Beer rating#RateBeer
{{short description|Website or system evaluating beer}}
Beer rating is the process of assessment and evaluation of beer by use of a points-based system.The Beer Lover's Rating Guide, Bob Klein, Robert Klein, Workman Pub., 1995, {{ISBN|1563056828}}{{cite web |url=http://www.merchantduvin.com/pages/2_ale_university/aleu_bt_ratingbeer.html |title=Ale University - Rating Beer |publisher=merchantduvin.com |access-date=2009-11-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206115641/http://www.merchantduvin.com/pages/2_ale_university/aleu_bt_ratingbeer.html |archive-date=2008-12-06 }}{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=9mO9WUFJYv8C&q=ratebeer.com&pg=PT115 |title=The Beer Journal - page 107|publisher=Lulu.com |year=2007 |access-date=2009-11-19 | first=Chris | last=Wright | isbn=978-1-4303-1246-8}} The process is similar to that used in beer judging competitions, such as those organised by the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) in America,[http://www.bjcp.org/docs/BeerScoreSheet-Form.pdf Beer Score Sheet] bjcp.com though the participants are consumers so it may be termed a score-rated recommendation system.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qqymC_80B9AC&pg=PT165 |title=Human interface and the management of information| page= 145 |publisher=Springer | year=2007 |access-date=2009-11-19 | first=Michael J. | last=Smith | isbn= 978-3-540-73344-7}} The rating system may be a simple 5 marks, and may be organized by a beer store or pub chain such as Wetherspoon in the UK;{{cite web |url= http://www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/promotions/2009-real-ale-festival/ |title= Bringing you the world's biggest ale and wine festivals – Real Ale Festival |publisher= jdwetherspoon.co.uk |access-date=2009-11-14 }} or it may be more involved, such as the systems used by beer rating websites such as BeerAdvocate and RateBeer.[http://beeradvocate.com/news/stories_read/637] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060710001758/http://beeradvocate.com/news/stories_read/637 |date=July 10, 2006 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.ratebeer.com/Story.asp?StoryID=103 |title=A Guide to Rating Beer - News and Features |publisher=Ratebeer |access-date=2012-11-08}}{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/brewingupbusines0000cala |url-access=registration |title=Brewing up a business: adventures in entrepreneurship from the founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery| page= [https://archive.org/details/brewingupbusines0000cala/page/106 106] |publisher=John Wiley and Sons | year=2005 | access-date=2009-11-19 | first=Sam | last=Calagione | isbn= 978-0-471-70868-1}} A 2017 study considered beer ratings to be "a relatively unbiased and informative source of social information".{{cite journal|author1=Niemelä, P.T. |author2=Dingemanse, N.J. |year=2017|title= Trustworthiness of online beer ratings as a source of social information |journal= Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology|volume= 71|issue=24 |doi=10.1007/s00265-016-2254-4 |bibcode=2017BEcoS..71...24N |s2cid=10749272 }}
Websites
===BeerAdvocate===
BeerAdvocate is an online beer rating site which also rates bars and beer stores.{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FP2oDijvdw4C&pg=PA333 |title=Pennsylvania Breweries |page=333 |first=Lew|last= Bryson |publisher=Stackpole Books | year=2010 |isbn=9780811736411 |access-date=22 April 2011}} It was founded in 1996,{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HKW6lD4ERUkC&q=beeradvocate&pg=PA86 |title=Que's Official Internet Yellow Pages|author=Joe Kraynak|year=2005|page=86 |publisher=Que Publishing, 2005 |isbn=9780789734082|access-date=2011-02-19 }} by brothers Todd and Jason Alström,{{cite web|url=http://beeradvocate.com/about |title=Respect Beer |publisher=beeradvocate.com|access-date=2012-11-08}} and is based in Boston, Massachusetts, and Denver, Colorado, United States.{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=_JXLJPJQV-EC&q=BeerAdvocate&pg=PA279 |title=The Everything Homebrewing Book: All You Need to Brew the Best Beer at Home! |author=Drew Beechum |date=18 April 2009 |page=279 |publisher=Everything Books, 2009 |isbn=9781605507309 |access-date=22 April 2011}}
As of November 2013, BeerAdvocate's database contained about 3,783,570 ratings of about 100,976 beers.{{cite web|url=http://beeradvocate.com/beer/ |title=Beer Ratings & Reviews |publisher=beeradvocate.com |access-date=2012-11-08}}{{cite web |url=http://beeradvocate.com/users_online |title=Who's on BA? - BeerAdvocate |publisher=beeradvocate.com |access-date=2011-07-29 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060712094135/http://beeradvocate.com/users_online |archive-date=2006-07-12 }}
As of February 2020, BeerAdvocate is owned by Next Glass, which is also the parent company of Untappd.{{cite magazine |last=Furnari |first=Chris |date=February 26, 2020 |title=Beer Advocate Assets Sold To Untappd Parent Company Next Glass |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/chrisfurnari/2020/02/26/beer-advocate-assets-sold-to-untappd-parent-company-next-glass/?sh=3641ee183457 |magazine=Forbes |access-date=January 16, 2022}}
===RateBeer===
RateBeer was founded in May 2000 by Bill Buchanan[http://www.ibabuzz.com/beer/2005/08/03/best-beer-in-the-world-ratebeer-says-yes/ ] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311225811/http://www.ibabuzz.com/beer/2005/08/03/best-beer-in-the-world-ratebeer-says-yes/ |date=March 11, 2007 }} as a forum for beer drinkers to exchange information and share opinions of beer. In June 2000, the Canadian beer writer Josh Oakes{{cite web|url=http://members.allstream.net/~jdoakes/ |access-date=November 14, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090508105532/http://members.allstream.net/~jdoakes/ |title=The Beer Manifesto|archive-date=May 8, 2009 }} joined RateBeer and eventually became editor-in-chief. In June 2001, the web-site consultant Joe Tucker joined, eventually assuming full ownership of RateBeer.{{cite web |url=http://ratebeer.com/about/ |title=RateBeer Beer - About US |publisher=ratebeer.com |access-date=2009-11-14 }}
In August 2006, RateBeer's annual press-release of the highest rated beers on the site caused concern when various world media reported that supplies of Westvleteren 12 were sold out due to being listed as the "Best beer in the world" on the site.{{cite web| url= http://www.celebrator.com/features/westvleteren.html| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060207032143/http://www.celebrator.com/features/westvleteren.html| archive-date= 2006-02-07| title= Westvleteren : Is The Beer All Gone? | date=August 2005 |first=Chuck |last=Cook}}{{cite news | url=http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article304886.ece | work=The Independent | location=London | title=Monks who make world's best beer pray for quiet life | first1=Stephen | last1=Castle | date=August 10, 2005 | access-date=April 26, 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705150243/http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article304886.ece | archive-date=2008-07-05 | url-status=dead }}Leanne Logan, Geert Cole, {{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PhfWmUsaOB4C&pg=PA47 |title=Belgium and Luxembourg - Lonely Planet guidebooks| page=47|publisher=Lonely Planet | year=2007 |access-date=2009-11-19 | first1=Leanne | last1=Logan | first2=Geert | last2=Cole |isbn= 978-1741042375}}
RateBeer has over 4.5 million ratings (as of early 2013){{Cite web|url=https://www.ratebeer.com/RateBeerBest/default_2013.asp|title=The Best Beers in the World 2013|website=www.ratebeer.com|access-date=2017-06-04}} of more than 470,000 beers, from over 26,000 breweries.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ratebeer.com/RateBeerBest/default_2016.asp|title=The Best Beers in the World 2015|website=www.ratebeer.com|access-date=2017-06-04}}
In June 2017, it was revealed that Anheuser-Busch InBev had acquired a minority stake in RateBeer via the incubator ZX Ventures. This purchase led to concerns that the company had a conflict of interest, citing that the site could present bias towards Anheuser-Busch InBev brands, that there was a lack of transparency over the role of the company's investment, and that it could potentially gain access to customer data. Several breweries attempted to demand that their listings be removed from the website. Executive director Joe Tucker stated that "Nothing about this investment changes who we are and what we provide. We will just be able to give our community of beer drinkers an even better experience".{{cite web|last=Schonbrun|first=Zach|date=June 18, 2017|title=Smaller Brewers Relied on RateBeer.com. Now Bud's Maker Owns a Stake.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/18/business/media/anheuser-busch-inbev-ratebeer.html|website=The New York Times|access-date=20 June 2017}}
As of February 2019, RateBeer is fully owned by ZX Ventures, the global growth and innovation arm of AB InBev.{{Cite web|last=French|first=Phoebe|date=February 7, 2019|url=https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2019/02/ab-inbev-acquires-the-rest-of-review-site-ratebeer/|title=AB InBev acquires the rest of review site RateBeer|work=The Drinks Business|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-30}} On December 18th 2024, it was announced that RateBeer was to cease operations on February 1st 2025.