The Craft Beer Thread

Vegeta said:
Castle Lite.... befok! try hom yskoud uit die tap. Beter as jaap se stront wat hy agter in sy yard maak
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The only reason you have to drink that swill ice cold is to hide just how awful it actually tastes.
 
The guys dissing the mass market beers just keep in mind that most local craft brewers purchase their hops and malt from SAB its not like there are any other local producers. The same hops and malt that go into your Castle goes into your "Special" "incredible" craft brew.

Gives a person a new respect for the quality that actually goes into mainstream SAB products doesn't it...
 
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Vegeta said:
The guys dissing the mass market beers just keep in mind that most local craft brewers purchase their hops and malt from SAB its not like there are any other local producers. The same hops and malt that go into your Castle goes into your "Special" "incredible" craft brew.

Gives a person a new respect for the quality that actually goes into mainstream SAB products doesn't it...
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Some of their malt, and maybe some of their hops.

The rest is imported.

SAB only produce pale and black patent malt (as far as I know) - they produce a few hop varieties but I can guarantee that the majority of the hops used by local breweries are either grown in the US, Europe or New Zealand.

Quality with regards to a consistent product - sure SAB have that down. Quality with regards to taste - not so much when compared to well made Lagers and Pilsners.
 
Necropolis said:
Some of their malt, and maybe some of their hops.

The rest is imported.

SAB only produce pale and black patent malt (as far as I know) - they produce a few hop varieties but I can guarantee that the majority of the hops used by local breweries are either grown in the US, Europe or New Zealand.

Quality with regards to a consistent product - sure SAB have that down. Quality with regards to taste - not so much when compared to well made Lagers and Pilsners.
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On the malt you're right about the pale and black, if for example you want to make a Weissbier you'll have a bit of a problem.

On the hops I don't agree with you the majority of craft brewers use Southern Aroma, Southern Promise and a few other new varieties that SAB sells to them but don't use in their mainstream products just yet. Look they do import but far less than people realise, local is lekker as a cracker and the craft brewers know this! That's why they spring up like mushrooms, we have some good sheat here in SA my friend. The success of this industry is no accident.
 
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Vegeta said:
On the malt you're right abou the pale and black, if for example you want to make a Weissbier you'll have a bit of a problem
On the hops I don't agree with you the majority of craft brewers use Southern Aroma, Southern Promise and a few other new varieties that SAB sells to them but don't use in their mainstream products just yet. Look they do import but local is lekker as a crackker and the craft brewers know this! That's why they spring up like mushrooms, we have some good sheat here in SA my friend.
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They are springing up like mushrooms because there is money to be made in the craft beer scene.

With regards to the hops - I highly, highly doubt that the local guys are using SAB hops over the international hops. I'm sure they do use some of them - but there is a far bigger variety available from overseas.

Oh and when it comes to grain there is a lot more available than pale malt and wheat malt.
 
Necropolis said:
They are springing up like mushrooms because there is money to be made in the craft beer scene.

With regards to the hops - I highly, highly doubt that the local guys are using SAB hops over the international hops. I'm sure they do use some of them - but there is a far bigger variety available from overseas.

Oh and when it comes to grain there is a lot more available than pale malt and wheat malt.
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Maybe one can come post over here and tell us their secrets.
 
MongooseMan said:
Same at Den Anker at the waterfront. Mainly due to the glass:
View attachment 255604

It's actually the first time I've seen it at a liquor store in SA. I had it Belgium a couple of years ago, and it was the best beer I'd ever tasted at the time. I was keen to see how it would hold up, now that I'm more "experienced". It definitely didn't disappoint.
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I really enjoyed Kwak when I was in Belgium a few years ago, brought a gift pack back with one of those glasses :D
 
Vegeta said:
The guys dissing the mass market beers just keep in mind that most local craft brewers purchase their hops and malt from SAB its not like there are any other local producers. The same hops and malt that go into your Castle goes into your "Special" "incredible" craft brew.

Gives a person a new respect for the quality that actually goes into mainstream SAB products doesn't it...
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This is true.

Craft beer makers just have much more leeway to experiment, whereas SAB have to stick to tried and tested methods but you'd be surprised as to how much of the market they have with their products.
 
VernD said:
This is true.

Craft beer makers just have much more leeway to experiment, whereas SAB have to stick to tried and tested methods but you'd be surprised as to how much of the market they have with their products.
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Surprised by SAB's market share?

Not really.
 
VernD said:
This is true.

Craft beer makers just have much more leeway to experiment, whereas SAB have to stick to tried and tested methods but you'd be surprised as to how much of the market they have with their products.
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Things like aging in Oak barrels for example is incredible but your brew is awesome because of that creative licence that they have and not because of superior ingredients or a more "natural" process that's all marketing.
 
VernD said:
It's probably not as big as you think because they've lost their Heineken license ages ago and they're facing stiff competition from other brewers, imports, and the shift in people's tastes and drinking habits.
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dude, the Heineken license was small compared to their main stream brands, they still account for about 80% of the local market

imports and other brewers, including craft, are mainly targetting the premium sector, SAB still owns the main stream in a big way
 
OMB said:
dude, the Heineken license was small compared to their main stream brands, they still account for about 80% of the local market

imports and other brewers, including craft, are mainly targetting the premium sector, SAB still owns the main stream in a big way
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It's the same in the states.
 
OMB said:
dude, the Heineken license was small compared to their main stream brands, they still account for about 80% of the local market

imports and other brewers, including craft, are mainly targetting the premium sector, SAB still owns the main stream in a big way
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80%??

Heineken pffffft

Try over 90% I've heard numbers of around 96% being thrown around.
http://www.sabmiller.com/docs/defau...sional-seminar-south-africa-2014.pdf?sfvrsn=6
They also dominate the softdrink market with over 90% market share as well.

This is why they are embracing craft brewing as it cultivates a beer drinking/appreciation culture... more people like beer more people buy beer and 96% of them go to them for beer, simple
 
Vegeta said:
Maybe one can come post over here and tell us their secrets.
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There are a few experimental SAB hop cultivars that are very sought after by local brewers, but generally it's the common SAB hops (S. Promise, PIH blend etc.) that are used just for bittering. I'd say the majority of flavour and aroma hops being used in the SA craft industry is imported. Same thing for grain: most brewers are using SAB's pale male and black malt, but the rest of the specialty malt is imported (to my knowledge, it's mostly Weyermann and Beztmalz with some Castle Maltings and Thomas Fawcett as well). Brauhaus, for one, uses only German malt, even for their base malt.

When it comes to local craft lagers and Africa Pale Ales, I wouldn't be surprised if many of these are SAB only ingredients, but bear in mind that they likely have no maize added like SAB beers.
 
BCO said:
There are a few experimental SAB hop cultivars that are very sought after by local brewers, but generally it's the common SAB hops (S. Promise, PIH blend etc.) that are used just for bittering. I'd say the majority of flavour and aroma hops being used in the SA craft industry is imported. Same thing for grain: most brewers are using SAB's pale male and black malt, but the rest of the specialty malt is imported (to my knowledge, it's mostly Weyermann and Beztmalz with some Castle Maltings and Thomas Fawcett as well). Brauhaus, for one, uses only German malt, even for their base malt.

When it comes to local craft lagers and Africa Pale Ales, I wouldn't be surprised if many of these are SAB only ingredients, but bear in mind that they likely have no maize added like SAB beers.
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I knew I wasn't far off the mark :D
 
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