Loyal readers may have noticed a complete lack of beer reviews here lately. There’s a reason for it (well, two actually—one is that I’ve been busy doing summer stuff and recruiting new authors). I’ve decided I don’t like my “mug count” review system anymore. As I’ve had more (and more interesting) beers of late, I’ve decided that it’s not really fair to give a numeric rating to a beer. It’s way too subjective and can be influenced by things like food pairing, the previous beer you had, and general mood.
Therefore, I’m unveiling today a new review system. Instead of a numeric rating of zero to five mugs, I will be using one of the following three “ratings” for the beers I sample:
- Don’t Miss This One — Seek this beer out. It’s a great or unusual brew that should not be missed.
- Worth Trying — This is a beer that you should definitely try. I wouldn’t necessarily drive out of my way to find it, or pick a restaurant solely because it has this on tap, but if you see it on the menu, give it a try.
- Don’t Go Out of Your Way — This beer is not a standout in its style. It may still be a good beer, and shouldn’t necessarily be avoided, but it’s also not a “special” beer worthy of a long drive or change of restaurant plans just to have.
So there you go, my new “rating” system. After trying over a hundred different beers in the last 18 months or so, I’ve really gained a new appreciation for the nuance of different styles and the care that goes into brewing them. Therefore I really can’t justify saying that something is only worthy of one mug out of five just because I didn’t personally love it. Even something like one of the (no longer) American macro lagers does have some redeeming qualities. The A-B brewers love their craft and work hard to produce a consistent product in extremely high volume. There’s something to be said for that.
Oh, and keep an eye out for some new reviews to be posted with this new system. They’ll probably be a little shorter than reviews past, but hopefully with the new rating system they won’t be as few and far between.