Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah (A book review)

     I appreciate every single person involved in the brewing, marketing and distribution of all types of beer. Since prohibition is has been a business with many hurdles and obstacles that have been dealt by many. Those who have dealt with them the best have come out the other side as pretty successful business men, who can honestly claim a labor of passion. In the following review of this book and brewery I am trying to focus on the positive points I found from reading this book while drinking these beers. L'Chaim!

    I picked up a Jewbelation 16 this year after reading and hearing about it from several different sources. It was not the first beer I have had from Schmaltz Brewing but it was the first one that really got my attention, so I got on the Internet and looked up their website. I found this book listed there, so I made a purchase as an investment towards my beer career. 

    The book began as a story of a man fresh out of college looking for the solution to his unemployment, and lack of passion for the work that has survived him so long. He hadn't really much of a craft beer experience or opinion but the scene around him in California was electric at the time. Jeremy Cowan figured if he could come up with clever shtick, or marketing he could create a brand that could maybe provide an income. He quickly learned the beer business the hard way, by making a lot of mistakes. It seemed he was so sure the gimmick would sell that he couldn't hit the curve balls of not having well backed marketing support, or industry experience in Hop crisis or Keg crisis. He had all of his beers brewed by other companies who could help him. His early luck by landing Anderson Valley as a brewer may have been the only thing that got him through to today. 

   The logistics of running a brewery are more easily realized by a person who has their hands in more of the total business. You have to have a good idea of best case and worst case scenario when racking up serious credit card debt to try to get a brewery off the ground. A wholesaler can be your biggest asset in helping you get the most out of your marketing dollar, and believe me they aren't making but a small percentage themselves off your product. 

     The best thing that happened to Hebrew brewing was the extreme beer movement. This movement really pushes the needle on what is acceptable as beer. Some of these ales are 30% alcohol and taste like gasoline. Jewbelation is the anniversary ale that is made every year around Christmas and is as potent as the celebrated year. It however is a good beer for aging, being very boozy.

      My honest opinion is that Jeremy Cowan has put the work in to complain about his string of bad luck, but as a consumer, I don't want to hear it. There are new breweries popping up everyday, and they have a lot of plans based on the strength and weaknesses of what have come before them. "Cowboy up!" like Butch says, pull your cowboy hat down over your ears and you boots up. Those of us on the distributor side wouldn't be caught dead without our six shooters.