Andy CrouchCraft BeerUSA Today

A Few Words About That Little USA Today Article…

So a couple of times a month, I receive requests from media around the country to offer some thoughts on craft beer or to suggest some good places to go. After traveling around the American beer scene for more than a decade, I’m more than happy to assist. Some times the media are calling from a little newspaper in Oklahoma and some times it’s USA Today. I was fortunate enough to be interviewed by USA Today for my book, Great American Craft Beer, when it was released and the paper recently called again for help with an article titled, 10 Great Places to Get A Craft Beer.

The criteria for the latest article were as follows: a geographically diverse selection of American brewpubs in medium to large urban settings. This doesn’t mean breweries or tap rooms or your favorite local small town brewpub. Despite this, I’m still catching some blow-back from beer geeks with hurt feelings over my having not selected their favorite pub or brewery (remember the criteria now…) or having skipped their state.

The list was capped at 10, not 100. If you want more detail on your local brewery or beer, try reading Great American Craft Beer and let me know how I did.

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11 thoughts on “A Few Words About That Little USA Today Article…

  1. As a beer writer, don’t you know that it’s your responsibility to validate ALL opinions. Maybe you didn’t get the memo…

    😉

  2. Thanks for calling me a beer geek! Although I don’t think I’m worthy of the title yet. 🙂

    My feelings weren’t hurt over your article, it was just one of the ones that missed Colorado entirely. I did say that “I haven’t read the book” and “I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt”. All of your selections did sound great though, and I’m sure there’s plenty of areas here that fit the criteria of “American Brewpubs in medium to large urban areas”.

    1. Hey Mike, no problem, your post was positive while other emails I received were less so. Good work promoting great CO beer.

      Cheers,

      Andy

  3. Writing a top 10 list of beers–or top 100, or top 1,000–is ambitious and is always going to raise the ire of the masses. People tend to relate to local breweries the same way they do local sports teams. Not seeing Bells or Shorts on your list was like watching the Wings lose to Sharks. But I can’t control either one, and there’s always next time. Besides, if the Wings never lost, hockey wouldn’t be very interesting.

    Thanks for giving us all some new ideas for the summer. Happy drinking.

    1. Hey Brandon-

      List was also called 10 Great Places, not the 10 Greatest Places. Plenty plenty more to go around for sure.

      Cheers,

      Andy

  4. Hey,

    If the story gets more ‘non-geeks’ to visit a beer destination (or buy Andy’s book) it’s not a bad thing. And, if they like Portsmouth, they’ll like Willimantic as well.

    buy craft, drink local….

  5. No shout-out for Portland, Maine? Gritty McDuff’s, Sebago Brewing (brewpubs); proud home to Allagash, Geary’s, Shipyard, Maine Beer Co. (breweries whose wonderful beer you can find in nearly every bar in pub in the city); and I won’t even mention tremendous beer bars Novare Res, 3 Dollar Dewey’s and many more? (OK, I mentioned them.) Portsmouth. NH has a more / better beer diversity? P-shaw. Well, maybe I’ll consider your little list when I travel outside of Portland on business. 😉

      1. Awww … I shoulda known you knew about the Great State of Maine (beer)! But I wasn’t aware you included it in your book. I’ll definitely have to check it out. Seriously, Novare Res — check it out on your next visit to the right Portland.

  6. It’s a good list. Ten is ridiculous, so you have to make a grid with best cities and best brewpubs, find the hot nodes, and do your best. One of the functions of lists like this is not validation, but education. I’ve been to about half the places on your list–which means there are five to put on mine.

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