Despite alarming headlines and loud proclamations that “craft beer is
dead,” that’s only part of the story—and not a particularly accurate one,
at that.
Industry insiders can get bogged down in the depressing details (even we’ve
been guilty of it at one time or another). But reporters Kate Bernot and
Beth Demmon decided to see how and where the heart of craft beer still
beat, and went to the 2024 Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival in
Paso Robles to find out.
It turns out, the craft beer industry can’t just be measured by Circana
numbers or market share. Websites and social media don’t paint a full
picture, and after talking to a bunch of festival attendees, they realized
there’s a whole lot of love and life still left to consumers passionate
about the beverage, the people, and the community. Craft beer loves to talk
about how it brings people together, and based on their observations, it
still can.
In this episode, you’ll hear from both Beth and Kate, as well as a number
of attendees interviewed at the festival, on why they decided to spend
their time and hard-earned money on an afternoon under the California sun.
The beer itself plays a part of it, sure. But there’s so much more that
keeps people coming back. This is finding joy in beer.
