Craft Beer...

[CanadaRob]

Different question related to beer. I had an enjoyment for Stouts/Porters(did have a favourite vanilla stout) and also enjoyed some real hoppy lagers/ales. Have lost my sense of taste/smell(permanently) so the thicker stouts just taste murky. Can taste the basic back of tongue palate(Sour, Salty, Bitter, Sweet) any style that might check the bitter or sour boxes? That would also be available in ships with Pubs of course.

[NordCruiser]

Different question related to beer. I had an enjoyment for Stouts/Porters(did have a favourite vanilla stout) and also enjoyed some real hoppy lagers/ales. Have lost my sense of taste/smell(permanently) so the thicker stouts just taste murky. Can taste the basic back of tongue palate(Sour, Salty, Bitter, Sweet) any style that might check the bitter or sour boxes? That would also be available in ships with Pubs of course.

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Stone IPA and Long Hammer IPA's are some good bitter choices. I'm not sure if there are any properly sour ones available on RCCL ships.

 

It would be nice that Royal Caribbean would start offering more craft beer choices on ships (other than the pub in Anthem), and other styles than IPA's. Craft beer has definitely become mainstream nowadays and there is definitely demand, as there are multiple threads asking about craft beer availability on RCCL ships :) Carnival has their RedFrog pub concept, and NCL also has the District Brew House on Escape which seems to have a good selection of craft beer.

[bobmacliberty]

I'd love to see Royal pick up a few kegs from a local brewer near the port and offer them on tap in the pub. I really enjoy trying different local beers when I travel. This would make many beer drinkers on board VERY happy, and would be a huge win for the local brewer (even if just in saying that they supply a cruise ship rather than in volume of sales).

[wise456]

We were on the Anthem last month and found Dogfish Head 90, Lost Coast IPA, Racer 5 and Brooklyn Lager. Not the greatest selection but at least they are trying.

[NordCruiser]

I'd love to see Royal pick up a few kegs from a local brewer near the port and offer them on tap in the pub. I really enjoy trying different local beers when I travel. This would make many beer drinkers on board VERY happy, and would be a huge win for the local brewer (even if just in saying that they supply a cruise ship rather than in volume of sales).

That's a great idea. Being from Europe I'm always amazed how many great local micro breweries there are everywhere in USA I've visited, would be great to enjoy local brews when cruising as well.

[CanadaRob]

I'd love to see Royal pick up a few kegs from a local brewer near the port and offer them on tap in the pub. I really enjoy trying different local beers when I travel. This would make many beer drinkers on board VERY happy, and would be a huge win for the local brewer (even if just in saying that they supply a cruise ship rather than in volume of sales).

 

Would be a great boost to many local economies and Royal could demand a volume discount based on rotation with other craft beers in the marketplace. Also if runout on day 6 or 7 it is indicative of a great beer

[Big_G]

If you're ever on a southern itinerary, look up Antillia Brewing Company in St. Lucia. They have a small bar right outside the port area with some good stuff. The owner is originally from Canada.

 

http://antilliabrewingcompany.restaurantwebexperts.com/

 

St. John Brewers in St. John (of course) has the Tap Room in Mongoose Junction. They too have a great variety of beers.

 

http://www.stjohnbrewers.com/

[LizzyDragon]

Would be a great boost to many local economies and Royal could demand a volume discount based on rotation with other craft beers in the marketplace. Also if runout on day 6 or 7 it is indicative of a great beer

 

I think the issue is not volume discounts, but volume. Many craft beer producers are probably not producing enough kegs to supply the ships. It's probably more effort than it's worth to go to local producers, price stuff out and get a few kegs to the ship that might only last a couple of days. I'd love to see more craft beer on the ships, but there's a reason most brews on board are macrobrews.

[ArchMom]

those of you that had dogfish head on board - were you sailing out of the NE?

[ColoradoGurl]

Ugh, every time we go on a cruise we laugh because we get to a port and see a big advertisement for Coors Light. They make Coors Light 30 minutes from my house.

 

Besides, no self respecting Coloradan beer drinker drinks that anyway. We have so many craft breweries out here that we’ve all become major beer snobs. From my experience, there is no good craft beer on board, nor at any of the ports. Any brand that can be bought nationally doesn’t really count as “craft.”

 

I wish they’d let us bring on a growler or a case of beer instead of wine.

 

 

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[bobmacliberty]

I think the issue is not volume discounts, but volume. Many craft beer producers are probably not producing enough kegs to supply the ships. It's probably more effort than it's worth to go to local producers, price stuff out and get a few kegs to the ship that might only last a couple of days. I'd love to see more craft beer on the ships, but there's a reason most brews on board are macrobrews.

I don't know where the border is between micro and macro, but there are a few local brewers here in the Cincinnati area (Rheingeist and MadTree) that are seemingly on tap in almost every restaurant and bar in the area. They could easily supply enough volume for say, all ships sailing out of Miami. Ships out of Galveston would use a different brewer from that area. I'm not suggesting that one brewer supplies all Royal ships. There must be a similar sized brewer in Southern Florida

 

Royal almost certainly works with a local supplier (or a global supplier with a local warehouse) for their food and drink. I wouldn't think it would be hard logistically to make this work. It's more likely an issue of a large company working with another large company, using high volume national brands, and a focus on cost savings.

[dpostman]

Ugh, every time we go on a cruise we laugh because we get to a port and see a big advertisement for Coors Light. They make Coors Light 30 minutes from my house.

 

Besides, no self respecting Coloradan beer drinker drinks that anyway. We have so many craft breweries out here that we’ve all become major beer snobs. From my experience, there is no good craft beer on board, nor at any of the ports. Any brand that can be bought nationally doesn’t really count as “craft.”

 

I wish they’d let us bring on a growler or a case of beer instead of wine.

 

 

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On Anthem we were happy to find DFH 90 Minute since being from Canada it is extremely difficult to find. Also, we just walked to Pirate Republic brewery in Nassau and really enjoyed the 4 or 5 different brews of theirs we tried. I was really looking forward to their Coconut Porter but they were all out or maybe it is a seasonal...

 

 

dp

[Zach1213]

Ugh, every time we go on a cruise we laugh because we get to a port and see a big advertisement for Coors Light. They make Coors Light 30 minutes from my house.

 

Besides, no self respecting Coloradan beer drinker drinks that anyway. We have so many craft breweries out here that we’ve all become major beer snobs. From my experience, there is no good craft beer on board, nor at any of the ports. Any brand that can be bought nationally doesn’t really count as “craft.”

 

I wish they’d let us bring on a growler or a case of beer instead of wine.

 

 

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There's a time and a place for light beers. I love craft beers as much if not more than the next guy, but sometimes I just want a Miller Lite.

[bobmacliberty]

The only time I ever want a light beer is when I step on the scale and decide that I need to lay off the heavy stuff for a while. Heard on the radio the other day that Budweiser has dropped to number 4 in beer sales in the US. The top 3 in order are Bud Light, Coors Light, and Miller Lite. At a national level at least, light beer is king.

[tullers]

I don't know, but I feel like I am in a tiny, tiny minority of beer drinkers who are not into the IPA craze. I prefer what could be best described as Ordinary Bitter. Low carbonation, moderate hop bitterness with a nice malt base and an alcohol ABV that allows me to enjoy it over a long period of time without forgetting who or where I am.. LOL

 

The closest I can get to that on Royal Caribbean is Newcastle draft which I turn to when not at home drinking my own homebrew.

 

Amazing to see so many "CRAFT" beers that are super hopped and pushing the limits in the ABV department and so few true session brews.

 

bosco

We speak the same language. Nothing better than a traditional session ale!

 

Too many so-call IPAs have become little more than chilled, alchoholic hop-tea. Not to mention the fact that they are almost all bottle 'green' rather then letting them age as the original style intended.

[tullers]

Almost all ships have a pub, which has a very large selection that includes where beer/ale is from and proof

While this statement is true, the vast majority of beers offered on RCI ships are from the mega-breweries, not craft brewers.

[1interpreter]

What about Blue Moon? We are sailing on LOS in June and that' my hubby's favorite beer. Hoping we can get it. We were on LOS back in April and I don't remember if they had it or not. Guess since I'm not the one drinking it, I didn't pay much attention.

[tullers]

Yes, Blue Moon is available on the ship. It is not, however, a craft beer - it is a Miller product so is not applicable to this thread.

[harz99]

RCL used to stock La Fin du Mondeo, which although it isn't truly a craft beer is at least bottle conditioned. Sadly in the last year that seems to have disappeared.

 

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[harz99]

Monde, not Mondeo, darn auto correct..

 

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[iluvit!]

Not a craft beer, but DH discovered Leffe on the Liberty. They also have Shiner Bock, an excellent Texas made beer.

 

 

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[wc74]

When we were on Navigator 4 years ago, they had 2 beer tasting events at the pub run by the beverages manager Jeremy. They had a decent variety of beers available, but not many I'd consider a craft beer.

 

The beers we had were:

Grolsch

Hoegaarden

Blue Moon

Boddingtons

Sam Adams Imperial White

Guinness Draught

Longhammer IPA

Newcastle Brown

Estrella Damm

Chimay Blue

 

I also had a Pilsner Urquell one evening at the pub.

 

All the beers were either from can or bottle.

 

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[LizzyDragon]

I don't know where the border is between micro and macro, but there are a few local brewers here in the Cincinnati area (Rheingeist and MadTree) that are seemingly on tap in almost every restaurant and bar in the area. They could easily supply enough volume for say, all ships sailing out of Miami. Ships out of Galveston would use a different brewer from that area. I'm not suggesting that one brewer supplies all Royal ships. There must be a similar sized brewer in Southern Florida

 

Royal almost certainly works with a local supplier (or a global supplier with a local warehouse) for their food and drink. I wouldn't think it would be hard logistically to make this work. It's more likely an issue of a large company working with another large company, using high volume national brands, and a focus on cost savings.

 

In the US, a craft brewery is defined as a brewery producing 6 million barrels or less a year (about 3% of the US beer market); independent (no more than 25% ownership by a non-craft brewer) and traditional (using traditional or innovative brewing methods [no flavored malt beers]).

 

 

For Royal Caribbean, I'm guessing some of the hurdles they face in getting craft beer is not only volume, but distribution as well. They likely need to deal with a brewer that can distribute to multiple states (probably at a minimum all the states they sail out of, since ships move around). I imagine volume and distribution is exactly why Royal, as a large company, has to deal with other large companies for the beer.

 

 

Of the two US craft beers mentioned on the thread so far (Shiner Bock and Dogfish Head), Dogfish is the smaller of the two breweries, but it ranked 14th in 2016 in terms of largest craft breweries (https://www.craftbeer.com/editors-picks/top-50-us-craft-breweries-2016). I think Royal could do more to get craft beers (Disney, for example, makes a special ship-only brew for their ships), but they do have many regulatory and supply issues to deal with.

[dpostman]

I am under the impression that there is also a brewery on board Carnival Vista. Can you imaging how awesome that job must be. I was NEVER told by the school career guidance counselor that Brew Master on board a Cruise Ship was an option :mad:

 

You get to live on a cruise ship, make beer, give tours and chat it up and meet people from around the world that also like beer:cool:

 

dp

[CruiseKeeper]

I am under the impression that there is also a brewery on board Carnival Vista. Can you imaging how awesome that job must be. I was NEVER told by the school career guidance counselor that Brew Master on board a Cruise Ship was an option :mad:

 

You get to live on a cruise ship, make beer, give tours and chat it up and meet people from around the world that also like beer:cool:

 

dp

 

DH took beer making courses in a local arts complex from Colin Presby who was hired by Carnival to start up and run Carnival’s Vista Brewery. As much as my DH would love to see the set up and taste the beer, he’d have to sail on Carnival to do it. :rolleyes:

 

https://learn.kegerator.com/carnival-cruise-brewmaster-colin-presby/