Maybe this is more of a psychology question, but why does it seem that people tend to overrate beers more than they underrate them? Or is my perception of this off base?
I think most beers are WAY underrated. Just the fact that we apes have something so glorious to quench our thirst gives almost all beer for me an automatic 10/10. I think its funny when people who have reviewed thousands of beers on this site never give a perfect 5. give me a break, you ape.
I don't think it's off base ... in fact, it's partly why I try not to review a beer until I've had at least 2 or 3. I also think it's a legitimate question when you look at the sliding scale for different types of beers. American Double IPAs all seem to average 4.0, while German pilseners are closer to 3.0. It makes me ask: 1. Are drinkers comparing double IPAs to pilseners or double IPAs to double IPAs? 2. How overrated (or underrated) are some of these beer styles when each style seems to have its own sliding scale in the reviews.
I'd be willing to bet the highest rated beers come from the more popular styles. IPAs, Stouts, etc. So in essence, a beer someone prefers like and IPA may be judged against a beer someone has only tried once like a saison or a belgian. I also think beers get a boost from raters that are local to that brewery.
I'm just waiting for that special someone to give my all to, man. Like the evolution, both genetically and socially, that spawned the creation of our glorious beverages, you can't rush these things, man, you've gotta let nature take its course. It'll happen, man, it'll happen...
They reserve the 5 for perfection, which of course we never find. But then again, some of us find it regularly. I wish I could be like that.
Beers are under rated IMO. You can buy most of the best beers for under $20; wine buffs have to pay way more to satisfy their tastes. Even our creme de la creme never really goes above $30. So glad I love beer and not wine.
The majority of beers out there are of the "it's OK, nothing special" variety - not sure if that answers the question but it has been my experience after being in this hobby for more than 20 years.
I'll put this out there. People that will take the time and effort to rate a beer do so because they like that beer. Therefore you get high ratings, it's that simple. Beers BAs don't like get ignored, proof is the amount of ratings of AALs like Bud light. If every BA took the time to rate that one beer that almost every single one of them has tried at some point there would be thousands of more reviews than there is. Case in point, there are just as many Heady Topper ratings as bud light.
Another way to summarize your post is, thank god people who drink and enjoy Bud Light don't review beers here on BA.
make the beer hard to get, available only at certain times and in certain places or make people drive an hour down a dirt to get it and it will properly get overrated.
doesn't matter. taste is subjective. advice is advice. opinions are opinions. ratings are summarized experiences converted into numeric fashion. rationalize these results are put together by people that appear to drink a lot too. the fact that some people take the ratings & perhaps themselves so seriously is what's "overrated".
For me a 5 is rare, but I have 3 among what I have reviewed & posted, the back log of reviews I have probably equals what I have actually posted but I digress. IMO I rate something a 5 if I find it to be perfect for the style, to my taste and something I know I'll chase for as long as it's produced by the brewer. A 5 in my mind is a WOW @ every sip, a beer that even in that style somehow transcends and stands out from the competition. As for over or under ratted I would say most BIG beers, in style, flavor, abv have a higher rating & most of your average session type stuff is rated average or below.
I just started reviewing beers (in my personal beer notebook...eventually I'll probably put them on here), and I haven't given any beer a perfect 5. Or a 1, for that matter. Because I haven't tried every beer, or even a massive amount of beers, so how can I confidently say that a beer is the best or perfect (or the worst) when I know perfectly well there are probably better ones out there yet. I don't want my rating scale to become inflated. If I gave beers that I loved a 5, eventually I'll find beers that I'll love more. So what do they get? 5.5? A few people already noted my two thoughts on the subject...1) Many people review beers they really hate or really love, and maybe not a average beer that they drink and don't give a second thought to. And 2) Certain styles are just higher rated. Imperial stouts, DIPAs/IIPAs, sours, etc whereas less hyped styles don't get as much love. I think that's an inflation of rating.
Highbrow made it simple, and that is what I follow. I am very simple to please, and rarely have the top shelf beers. As much as I love beer, I do not seek to chase the best, use it to celebrate or what have you.( This goes against a lot of the norm here but also the beauty) I just let beers come however they may. But back to the topic. Someone noted that I rated my beers that I have enjoyed, too high. I thought that, well maybe I did not make a comparison between another brewery of that same style, and rate it according. I just rate the beer on how I perceive it taste wise, and what I am looking for. I am not on that level, nor is it my goal to compare every said style, and the breweries that make them.
These people have issues with commitment and would not know a legendary beer if it was thrown in there face. They feel that they have some type of enlightenment and will let " us " all know when perfection is found. Just laughable!
Of course the ratings are high; we all love beer. I find nearly all craft beers to be delicious, whereas almost all of the wine I have had went down like dry fruit-rot swill and I'm not even entirely convinced that spirits have enough flavors beyond the ferocious attack of the alcohol to be rated to begin with. I dig beer, so I rate it high.
The more expensive per oz the beer, the more overrated. That also goes for the more rar the walez, the more overrated.
Beer fans seek out the higher rated beers and avoid the ones they know are mediocre or bad, thus skewing their results.
Bell's Hop Slam. I'm not at all bashing this beer, nor saying that it's terrible. I just feel that's it is super over hyped, over priced, and lately very underwhelming.
Overrated is not a definitive term, it is very relative, very subjective. Beers are not over or under rated, they are just rated.
But overhyped is simply a term that means that it is talked about more than what you feel is worthy. Overpriced usually means it wasn't overpriced because it was still purchased but the consumer is now disappointed. Underwhelming generally is a product of unrealistic expectations. I absolutely hate definitive declarations about a beer being overrated, overhyped or any similar terms. It is often just a way to blame a beer for the consumers behavior. The beer does not produce the hype, does not force someone to pay the price or determine ones expectations.
Over rating, under rating, neither bothers me. It's my palate that counts and if my deviation from the average goes way higher or way lower, so be it.
