Have you heard the ads lately for western Canadian pub chain Original Joe’s new house beer, Haus Frau? They claim it to be a European pilsner, obviously German given its name. OJ’s is reputed for its commitment to offer regional craft brewers on tap, and it is on of the few places where you can get beer from each of Alley Kat, Wild Rose and Yukon on tap. Haus Frau is, of course, not their first house beer – they have had a line-up of three beer since the beginning of the chain – blonde, red and honey brown.

Originally these three beer were simply re-branded beer from micros – Alley Kat, Yukon and Big Rock usually. However a couple of years ago, they switched to having all house brands brewed with original recipes from Big Rock. I must say, when they did that, I stopped drinking them as the quality of the beer dropped significantly.

Normally house beer flies under the radar, and are sold at a price point to make them a deal. The rash of publicity around the launch of Haus Frau made me curious, so I dropped by for a pint recently.

It pours a bright dark yellow with no head to speak of. The aroma has some soft pilsner sweetness and is really quite attractive. The hop is subdued which is odd for a pilsner. Upon tasting I find the malt is quite nice, with a soft, rounded, moderately sweet character and some light bread notes. However, the hops is not nearly as strong as it needs to be. No hop flavour and the bitterness is too low, more like a drying bite at the end rather than a dominant finish.

It is an odd beer. I grant that it is hoppier and more flavourful than most pale lagers, which increases its rank, but a pilsner it is not. The brewer (Big Rock, again) was far too timid with the hops, and the beer suffers for it. However, it is the best of their four house beer, without question. I also took reminder tasters of the other three, and all reminded me why I stopped drinking them. They are watery, too thin and generally too sweet.

The arrival of another house brand is not that newsworthy in and of itself. Except this one got me thinking. I have noticed a growing tendency of pubs to devote a couple of tap lines to a house brand. Hudson’s, Sherlock Holmes and even Cactus Club and Earl’s now offer their own beer. The range of styles is broader than you would think. The most likely brewer to partner in this way is Big Rock. although Granville does Cactus Club.

This is a fascinating trend. My reaction to it is nuanced. On the surface I appreciate house brands. I like the idea of a pub creating a unique beer not available anywhere else. It creates a destination brand, which both builds the pub’s reputation and demonstrates the desirability of variety in beer. However, most house brands don’t fulfill this ideal. Sadly, most are sub-standard, uninspiring imitations of beer available almost everywhere. And as ambassadors for quality beer, they fail miserably. Their main advantage seems to be price point, which is rather depressing.

Plus I can’t understand why a brewer would sign on to such a partnership. If the customer enjoys the beer, they get no credit or bump in their own sales. Plus every tap that is devoted to a house brand is one less tap available to a microbrewery hoping to make inroads. Don’t get me wrong, I can see the economics of using excess brewing capacity to create cash flow through house brands – no marketing, packaging or retail hassles. Still, is the upside all that big?

So why is it happening? I think it is because beer consumers are opening up to beer options. They are seeking out reds and ambers and browns and honey lagers because they have more flavour than the traditional offerings. Pubs want to offer that kind of selection, but in a safe way. Plus, most beer drinkers remain price conscious. House brands offer an unbeatable combination of price point and originality. You can get something you have never tried before, plus it is on special today for $4.50 a pint…

Ultimately I would be okay with house brands if they tasted better. For example the house beer at Calgary’s Hop in Brew is a Belgian Blonde made by Alley Kat exclusively for the pub. Now that is a house beer! But that is not what the trend is. And despite the fact that Haus Frau is better than previous offerings, Original Joe’s doesn’t inspire me with their choice.

This is a trend that will continue to grow for a while, as the economics make too much sense. Personally, I am waiting until someone offers up a house beer that is calculated for its beer-onomics.