I was once a craft beer evangelist. I believed it was the future, and the past was dead in the water. That past, to me, was over a century of British brewing tradition: bitter, mild, porter. I was ready for the global Americanisation of beer culture—double dry hopped everything. 

But I was wrong, and eventually I realised that. Craft beer was not new, not a revolution, not the sea change of an entire culture I, for some reason, longed for, just the continuation of a thing that already existed: beer. 

I have realised there are much more important things within beer culture than craft beer: independent beer, well made beer, ethical beer, beer that gives a shit, delicious beer. All of this is more important than ever trying to define it, and always will be. 

In this, the last of our podcasts to be recorded at IndyManBeerCon 2023, I speak with some fellow beer industry lifers about craft beer, and what it means for us now. With huge thanks to our guests: Cath Potter of CAMRA, Lauren Soderberg then of Port Street Beer House and now of Deya Brewery, and James Campbell of Sureshot Brewery. 

Please enjoy this conversation as we try to untangle “craft beer” and then let us never speak of it again. Good beer will always be there for us, and perhaps it doesn’t need to be anything more than that. 

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