Sam Adams Oktoberfest

Evidently, the same criteria you're using to accuse SA of something you have yet to confirm.

nb

The same way that sellers of all manner of consumer goods claim their product in number 1 in one way or another. They just do it and most of us understand such language is little more than puffery. If the decision to buy or not buy Sam's Oktoberfest is contingent on whether the beer ranks #1 in worldwide sales, then you could certainly look into it. Me, I would rather get to tasting and decide whether it was a good beer.

Same here, but I can understand why people would be suspicious of some of the Boston Beer Company's advertising.

I was seriously underwhelmed by my last several tastes of the SA Oktoberfest.

I would be *really* surprised if that were true. For one thing, beers like Paulaner's fest get sold year 'round, and I have to think that would sell more than some crystal-malt-laden US seasonal.

Well, I suppose that could be a risk of a brewer getting big and trying to stay that way. The products have to appeal to a wider range of beer drinkers.

But retailers are not known for understating the quality of their goods and services. I pretty much assume when Sam Adams, Ford Motor, Wal Mart or Neiman Marcus says they are number one in this or that measure that their claim really can't be substntiated in any meaningful way.

Well, bud is the #1 selling beer, in the sense that they sell most. I wouldn't be shocked if Sam A. has such a large distribution that they do in fact sell more of the stuff than any other Octoberfest. I can't think of any other large brewery that even make one.

Luckily sales ranking doesn't equal quality. Actually it might be nice if it was the case but alas...

Here's a sort of depressing article that seems to show that as beer quality improves sales decrease.

I'm sure we're all shocked and amazed.

Ben

There can be glimmers of hope. Apparently A-B is producing under the Michelob brand a summer wheat that tastes surprisingly like a Hefe Weizen should.

Unfortunately the ability to produce a mediocre beer is not limited to the big guys. Dominion once produced a summer wheat that was delightful. Well they dumbed the flavor down and it's pretty bland now. And Widmer, who is known for some good beer also produces somehting they call a Hefe Weizen. It too is, well... rather plain tasting.

John, who enjoys a good Hefe.

Hell, their Jack Pumkin isn't actually all that bad. I don't how wide A-B's distro is on it, but I expected much worse.

I'm not shocked. I'd have friends who brag about how little they pay for a case of beer. The article says that there is no correlation between beer quality and sales volume. I'd bet if they did a study comparing price to sales volume, there would be a correlation.