Untappd: the good, the bad, and the ugly

Hi everyone! Today, I’m going to talk to you about what might be one of the favorite apps of beer nerds: Untappd. In a nutshell, Untappd is an app that allows us to track (by doing "check-ins") and rate the beers we drink. Every time we’re at home or in a bar with a glass in hand, we open the app and search for the beer. Some brands even add a description, which can be interesting, like sensory characteristics or even some specific ingredients of that label. This way, we keep a record of the beers we've tried, and even before drinking, we can see the average rating each beer has. And that’s where the danger lies. After all, the ratings are made by all users, and most people rate the beers based on their personal taste rather than how well they fit a style, which might make more sense. “Oh, so now you want to be a judge and expect everyone to understand styles and whether they fit the category?”
Calm down, let me explain.

First, I remember venturing into Untappd back when I was living in Porto Alegre, Brazil (I lived there between 2011 and 2014). However, at that time, its reach in Brazilian bars was still quite limited, and I ended up uninstalling it. Back then, I used to drink different beers at places like Toca da Coruja, Dirty Old Man, Bier Garten, or Cuca House, and it frustrated me that I couldn’t find either the bar or the beer I was drinking on the app. At that time, it was a NO for me! But looking back now, it seems I returned to it in February 2016. By that time, I was already living in Lisbon, and the craft beer movement there was becoming more interesting. I remember I started using the app for a very specific reason: breweries and beers were popping up everywhere, and it was getting harder to keep track of what I had already tried—and even more importantly, what I liked (and no, this has nothing to do with alcohol-induced amnesia, I swear! 😂). I think I’ve mentioned before that I rarely drink the same beer twice, especially not on the same day. So, Untappd became a useful tool. I’d get to a bar, check if I’d already had a particular beer, and usually pick something new. If there weren’t any new options, I could rely on the ratings I’d previously given to make a choice.

Given my utilization of the app, I don’t have the total number of beers I’ve drunk but how many different ones I’ve tried. Yesterday, I hit 500 beers 👏🏆. “OMG, you should look for help!” Nope! The other day, I met someone who’s surpassed 30,000 beers. So, if anything, I drink too little! 😂 Inspirational coach moment: Not everything in life is a competition! One cool thing about Untappd is that it generates these milestone badges, like the one I used in this post, which are super easy to share on social media. But if you use the app long enough, you’ll realize there’s a badge for practically every occasion, and eventually, they lose their charm. Some, like this one, I think are still worth sharing. Another fun moment is at the end of the year when the app provides a summary of your beer year—the brands you drank most, styles, and more. Anyway… beer geek stuff for those who are into it 🙋‍♂️. Stay tuned, I’ll share mine soon!

So far, I’ve mostly talked about the positives, right? Let’s reflect a bit on why ratings on Untappd can be unfair. Few breweries specialize in certain types of beer and build a loyal fan base for those styles. Most opt to create a more diverse portfolio to reach different audiences and increase market penetration. However, if everyone rates beers based on personal taste, Untappd ratings don’t say much about the quality of the beer. I consider myself pretty eclectic—aside from very sweet flavors (like vanilla, which I almost always dislike), I can find value in nearly all styles. But one style that’s far from being a crowd favorite is "Sours". Very simply put, these are beers with a more vinegar-like taste. It’s a very traditional and common style in Belgian brewing. Achieving a balance of flavors in this type of beer is quite challenging. A brewmaster can put their heart and soul into creating a beer that, WITHIN ITS STYLE, is brilliant, but because of personal preference, most people don’t like it. The sensible thing would be: “I know I don’t like Sours, so I won’t order or rate them.” But there’s always someone who doesn’t like Sours, and yet they go on Untappd and give it a low score. Since the rating is an average, this drags down the overall score of the beer on the app. Many brands have stopped using Untappd as a source of feedback or even a platform for promotion because of this. After all, there’s no point in perfecting the brewing process if the beer is in a less popular style—it will almost always end up with a low score.

But hey, we live in a free world, and everyone manages their reviews as they wish. Perhaps this kind of irrationality happens in almost every sector. If you remember your math, maybe the mode or median would be more appropriate for reflecting ratings (is it too much?). The fact that most people don’t remember or know what mode or median means is probably why we always end up using the average. Controversies aside, I use Untappd for the specific purpose I mentioned above, and it’s very useful for me. I even get disappointed when brands don’t add any description of their beer or when the description is only available in a language we don’t understand (I found some in German recently). But other than that, it’s already a habit—sometimes, even before the first sip, I’ve already checked in the beer on the app.

Try it out and let me know what you think! If you want, add me there—my username is Diegoboni. Cheers!