03.06.2011
BrewDog's Equity Punks: Meet the Shareholders
For those of you who missed you the last time we sold equity shares in BrewDog, there will be an opportunity later in July 2011 to invest in our company and be involved in our cool shareholder stuff. Anyone from Europe will be able to invest in our company and take part in events like these and our (soon to be legendary) AGMs as well as benefit financially from the growth of BrewDog. Watch this space for more information!
Say hello to some of our noble shareholders...
Think Sonny without Cher, Simon without Garfunkel even Jedward without, er, Jedward. One half of any dynamic duo is lost without the other and the same applies to BrewDog and our shareholders which is why we'd like you to say hi to three of our finest. Ever wondered what kind of person makes a BrewDog shareholder or if the added extras are really worth the hype? Take it away folks...
Hi my name's Bryan and I became a shareholder because... I love good beer! Once I saw the opportunity to be part of a great little company that had a passion and vision of what good beer could and should be, I jumped at it. Obviously getting money off their beer helped swing me, but it was mainly just a chance to be part of something exciting, new and awesome
I got my share because I believe in what BrewDog were doing, and what they stand for, and I wanted to be part of that.
The best things about being a BrewDog shareholder are... Getting my hands on limited releases before they go on sale to the general public. The 20% lifetime discount goes a long way! The forum is also a great idea, as we get to talk geeky BrewDog stuff with like minded people, even James joins in! There are also great opportunities open to share holders, like last years AGM, which was amazing, and the share holders brewday.
Beyond all of the hype, the controversy, BrewDog make great beer, that I love to drink, and to me that is what’s important.
Hi, my name's Ally and I became a BrewDog shareholder because...Brewdog have given me some of my most ecstatic beery moments, and their beers continue to capture my imagination. They are a growing brewery with vision and I wanted to be along for the ride.
If I hadn't become a BrewDog shareholder I wouldn't have...been in on the plans for world beer domination before everyone else. Oh, and that 20% discount in the online shop is nice.
What I'm looking forward to most in the next 6 months as a shareholder is...making a pilgrimage to Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow to visit the Brewdog bars there as well as making the trip to my old stomping grounds in London's Camden for the bar that is due to open there in August.
It's an exciting time to be involved in the craft beer revolution as a drinker and a brewer; we're replacing the Bud Girl with the Punk-rock Ale Wife and the Killer Brewster.
Hi my name's Chris and I became a BrewDog shareholder because...I believe that their approach is one of the few that holds true to the punk “Do it yourself” ethos, and I believe that everyone deserves a chance to enjoy Brewdog beer, not just me. By becoming a shareholder, I'm becoming part of an effort to get this punk energy out there.
When I'm drinking BrewDog, I'm drinking...Something that will be different from anything else on the market. From the mad experiments of the Abstrakt range to the solid power of the main range, when you first open a beer you haven't tried yet, you never quite know what will be lurking within. You just know it will be made with love and dedication (and possibly insanely hot chillies).
When I'm not drinking BrewDog...I'm writing on beer and whisky for alcoholandaphorisms.wordpress.com (or attempting to gratuitously plug it), reading philosophy, or sharing the axé (energy) in a Capoeira hoda (a Brazilian mix of martial arts and dance).
Becoming a BrewDog shareholder is like...Supporting the ability of quality beer to stand up and be counted, not just for those in the know and who can hunt it down like some alcoholic A-Team, but available to everyone.
Hi my name's Ian and I became a shareholder because... I love the beer first and foremost. Also because Brewdog is a local company, and I wanted to support, them with their plans for expansion and world beer domination. I also like the attitude. The devil may care somewhat wacky antics appeal to my sense of humour. I also like the fact that the company is run by a group of very clever and talented people, who push the boundaries of what beer is.
Craft beer is...The next big thing in beer in the UK. Younger drinkers are coming around to the fact that beer drinking doesn't have to be about mass produced lager, or boring real ales. Craft beer is the alternative. Craft beer will be as big in the UK, as it is in the USA, craft beer is the future.
BrewDog shareholders are...passionate about good beer, and if they are anything like me a little bit evangelical about it too.
The world needs more BrewDog shareholders because...Well this new brewery isn't going to build itself. It's going to take money. That's the practical reason. The share release gave people a chance to buy into the Craft Beer Revolution. Every share sold, was another nail in the coffin of the producers of industrial tasteless liquid cardboard.
Comments
- Bradley. I don't agree. In the UK we had real ale , and mass produced beer as you put it. In the US, at one point in history, they were almost at a stage of having nothing but mass prouced beers. The craft brewing industry was started in the US, as a response to a lack of anything other than mass produced beer.
Brewdog are one of the few breweries in the UK, brewing styles of beer influenced and inspired by the US craft beer industry, and therefore do not fall in to the cask or keg category as defined by Camra.
Brewdog is the third way in beer in the UK. Craft.
I'm not saying that a brewer who brews real ale is not a craftsman, the word craft is used to define a style of beer and brewing and not the people who made it.
I don't see real ale as being part of the craft beer revolution, and I doubt Camra do either. Perhaps in time the membership of Camra will come round to the fact that good beer is about how it actually tastes rather than how it is produced and dispensed.Ian Prise08.06.2011 - All non mass produced beer can be defined as 'craft' because brewing itself is a ...... (you guessed it, craft). Do you agree? bradley07.06.2011
- Bradley you should have a look at the Camra website. They give a good description of what real ale is. They also give a description of keg. You will find that Brewdogs keg beers, do not fall in to either category as defined by Camra. This is why I think that Brewdogs beer can be defined as craft. It certainly needs another definition, and due to the fact that they are Brewing in a style much inspired by Stone and other US craft breweries I think craft is an apt description. Ian Prise07.06.2011
- Ian. I don't quite understand. Are you saying that all good beer starts off as a 'real ale' in the brewery and only becomes a 'craft beer' when it gets filtered after leaving the fermentation/conditioning tank? bradley07.06.2011
- Bradlay. Real ale is a live product, it still contains yeast. That is the reason, it has to be cared for so carefully, and sold quickly before it goes off. Craft beers are more akin to commercial keg beers, but are only lightly filtered to remove the yeast to avoid spoilage. They are dispensed with CO2 to avoid the ingress of oxygen into the keg, which means the beer stays fresher for longer. Anyone who actually knows more than me about brewing feel free to jump in here. Ian Prise06.06.2011
- @ Ian. I am a CAMRA member.....not because I'm behind or believe in what they stand for, but because I get discounts at their beer festivals and get a lovely newspaper delivered right to my door every month or so :)
I think we all need to stop thinking of CAMRA every time cask beer is mentioned. CAMRA are nothing but a bunch of people fighting for something they believe in, which is fine (a little like brewdog i guess). However, they are not the law! I don’t think people should get caught up in what they define cask beer to be. They don't even brew the stuff.
Anyway what I’m trying to say is…
Craft beer/Real ale……aren’t they the same thing? The only difference you’re saying is how the beer gets dispensed.
Also, if you are so against drinking cask ale how come you fully embrace brewdog? As they started off selling their beers in cask and they still do to date.
And wheat is not a cheap malt substitute!
bradlay06.06.2011 - @Bradley I think Camra have defined Cask Ale fairly well. Craft beer is a little bit harder to define. A lot has been written on the subject, by beer writers who are a lot more knowledgable about the subject than I am. Having said that and bearing in mind that Camra have defined Real Ale I'll have a crack at defining what craft means to me.
Craft beer is beer produced by an independantly owned brewery of any size, using natural ingredients. The beer may be lightly filtered, but be unpasturised. It will be made by brewers skilled in their art, and passionate about their craft. It should be served in keg/keykeg or bottled format and will be chilled to about 5C. Cheap malt substitutes will not be used, although wheat will obviously be used for wheat beers.
No chemical additives or preservitives either. I think that kind of sums it up.
Thats not to say that small brewerys producing cask ale are not skilled at thier craft.
I'm actually getting on a little bit in years, and I don't include myself in the young people category, but what I see in the Aberdeen Brewdog bar are loads of young people, 18-30 year olds embracing craft beer. Yes there are a few older drinkers in there, and no doubt some of the more open minded Camra members too, looking for something a little more exciting. And exciting it is young Bradley. I have Tasted 96 different beers, mostly in the brewdog bar this year alone. Excellent quality beers, from the likes of Stone, Mikkeller, Left Hand, Great Divide, Nonge O, Lost Abbey/Port Brewing, and Evil Twin, to name but a few.
You might have a while to wait for a Brewdog bar to open in Cardiff, but get yourself up to a Brewdog bar, and taste the difference for yourself.Ian Prise06.06.2011 - @Ian your quote from the blog
"Craft beer is...The next big thing in beer in the UK. Younger drinkers are coming around to the fact that beer drinking doesn't have to be about mass produced lager, or boring real ales. Craft beer is the alternative. Craft beer will be as big in the UK, as it is in the USA, craft beer is the future."
To me, 23y/o from Cardiff, craft beer is beer thats produced from natural ingrediants by small/medium indipendent breweries. In the UK this has been going on for years and years and years. The UK pretty much invented craft beer!
So, I am curious as to what you think craft beer is? and how you think that its only just hitting the UK market?
craft beer 
–noun
an all-malt or nearly all-malt specialty beer usually brewed in a small, regional brewerybradley06.06.2011 - @ david White. I completely agree. If there is an enemy or two, pick them off one at a time.... and I do understand that CAMRA is a bit stuffy, but it has helped and promoted teh production of some wonderful real ales. Let's not fight just for the sake of it with people whose ideals are different, but at the heart of it, really not that differnt from Brew Dog's. Pete O06.06.2011
- Seriously cool. BrewDog is an amazing company both in terms of beer and business structure. The doubters are obviously brain washed by the big corporations or just too short sighted to see the genius. Happy Shareholder. John Booth06.06.2011
- @David. When you live in a small town in the North East of Scotland, like I did. Your only choices beer wise, are fizzy yellow lager, or a fizzy brown bitter. There is no tradition of cask. Some of the bigger pubs in Aberdeen sell cask, but I find it boring and pretty much tasteless too. I've also been put off by some awful tasting beer that is past it's best as well. For me Brewdog, and other craft beer producers, are producing beers with stronger, more interesting flavours which are suited to a keg dispense. Maybe it's just my pallette, (I worked with chemicals for 20 years, and no longer have a great sense of smell). I maybe need a more highly hopped beer to get the same flavour experience that other folk get with cask ales. Yes it would be nice if we all got along, but Brewdog have made their name out of a little bit of conflict and controversy and I can't see that changing.
Ian ShareholderIan Prise04.06.2011 - I am struggling to understand why lovers of good beer feel the need to create a new enemy out of 'boring real ales'. Yes we are all united against the might of industrial lager production, but to include 'real ale' in the same category shows a disturbing ignorance of the beer market. There is no need for an ideological split between 'young, trendy, craft, keg' and 'old, beardy, real, draught'. If the beer is made from quality ingredients with love, attention and some creativity, then it's good beer. I have been a CAMRA member since the early 70s and I am also a Brewdog shareholder, I find no conflict between the two, I love well made beer. David White04.06.2011
- Just wondering why only Eurowineans are able to become share holders? Stig Bateman04.06.2011
- Feeling slightly nauseous now. ewray@ymail.com04.06.2011