There was a time in the early days of the craft beer movement when experimentation ruled the game. The best breweries released a steady stream of new and seasonal beers year round. When I brewed at Boston Beer Works, we prided ourselves on having 12+ beers on tap - including a range of strong beers, hoppy beers, exotic styles and drinkable session beers for everyone else.
But like all businesses, economics intervened and when the craft beer market contracted in the late 1990's, the first thing breweries did was focus their brands - reducing line extensions and eliminating low sellers.
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