The interwebs are all abuzz with the news this morning that the term “craft beer” has been added to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. I know very few people who are happy with the term already, so this is probably not going to help. The definition they chose doesn’t seem to quite work. I know they were trying to generalize a term that itself has struggled to be defined, and there are already many differences of opinion about what the term means, so it was no easy task. Even so, it seems like a fail. It will apparently be in the next print edition of the dictionary, but has already been added online. Here’s the entry:
craft beer noun
Definition of CRAFT BEER
: a specialty beer produced in limited quantities : MICROBREW
First Known Use of CRAFT BEER
1986
That definition suffers from the vagueness of what it means to be “a specialty beer” — which itself needs to be defined — and that it includes only beers that are brewed “in limited quantities.” As opposed to those beers in unlimited quantities? Does that mean year-round beers cannot be considered “craft beer?” Probably not, but my point is this is a pretty inelegant attempt at defining craft beer. It’s simple, at least, but hanging what it means to be a craft beer on it being “special” and “in limited quantities” is not exactly doing anybody any favors.
But other dictionaries have also tackled “craft beer” with mostly the same uninspired results. Here’s a few others.
American Heritage Dictionary: A distinctively flavored beer that is brewed and distributed regionally. Also called craft brew, microbrew.
Dictionary.com: an all-malt or nearly all-malt specialty beer usually brewed in a small, regional brewery.
Oxford English Dictionary: a beer with a distinctive flavour, produced and distributed in a particular region.
Stan had a post a couple of years ago about Craft beer: The 1986 definition that explores its origins. A lot of terms have come and gone, picked up and fallen out of favor, and there’s a twitter discussion swirling about what the next term will be, with Ray Daniels suggesting “Artisan Brewer” as the “next big thing.” Here are a few that have been, and continue to be, used to describe beer that’s not “good old macrobrew made in vats the size of Rhode Island” (however we define that, too), and at least one suggested this morning just in jest:
- Artisan Beer
- Authentic Beer
- Boutique Brewer
- Cool Brewer
- Cottage Brewery
- Craft Beer
- Craft Brew
- Flavor Beer
- Hand-Crafted Beer
- Handmade Beer
- Microbrewery
- Nanobrewery
- Picobrewery
- Real Beer
- Regional Brewery
- Small Batch Beer
- Small Brewer
- Specialty Beer
- True Beer
Did I miss any? Are there any you think should be added for consideration? What do you think we should call this stuff we all love? Maybe just call it “beer” and be done with it?