After the Show # 1 | “Scoring Perplexing Beer”
After the Show (ATS) is a new segment we’ll be sharing with you all on The Hopry. It will be a segment where we won’t be formally reviewing a beer, but instead will be periodically talking about beer in an informal manner. This is something we tend to do once the camera shuts off, but we feel this will be a fun way to share the “off-camera dialogue” with you all. And we HIGHLY encourage your input and discussion on these as that is the point of the segment.
For this ATS, we wanted to discuss “scoring perplexing beer.” The Fritz & Ken’s Ale is a beer that both of us felt a bit unsure of and how we would score it. So it brings up the question; how does one score a beer that doesn’t really fit the style it’s in or is unique enough that it’s hard to compare to others?
Thank you for your continued support. Please rate this review below…
Posted by theReaper16 on December 14, 2010 at 11:13 AM
Tough questions. I rate to style, so my scores are first and foremost attuned to the style. I’ve scored a couple of beers in the A- range on BeerAdvocate that I don’t enjoy as much as beers that I’ve given a B or even a B- to. This is because I can look past my style preferences and see that, say, Left Hand 400 Pound Monkey is a very good English IPA.
Occasionally, I will be drinking a beer and will think that this is not the style that it is listed under on Beer Advocate, or even the style that the packaging calls it. If I really think that the beer is a different style, I will specify in my review that I am reviewing it as something else.
For experimental, envelope-pushing beers that fall in between styles? That’s tougher yet sort of simpler, too. I will tend to explain why, given the styles that the beer attempts to blend, that this beer works or doesn’t; I don’t have to worry as much about style.
I haven’t tasted Fritz & Ken’s, though I do have a bottle of it. It sounds like the score given matches the videos. My impression was that the beer was fairly one-note, although the note can be very enjoyable depending on how much you like roast & smoke.
Posted by thehopry on December 14, 2010 at 12:54 PM
It was fairly one note as you suggest. I think what through us off (as I stated either in the review or this ATS), was the fact that it was so smoky but nothing on the bottle or website hinted at this component. Not saying that they have to list that, but I was just expecting a more traditional imperial stout and what we got was a smoky band-aid stout. As for your comment about rating to style, I don’t leave that thought process out but I admit that I tend to lean more toward the enjoyment factor. Having said that, though, I agree that sometimes I may review a Brown Ale (for example) and even though I don’t care for the style I have had enough to be able to tell how much better or worse it is than the others I’ve had. So it’s really a mix of things and a definite tightrope when you have people looking at your scores as heavily as we do here.
Posted by builderofcoalitions on December 14, 2010 at 12:19 PM
I rate a beer by how much or how little I like it. Some styles just don’t do it for me; others do. Of course, then there are the beers that I can’t decide whether or not I like them. For those, I use the “is it more interesting than good” rule. This means that if the beer is just so perplexing that I can’t decide if I like it or not -but, damn, is it ever interesting/weird – I knock it down a few notches. My goal with ratings (when I do get around to doing them) is for a reference on my opinion. I use a rating to remind how much I liked or didn’t like a beer. Then, I enjoy comparing ratings to others just as a gauge.
As far as this beer, I didn’t find it nearly as interesting as you did. Sure, it’s different from what I expected, but I just sort of felt “meh” about it.
Posted by thehopry on December 14, 2010 at 12:49 PM
I agree pretty heavily with your approach. While I get that there is an importance to grading on style, at the end of the day I weigh more heavily on the “how much did I enjoy it” side of things. And also, to your point, these scores are based on our opinions as a reference for down the road. I know a lot of people take them seriously, but I really don’t. To me if I give something an 85 to 90, chances are it’s a beer I’d get again. Anything over that should really have a wow factor and could be considered a “get it right away” type of beer. Thanks for the comments, Zac…
Posted by Kevin on December 20, 2010 at 2:03 PM
really tough to do.what i like about rate beer, it has a score of the beer and the score to how well it is toward style. i think those 2 are very important and quite a bit different.
maybe something you can do is add a rating to the style and a rating to your enjoyment maybe? i know i would consider both your scores heavily, and it would help you to consciously think about how well it represents the style when you do reviews.