BEER RATING

Rating beer is assessing and evaluating beer using a point system ^[1]. The process is similar to that used in beer judging competitions, though the participants are largely ordinary members of the public. The rating system may be a simple 5 marks, and may be organised by a beer store or pub chain such as Wetherspoons in the UK^[2]; or it may be more involved, such as the systems used by beer rating websites such as BeerAdvocate ^[3] and RateBeer^[4].

Contents

RateBeer

BeerAdvocate

The Oxford Bottled Beer Database

BeerPal

References

RateBeer

RateBeer was founded in May 2000 by Bill Buchanan^[5] as a forum for beer drinkers to exchange information and share opinions of beer. In addition, users can write opinions of cider, mead and sake.
In June 2000, the Canadian beer writer Josh Oakes^[6] joined RateBeer and eventually became editor-in-chief. In June 2001, the web-site consultant Joe Tucker joined, eventually assuming full ownership of RateBeer.
As of March, 2007, RateBeer has 1,112,000 ratings, and claims to be the "most accurate and most-visited source for beer information"^[7] based on Alexa.com data^[8].
RateBeer lists nearly 60,000 beers from 7,270 breweries and has grown to become the largest beer information web site in the world in addition to serving as a forum for discussions about the craft brewing industry.
RateBeer's annual press-release of the highest rated beers on the site, RateBeer Best ^[9] caused concern in August of 2006 when various word media reported that supplies of Westvleteren 12 were sold out due to being listed as the "Best beer in the world" ^[10][11] on the site.

BeerAdvocate

BeerAdvocate was founded in 1996 by Todd and Jason Alström^[12] who write for various journals, including Boston's Weekly Dig, and organise local beer festivals. There are over 425,000 beer reviews in BeerAdvocate's database, making it second only to RateBeer in number of ratings.
By March 2007, BeerAdvocate reported over 99,000 past and present members^[13].

The Oxford Bottled Beer Database

The Oxford Bottled Beer Database was founded in 1992 by Sparks Computer Solutions Ltd. and is probably the oldest of the Internet beer rating sites.
As of February, 2007, Oxford lists approximately 2,700 beers.

BeerPal

Started in 1999 by B.W. Bailey.^[14]

References

1. http://www.merchantduvin.com/pages/2_ale_university/aleu_bt_ratingbeer.html
2. http://www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/offers/2007real-ale-festival/
3. http://beeradvocate.com/news/stories_read/637
4. http://www.ratebeer.com/Story.asp?StoryID=103
5. http://www.ibabuzz.com/beer/2005/08/03/best-beer-in-the-world-ratebeer-says-yes/
6. http://members.allstream.net/~jdoakes/
7. http://www.ratebeer.com/About.asp
8. http://www.alexa.com/browse/general/?&CategoryID=80387&mode=general&Start=1&SortBy=Popularity
9. http://www.ratebeer.com/RateBeerBest/
10. http://www.celebrator.com/features/westvleteren.html
11. http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article304886.ece
12. http://www.beerguide.co.za/Content/beerAdvocate.html
13. http://beeradvocate.com/user_stats
14. http://www.beerpal.com/