Is beer education superfluous in 2026? That’s an argument I’ve heard from a fair share of brewery owners, pundits, bartenders, beer writers, and restaurateurs.
As evidence, they emphasize the sheer ubiquity of craft beer, the mainstream acceptance and massive growth in popularity that’s landed all measure of small-batch ales and lagers on retail shelves, from big box stores to bodegas, and on the tap lists of dive bars, fast-casual joints, neighborhood taverns, and suburban chains alike.
The early days may have required a (crash) course in craft beer—so the argument goes—but the converts were made, and the word has spread. Today, there are nearly 10,000 breweries in the United States, and most people live within 10 miles of a taproom. Plus, the younger generation just isn’t interested in geeking out on beer, no matter how available it may be. They’re ordering up experiences—with a bev-alc sidecar, sipped straight from the can—and the more familiar the flavor profile, the better.
Many brewers have pandered to the supposed shift in taste by introducing all manner of straightforward seltzers and RTDs, each imbued with recognizable ingredients and often appealing to nostalgia. The remaining beer lists are condensed, stylistically uniform, and announced on succinct menus that often communicate nothing more than name, style, price, and Untappd rating. Nowadays you’re likely to catch a glimpse of these offerings glowing overhead on converted flat screens or on your phone after scanning a QR code at the bar.
Too often, modern menus—in their stripped-down simplicity—belie the layers of intention and inspiration that influence the character of those beers. In an effort to entice the younger drinking generation, we’ve been transforming our offerings and how we showcase them. Along the way, though, craft beer has lost the reverence and respect it once received from guests, who appreciated the narratives behind diverse beer offerings and detailed menu descriptions.
They used to celebrate our teams for relaying the passion of producers through service, hospitality, and education. It’s high time we get back to that.
Back to the Roots
Going back 25 years—long before hazy IPAs, pastry stouts, and fruited sours came to dominate the beer scene, and before beer-rating sites fueled rare-release lines and trading mania—craft beer was a niche interest in need of new consumers.
That movement had developed in direct opposition to industrial lager, with all its overtly commercial trappings, but it also drew inspiration from brewing traditions rightfully revered in their home countries and (increasingly) abroad. We took brewing lessons from the Belgians, Brits, and Germans, and along the way we also learned to celebrate a wide array of full-flavored ales and lagers.
Through the ceremony of service—complete with proper pours in particular glassware at correct temperatures—we spun stories about our beers, and we held tastings and pairing dinners on-premise, where the margins were (and still are) best. We introduced little-known traditions, styles, ingredients, and brewing techniques first and foremost through our menus, which served as training manuals for so many of those early guests.
Just over a decade ago, it became obvious that everything had changed. The reverence for craft-beer culture—first established through elevated on-premise experiences—had waned. Many guests had become infatuated with collecting rare bottles and cans for hoarding and home consumption. Business boomed, and brewers trimmed their catalogs to capitalize on hyped styles increasingly popularized by social media.
It was fun, but it also commodified craft beer and detached it from the in-house experience—the service and the storytelling—that had helped to create the initial excitement. I remember a national magazine around that time canceling an article about beer glassware because too many brewers and buyers claimed they simply weren’t interested in that aspect of service anymore. Beer menus followed suit, and bars trimmed back on glassware and de-emphasized it.
In simplifying our service—in dumbing it down—we’ve ironically removed the very thing that today’s younger drinkers are looking for: an experience.
Back to the Details
We need to bring back a bevy of glassware, and we need to talk about it on our menus. Same thing for serving temperatures, specific brewing ingredients, and techniques.
As brewers, you should get credit for all the time and effort spent on malt and hop selection, and so should the growers and maltsters. If you’re dispensing beer via Lukr tap, flow-control faucet, or cask engine, mention that, and provide background on how and why. Add tasting notes.
Talk about your brewing ethos as an introduction to what makes your brewery unique. Don’t just list styles, ABVs, and price points—commit to representing a range of each category, so that you have a beer for each guest and every moment. Variety across flavor profiles, price points, and strengths has always differentiated craft beer, and it should continue to do so.
Meanwhile, there’s another benefit to a solid and expansive menu: It’s not only the perfect training manual for guests, but it also works for staff. By developing an informative and useful document for the guest, you’re creating the template from which your team should work.
Use that menu as a reference point for your staff as they become immersed in the foundation and perspective of your brewery. Once they can define and speak to each and every term and concept detailed on your menu, they’ll be prepared to slow down, engage, and educate the guest. They’ll also further appreciate how exceptional your brewery is—and that’s important. How can we expect guests to cherish craft beer, and our contributions to it, if our teams don’t?
Educated staff are crucial to creating the extraordinary experience that today’s drinkers appreciate.
Back to the Experience
Much has been made about course correction in our industry. Amid slowing sales, consolidations, and closures, brewers are developing strategies to survive and to hopefully thrive.
However, if these tactics continue to morph beer into something increasingly indistinguishable from competitive canned options and the like, how can we expect future generations to reengage with craft? We can only reaffirm the singular nature of craft beer by rekindling our original approach, one menu at a time.
When new guests give craft beer another look, we’ll once again be ready to provide truly memorable experiences.