Canned Beer Enjoys A Major Renaissance, Led By Top Craft Brewers
June 24, 2014Hooligan’s bar, an 80-year institution on Milwaukee’s East Side, last year largely abandoned its bottled beer list in favor of canned beer, aiming to stock greater variety without expanding storage capacity. The move has been a huge success, and the venue now offers around 100 canned beers. “There’s been an influx in craft brands available in cans, and beer drinkers also are simply more amenable to cans these days,” explains owner Mark Buesing.
According to the Beer Institute, cans’ share of all beer sold in the U.S. has risen from 48% in 2006 to 55% last year. Bottled beer’s share fell from 42% to 35% in the same period, while draft beer ticked up from 9% to 10%.
Cans have made particularly dramatic inroads in the craft beer segment, led by Oskar Blues, Sierra Nevada and New Belgium Brewing. Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale, Torpedo Extra IPA and Summerfest labels all are packaged in cans. Boston Beer Co. launched its first foray into cans last year. The “Sam Can”—available in 12- and 16-ounce sizes—features a flared lip and wider top than standard cans. It’s also a packaging option for Rebel IPA and the Sam Adams seasonals.
Raleigh, North Carolina-based Lonerider Brewing Co. is currently transitioning from an all-glass package to all-aluminum. CEO Sumit Vohra explains that due to the brewery’s small scale (13,500 barrels sold last year), “We had to make a choice—bottles or cans. We can’t do both.” But Vohra believes cans are the future for craft beer. “They’re more cost-efficient and treat the beer better than glass,” he says, adding that most craft fans now accept them.
Vohra and other craft players cite additional benefits of cans, including ease of recycling, less breakage-shrinkage and savings in transportation and handling costs. The format also affords greater options for occasions like beach trips, camping and the golf course.
Mainstream domestic players, meanwhile, have renewed their efforts in the canned format. Late last year, MillerCoors reintroduced the original Miller Lite beer can. The move was so popular that canned sales of Miller Lite, which were in decline, have enjoyed a 10-point uptick through May of this year. Anheuser-Busch InBev last year introduced Budweiser in a bow-tie shaped aluminum can. And a growing number of new launches are in cans only, including Modelo Especial Chelada, Coors Light Summer Brew and the Smith & Forge cider brand from MillerCoors.
Retailers seem to like the canned beer renaissance. “I’ve definitely seen an increase in canned beer sales, particularly during the summer months,” says Nolan Rodman, vice president of the three-unit Rodman’s Drug Stores in Washington, D.C., which offers a broad selection of canned craft beers. Ed Thompkins, wine and beer buyer for Heinen’s grocery stores, which has 19 locations in Ohio and Illinois, argues that cans have moved craft beer to the mainstream and that “the anti-can bias toward beer has disappeared.”
A full feature story on Canned Beer’s Renaissance will appear in the July-August issue of Market Watch magazine.
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