Premium Beers Focus: What 'premium' means to you
Various brewers like to plug their products as being the second best standard premium lager or best-selling premium lager with the letter E in its name.
But such labels can seem meaningless when your definition can be anything you want it to be. So when it comes to pinning down what premium actually means, it looks like the trade is going to have to agree to disagree.
We'll let them fight it out amongst themselves, shall we?
Charlie Otley, head brewer at Otley Brewery: "A premium beer is one that is 4.5 per cent or above and that is made from the best ingredients. Premium beers are not brewed on a large scale, but instead are specialist beers aimed at a small section of the market."
David Spencer, brands marketing manager at Fuller's: "At Fuller's we believe that 'premium' is a measure of something's value or worth. When you are talking about beer it shouldn't be based purely on alcoholic strength. The ingredients, craft, care and attention taken to create a beer will all go to determine its 'premiumness'."
Susan Mayman, managing director of Freedom Brewery: "A premium beer is part of a small group of beers at the top end of the market. Its drinkers will be aspirational and discerning, putting quality before price. Its producers will be highly-skilled craftsmen, putting quality before profit.
"A beer can only be considered as 'premium' if it is hand crafted by a master brewer using nothing but the best ingredients. It should be brewed using all the time, care and attention to grace the finest of tables.
"A premium beer is hand-crafted using premium ingredients, premium brewing water and the correct brewing methodology - in our case the lack of chemicals, long maturation time and our brew masters' skills make our beers premium."
James Watt, managing director of BrewDog: "We don't like the term 'premium beer' as it doesn't really mean anything. Yes, our beers are of a higher standard than the tasteless mainstream beers most widely available in the on trade, and yes, they have more character, flavour and gravitas.
"However, our mission is not to provide something 'premium' but to redefine beer, and redefine the concept of value around beer. You get so much more for your money when you drink BrewDog beer compared with those mainstream brands; it's not about how much you spend but what you get from that.
"I would not call BrewDog 'premium beer' because I don't like the term - but I would say that we are dedicated to making cool, contemporary and progressive beers showcasing some of the world's classic beer styles. All with an innovative twist and customary BrewDog bite. This is certainly not the aim of beers anybody would dream of tagging 'premium'."
Bruce Reinders, brands director of Heineken and premium lager at Heineken UK: "It is quite easy for me in terms of what premium means. I think that price is the single most important determinant. For the consumer, it probably means that the beers are imported versus those that are locally produced. Some will say its alcohol content, some will say it's the image and how it is perceived by consumers. But at the end of the day it is about how much consumers are prepared to pay."
