THE 15 th 100 Beer Club

The 15 th 100 Beer Club is now open for business. This year's club has will focus mostly on the American craft-brewed beers since they appear to be more accessible as well as fresher, and quite frankly, just as good as any import. The consolidation in the beer industry has played a huge role in distribution, thus affecting what's on the market in your local beer bar like Andy's or even the liquor stores. Even American breweries that we've come to know and love have felt the pinch. Companies have either cut back on distribution or fallen by the wayside. Factors like fuel costs and even the winter weather have made breweries think twice about shipping their products long distance.

Yet, there is a silver lining in all of this. Local guys like Defient, and Flying Fish have played the game right, and concentrated on local markets. The beer is always good, fresh, and most of all, affordable. This kind of strategy is probably just as apparent in cities like Denver, Portland, even Baltimore- concentrate on the locals and develop brand loyalty.

As for the beers themselves, brewers keep pushing the envelope as far as alcohol content, "style," and even flavors. Hops are huge, much to my chagrin, as an explosion of Double and Imperial IPA have become the recent trend. Dogfish Head, Avery, Stoudt's and Smuttynose have followed Rogue's lead and super-hopped their IPAs. Nothing is off limits and everything is left to the imagination of the brewer. Brewing has truly become an art as well as a science.

We look forward to another decade or so of beer clubs!