The Brewers Association brings its Export Development Program (EDP) to Europe
It was great to see the Brewers Association bringing its Export Development Program (EDP) to Europe again.
Astute beer lovers in Europe appreciate the quality and diversity within the US craft beer industry, yet we still hear comments from so-called beer-lovers that US craft beer culture is still focused on the pre-80s ‘big beer’ brand. That is unfortunately far from the truth and, frankly, quite insular in attitude. Therefore, what the BA are doing there is a wonderful opportunity for US breweries to learn about and get exposure to international markets.
However, the exposure may be limited to Trade events and other forums that aren’t wholly public-facing, which may be slighting limiting to US craft beer promotion to the people who matter: the drinkers and beer-lovers. There are people in Europe, for example, who are focused on bringing US Craft Beer to consumers here, such as All Kinds of Beers, for example. But as drinkers we’d like to see more: more beer at more events reachable by more people.
This weekend we enjoyed beers in Europe from Albuquerque’s Rio Bravo Brewing Comany, something we may not have had the pleasure of doing without a visit to New Mexico. Also worth mentioning are Wormtown Brewery (Worcester, Massachusetts), Empire Brewing Company (Syracuse, New York) and Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales (Dexter, Michigan), who were representing US Craft Beer alongside more well-known names as Oskar Blues and Sierra Nevada.