Good Ideas Executed Poorly: The Brewers Association Chases Independence

Good Ideas Executed Poorly: The Brewers Association Chases Independence

JUNE 29, 2017 BY CHRISTOPHER BARNES

On June 27th, The Brewers Association (BA), craft beer’s not-for-profit trade group, announced a new initiative in their effort to promote independent, craft-brewed beer with an Independent Craft Beer Seal that can be placed on bottles and cans “in an effort to educate beer lovers about which beers are independently produced” (you can read the press release here). The seal immediately garnered criticism for its design as well as its intent. The upside down bottle and the BA’s description for it overshadowed the sentiment.

“Featuring an iconic beer bottle shape flipped upside down, the seal captures the spirit with which craft brewers have upended beer.” Unfortunately, it also captures the spirit of the BA’s efforts to define and maintain their definition of independent. The logo, like their definition of independence, appears rushed and poorly thought out. Simplicity and expediency instead of quality are the true representations of the BA’s vision, and the use of an upside down bottle while the industry trends towards cans emphasizes how out of touch they are with the craft beer world. The word “Independent” broken up into three parts lends itself to graphical criticism while also symbolizing the BA’s current muddled definition of independence.  To make matters worse, when the graphical choices are explained, it doesn’t bring (Continue reading the rest of the article at The Full Pint).