by Derek G Rogers

Created on: June 21, 2008   Last Updated: November 07, 2008

Where beer is brewed not only matters, it matters very much! The basic ingredients all ingest the singular attributes of their point of origination. The principal is the same as in the wine growing countries of the world. No one would argue that all wines taste the same, it is the same for beers. They vary from country to country and long live the difference!

The weather will play an important part in the quality and taste of those basic ingredients. It is a fact that hops grown in different parts of the world vary in quality and quantity. By skilful brewing, often to age old or secret recipes and methods, these ingredients combine to produce a unique taste, peculiar to a specific area of a specific country. Water cannot the same in the USA as in Europe, indeed it is doubtful if the taste of water is the same in the all the different States of the Union. The soil will certainly be very different country by country, state by state, area by area and will impart a different flavour to the hops. The brewing method will differ slightly to conform to brewing traditions and government regulations. It is therefore axiomatic that the tastes must be different for all beers when brewed outside the area of it's creation. That is not to say that the beer produced outside it's point of origin will be of less value or taste unpleasant, it simply means that it's taste will be different to the original. It may well taste better!

Clever marketing may convince many that the exact taste of the brand has been successfully reproduced. Television advertisements showing people enjoying the beer in the country or area of origin will set the scene, newspaper and magazine articles will reinforce the image, a public relations programme will further drive home the similarities, and tastings will further encourage the uptake of a new product. However, despite all this activity devoted beer drinkers will know that it is rarely possible reproduce the unique taste of particular brand from a particular place. In the United Kingdom this point is so strong that a movement has been set up called the Campaign for Real Ale. It enthuses about the dissimilarities of the regional brewings rather that the sameness.

There are many Brand names that prove the point: Guiness, for example; that produced outside Ireland never tastes quite the same. Stella Artois is not as good when brewed outside Belgium. San Miguel tastes better when drunk in Spain. Brands that have crossed the Atlantic into Europe have succeeded, not because they taste as good as the brand in the USA but because they have a different taste to those brands already on offer. Few consumers can have any idea if the taste is the same in Europe as in The States. Do the Canadian beers taste the same as those from the USA? It is doubtful. So...Does it matter if your beer is American brewed? Yes of course it doesit matters very much. Most of all to the Americans.

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