild Executive Council has always
tried to partner with or showcase a local brewery with its kegs
available at the social functions at the event. What if there was a
Roasters Guild or SCAA booth at the GABF that showcased a number
of different beer/coffee collaborations?
Both specialty coffee and craft beer are competing against
marketing from multinational firms that use terminology from
craft segments to try to reach the craft drinker. Their use of words
like artisanal or packaging that mimics a specialty product by
adding some general information about the beer or coffee directly
challenges our efforts. Truly setting ourselves apart by delivering
quality and teaching consumers how to identify it is our best
defense. In many ways, craft beer and specialty coffee are the
quintessential independent businesses in many communities
throughout the United States and beyond. Combining our efforts
to enrich these communities will prove to be a great benefit for
New Belgium Brewing: different product levels | photo by Christopher Schooley
everyone.
Alexandra Katona-Carroll is the founder of Sensaay, a
new company dedicated to the promotion of craft beer, specialty coffee and fine tea.
She has been in the specialty coffee industry for nearly six years and is a member of
SCAA’s Sustainability Council. Contact her via e-mail at alex@sensaay.com.
Christopher Schooley is a coffee roaster who works for Sweet
Maria’s and Coffee Shrub and is the Immediate Past Chair of the Roasters Guild
Executive Council. He lives in Fort Collins, Colo., which is home to a number of the
finest craft breweries in the country, a number of specialty coffee roasters, and an
expanding and dynamic craft community. Contact him via e-mail at
chris@coffeeshrub.com.
Information on the New Belgium bottles | photo by Christopher Schooley
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