My name is Matt Poirier. I live in Victoria, BC, or as it’s also known, the Cradle of the Craft Beer Revolution. If you don’t know who I am, you’re either not from the West Coast, or I’m not doing as good a job as I tell my family, which is fair. I’m a Certified Cicerone®, I teach classes about beer and have been writing about the craft beer industry and its many aspects since 2016, which may not seem like a long time, but in this industry, it’s long enough to have seen so much change, especially over the last few years.
In the forty years since commercial craft brewing even became possible in Canada, booms and busts have occurred, breweries and cideries have opened and closed, expanded, and sold out, while staff and ownership have also adjusted, moving businesses, changing focus, and drawing strengths from newcomers.
One of the lesser noticed changes, maybe because nobody on this side of the camera likes to look in the mirror, is those who chose to elevate those industries. While writing, photography, and so many other ways to promote the craft alcohol industries go back to their very beginning, the changes occurring within those formats have been materializing behind the scenes for just as long.
Keeping up with these industries is a lot of fun, but it's also a lot of work. Marketing budgets are slim so it becomes a struggle to get noticed for the work you do, and then once you are noticed, you have to keep that up, so it's not surprising when you see people burn out, hang things up, or just choose to step back. With the stressful years we’ve just had I’m glad to have made it through but it’s still bittersweet to see some great folks move on to bigger and better things, sometimes to positions perfectly related to the industry. So to those of you that ever put pen to paper, spent far too long editing a picture or video of beer, frantically typed up a blog post, or tried to get the attention of brewers and sales reps in a usually thankless effort, Thank You.
That brings us to the here and now. Any time someone steps up to cover these industries and promote their good work, it becomes so important to promote their work, which is why I am so excited to see something like Crafted Pint starting at this time. There are so many great beers and ciders to enjoy, stories related to the industry to tell, and people within the industry that should get the spotlight, and having a space like this to build up, support, and learn is exactly what is needed.
So, from where the Craft Beer Revolution started to forty years later, where this new voice for Craft Beer and Cider is taking its first steps, it’s been a journey for all of us, and one I’m glad to see continue and be a part of.
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