Yankee Brew News Archive

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Originally Published: 01/96

By: Brett Peruzzi

Workman Publishing Company, New York

346 pages

Second only in profusion to perhaps homebrewing tomes in the world of beer book publishing are beer rating guides. These consumer guides predate the craft beer boom, but seem to be enjoying a resurgence with the hundreds of new beers and the plethora of styles now available coast-to-coast. Bob Klein's The Beer Lover's Rating Guide ambitiously reviews hundreds of beers from the U.S. and 75 countries world-wide.

The first thing I typically do when flipping through one of these guides is look up the ratings for New England beers that I know well, to see how they are judged, and compare the description against my own assessment. Now, the fact that I'm an unabashed regionalist and champion of New England beers is no big secret. But when I read descriptions of beers that I know well that are far off the mark, it matters not whether the beer is from Boston or Bitburg.

What it does, unfortunately, is make me question the ability and judgement of the reviewer, which I do in Klein's case. When he describes one of New England's best pale ales, widely known for its balanced profile and hop signature, as "devoid of hop presence" and possessing a "syrupy sweetness" my confidence in his other ratings, many of which are on the money, is severely compromised.

Describing another New England pale ale as "reminiscent of a polluted river" is not only unfair, it's mean-spirited, and does a public disservice to the brewer, whose products may be mishandled and later sold in less than pristine condition, despite the fact that they tasted fine when they left the brewery.

Klein seems to turn a blind palate on the fact that some of the beers he reviews sound slightly mishandled at best and ruined by mishandling at worst. He dutifully publishes his tasting notes as is, without perhaps obtaining a fresher sample to give the beer a fair assessment. If obtaining fresh samples is not possible or beyond the scope of his review procedure, he might, like many experienced beer judges, note that the beer has likely been damaged and probably is not a representative example that can be fairly judged.

The jacket copy of Klein's book promises that you'll "Never buy a bad beer again!" Unfortunately, if you follow his guide's ratings, you may also miss out on some very good beers as well.