Monday Rant: Brewers Giving Bloggers Freebies - Is It Alright?

There are many sites out there like this one with someone that loves craft beer, all of the different types to try and uses a blog to share their thoughts on the beers they are lucky enough to try. If you're any type of critic, you'll have your fair share of beers that you simply don't like.

I'm certainly not the first beer blogger to notice a trend that's taking shape in the beer world recently. A beer blogger reviews a beer that he somewhat didn't like. Thus, a negatively-painted review is written of said beer.

The brewer, or someone with a business relationship to the company, of this particular beer somehow comes across this negative review of their product and contacts the author of the review and offers him or her some free beer through the mail.

I came across my first experience with this within the last two weeks. I was disappointed in Shiner Bock when I drank it, posted my review of it and received an email from Spoetzl Brewery's public relations firm asking if I'd like to be sent one of the brewery's newer and popular releases, Wild Hare Pale Ale.

I agreed. Who wouldn't want free beer? My package got here in about two days. It included three bottles of Wild Hare Pale Ale, a six pack holder and a press release concerning the beer's initial release. Honestly, once I had a chance to try the beer I fell in love with it (review will be posted tomorrow morning.)

Now, there's a lot of ethical debate going on about this issue which concerns both sides. Is it ethical for brewing companies to send bloggers free beer samples? Is it ethical for the blogger to review said beers and not be as critical as they would if they had paid for the beer originally?

It's a very tough issue and since the way we use the internet is still being defined, I don't necessarily think there's a correct answer. From the brewer's point of view the use of social media and the blogosphere is a way of free and unlimited advertisement. As someone whose career niche appears to be the route of social media, I've figured this out over the last year or so. Social media still hasn't been defined in a corporate sense.

As a blogger, I think that it's in our best interests to still maintain the ability to be critical in the review process even though the beer might be free. There's nothing obligating us to make sure we write something positive about what a brewer might have sent us. After all, the ability to pick and choose what we like and don't like in the world of craft beer is what makes the movement so intriguing.