Beer tapsOur philosophy is that there is something good in everything, every beer has something redeeming about it, has a purpose, and something that someone will enjoy – this is especially crew for a craft beer or a nice micro brewed beer.  So when we review a beer, we consider a few criteria and give it a score out of ten.  The score is supposed to highlight the good parts of a beer so that people can find a beer that suits them and their mood.

The criteria are:

  • Style/intention – how well the beer did what it was trying to do;
    • So an OK beer that is trying to be a pretty standard mass market pale ale will do better than an all-in-all good beer that is trying to be interesting and innovative but is actually not creative.
  • Sessionability – how easy it is to drink a few of these;
    • A good beer here is a beer that is easy to drink, but so bland that it will get boring quickly.
  • Complexity – how complex the beer is, whether it’s a slow drinker, and how much it makes you think;
    • For a beer that has a bit in it.  The beer can be obviously complex or more subtle, as long as there are a few flavours to find in there.
  • General – catches any other elements of the beer that need to be addressed;
    • Often to examine the thoughtfulness of the beer or just how we feel about the general vibe.

All this is then averaged to give it a rating between one and ten:

1 – Toilet water would be better 6 – Quite a good beer, you won’t be disappointed
2 – Avoid it 7 – Go out of your way to try it
3 – Pretty bad, but tolerable 8 – Wow! It’s a standout
4 – Drinkable, but not the best 9 – Buy 5 slabs
5 – Easily drinkable and enjoyable 10 – The only beer you’ll ever need

Most craft beers sit between a 6.00 and a 7.99.  Since our philosophy is there is something good in everything, most beer is quite good!