You know what I love about craft beer?

It's the community. It's always having something to talk about. It's having something more to talk about than the weather,  because in San Diego the conversation about the weather is one note.  It's about meeting people and immediately feeling like kindred spirits. It's about meeting someone who knows more than you do and being able to ask real questions and not feel like your opinions and experience make you less able to contribute. It's also about meeting someone who knows less than you do and being able to ask them what they are interested in and not feel like they have nothing to contribute to the conversation. It's about building relationships and then building a community.

I know that people think the craft beer scene is pretentious and closed off. I've seen people believe in the stereotypes and I've seen rolled eyes when a beer geek obsesses about what is "good" on tap. I get it. I was once on the outside, too. As with anything, coming up against the wall of intense knowledge and love for something can be intimidating. There are people that think vegans are pretentious and closed off, but then see the intense environmental advocacy and respect for all living things that unites that community.  The point is, any group, when viewed from the outside, will seem walled in by their knowledge and their passion. Until you share a tiny bit of that, we all feel like we're on the outside of that wall with no way in.

But more often than not, I've seen those same "hipster beer geeks" try repeatedly to break down these walls.  I've attended beer community forums that demonstrate that they genuinely care about the local economy. I've seen groups of beer geeks advocate for grassroots changes in city codes or take on corporate dominance not just restricting their own growth, but the growth of other, non-brewing, businesses. I've seen them constantly and doggedly fight for the little guy.  There are organizations to empower women, reduce unsafe drinking, support failing businesses, fund a family facing hard times, and reinvigorate a struggling community or historical center. These don't look like the actions of an exclusive club or a business that is only looking out for itself. These are the workings of a community.

Maybe I'm biased because San Diego is such a beer-centric town. I'll concede that point.  It's a place where beer advocacy is the name of the game, and spreading the love of craft beer is essential to the survival of all 120+ breweries in this town. If they didn't reach out and try to convert new craft beer lovers, the county would not be able to sustain all these businesses. So maybe it's an act of self-preservation. But I don't think so.

San Diego is earning the title of "craft beer capital" because it genuinely wants to share its passion with the world (also, we have outpaced the other contender, Portland, though their count is in the city and ours is in the county...we need to discuss semantics).  This community is more inclusive than exclusive. There are so many breweries, home-brewers, aficionados, beer geeks, casual craft beer lovers here that it can't help forming a community, a network of "in-crowds" and we get some flack for that. But what makes San Diego's community special is that the sheer number of breweries in our county has forced beer culture to become ingrained in the fabric of society.  It's not just what some people do or love here, it's part of San Diego's charm.

Some argue this is a dangerous level of saturation. Some complain about the prevalence of an alcohol-centric culture. I'm a college instructor. I see the effects our craft beer industry has on the young people in this town. They care about quality, not quantity. They value small businesses, not corporate giants. They take pride in individuality, not mass production. There will always be a faction of society that just cares about getting drunk, but our craft culture makes the focus on the art, the technique, and the variety of different beers, not just the ABV.  I see more and more young adults learning to pay attention to not just what they drink, but how they drink--safely, locally, and focused on taste and quality.  This is a direct result of our craft beer community who always takes the time to do public outreach, to be a part of their communities, to meet and make connections with their consumers.

Consumer power is everything. But consumers who want to do more, who want to identify with and support the values, beliefs, and ideals of the producers of what they are consuming is a relatively new phenomenon.  In this era of "think global, act local" consumers can and should spend their money where they feel an connection with the product.  We should never forget this power, as consumers or as producers.

This community is what I love about craft beer. It's an eco system where we all play a role, from the brewers to the investors to the beer geeks to the accidental consumers. Emphasizing the wall between the industry and the general non-craft beer drinking public won't help anyone and we know it. This is why this town and this community is all about the relationships that make a vast, complicated web of interconnectedness.  These relationships help this slightly-socially-awkward, conversationally-challenged beer lover make friends and make small talk that isn't painful.


(Photo below: San Diego Beer Forum on March 6 2016 @Mission Brewery to discuss the state of San Diego beer industry.)