Beer Industry at a Crossroads

There's any interesting article here about the stagnation of the macro-brew market. The CEO of SABMiller, Norman Adami, spoke at the Nightclub & Bar Trade Show in Las Vegas about the "sameness" in advertising, packaging, and flavor that pervaded the industry in the mid-nineties leading to a surge in the wine and spirits market as consumers looked to distinguish themselves and "move up."

I think the most telling part of the article is this little paragraph about halfway down:

-As a result, the growth of wine and spirits is "significantly outpacing the growth of beer," Adami asserted, with the exception of imports and microbrews, which continue to grow at a good clip.-

Not surprising news in Portland, where new microbreweries appear on an almost daily basis, and the "fancy cocktail" revolution is in full swing. But, I think it shows the resistance by the Big Three to even consider microbrew as part of the same market segment, much less as a competitor they have to fight. Adami goes on to say that "The giant has awoken" as it were, but if the recent releases like Pumpkin Jack's Spice Ale and 1855 Celebration Lager are any indication of the direction they're going they stand to lose more market share to the imports and micro's before all's said and done. I hate to say it, but the only way I see for them to regain that lost share is to buy up hot microbrews to add to their portfolio, and anyone who's familiar with the Celis White story should be nervous at the thought.

Drink Better, Not More!