Franconian Beer Message Board

Gassy Pils
Posted by Mark Andersen on 2017-01-14 16:47:20
Well I tried and couldn't find the previous thread I was thinking about.  Too much to sort through.  Maybe we will rehash it again.  What the hell, it's winter time and it's slow.

Just a couple of things to bear in mind.

1.  There is really no long standing history and tradition of cask ale here that survived prohibition.  A significant market for it really doesn't exist and the experience to do it properly is sorely lacking as well from most of what I have encountered.  It's more a special occasion thing for beer nerds like me.  Most pub going regulars don't care about it.

2.  Distribution system in US is such that if my local pub only carried six taps those types with be occupied mostly by the likes of Budweiser, Guinness, etc.  I.e. the stuff that most people still drink here and if we were lucky we'd have a good beer or two on occasionally.  The micro brewing scene would suffer from lack of taps.  Pubs having more taps is what allows them to carry beers that will draw my interest and get me out to the pub rather than drinking at home.  Although I do agree that it gets out of hand.  There is no reason whatsoever for a pub to have the ridiculous amount of taps that some of them have (like 99 for instance).  At some point it's just a marketing gimmick rather than good business.

3. Climate issues as I've mentioned.  Many places in the USA are too hot and don't have cellars (Florida for instance) and many are too cold.  A beer in a cellar in Minnesota in the dead of winter might not fare too well.

4. Prohibition wiped out the brewing industry.  What was left in the aftermath was keg.  I'm not sure how much cask there may have been around here before then at any rate.

Those are the major issues as I see it.  Others may have other points to make.  



 
 
Followups:
                 Gassy Pils by FredW on  2017-01-14 17:04:40
                 Gassy Pils by Barry on  2017-01-15 04:10:11
                   Gassy Pils by Mark Andersen on  2017-01-15 06:04:23
                   Gassy Pils by Mark Andersen on  2017-01-15 06:48:25
                     Canny Pils by Nick B. on  2017-01-15 07:37:52
                     Cask vs Keg by Uncle Jimbo on  2017-01-15 10:03:36
                       Cask vs Keg by Nick B. on  2017-01-15 11:05:55