Beer sales slip across Europe; pricey brands down in U.S.

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Maybe it'll be like the Cigar Boom. It got the industry up and going, but made a premium cigar so over priced that we could hardly afford to smoke. Now the boom has faded, and the price has corrected. Maybe we can soon pay less than $9 a 6 pack for premium beer if we can get the yuppie college kids that drink Micro's because it's COOL to go back to Bud Ice!

Sad for the rest of us though...cause you know it's hurting some of the best breweries in the country!
 
...if we can get the yuppie college kids that drink Micro's because it's COOL to go back to Bud Ice!

That's not really fair, if somebody is going to drink a beer because its "cool", they are going to go with a beer with a name like Sam Adams or something. I don't know anybody who drinks something from Stone or Avery or a similar smaller brew because it looks cool. It is possible for college kids to taste buds and enjoy beer the way it is meant to me enjoyed
 
That's not really fair, if somebody is going to drink a beer because its "cool", they are going to go with a beer with a name like Sam Adams or something. I don't know anybody who drinks something from Stone or Avery or a similar smaller brew because it looks cool. It is possible for college kids to taste buds and enjoy beer the way it is meant to me enjoyed

I'm not discounting that fact....and true enough many a serious beer aficionado has come from trying something like Sam Addams and liking it! I'm not knocking the benefits of a good industry boom!
I'm only 30, so I really had just started to explore the wonderful world of premium Tobacco when that boom hit, and I've seen many of my friends that would drop $20 on a Fuentes and think nothing of it relegated back to the nasty realm of Marlboro and Camel Ecstasy! Those are the people that irritate me...the ones that are more concerned with having the high price high society big name stuff than real quality. The people that prop the price on the things that we love, just to look good doing it, and causes the rest of us to shell out extra bucks for something we truly enjoy and appreciate.
 
i am sure that as the corn ethanol fad slips away and the Subsidies are removed price and avalbility of barley and corn will improve :)
 
You think college kids drink beer for the taste? I was visiting the bother-in-law at a frat 2 weekends ago. Friday night we were sitting around with a few of his brother and I brought in 2 6 packs of Bells 2 hearted Ale. They all loved it but I don't see any of them buying a keg of it for the party that night. College is about getting the effects of beer not the taste.


As for the current trend; look to the economy, its down. Also $9 for a 6 pack of SA is way too high. Maybe its the hop shortage but WTF?
 
You think college kids drink beer for the taste? I was visiting the bother-in-law at a frat 2 weekends ago. Friday night we were sitting around with a few of his brother and I brought in 2 6 packs of Bells 2 hearted Ale. They all loved it but I don't see any of them buying a keg of it for the party that night. College is about getting the effects of beer not the taste.

I love beer as much as the next guy, but if I am having a party, I am not dropping $150+ for a keg of something nice because 1) I'm not made of money, and 2) 90% of it will be had by people who don't appreciate it or are just going to use it to fill up beirut cups. Those are the occasions when you get a 2 kegs of Key Light for $70 and call it a day
 
I love beer as much as the next guy, but if I am having a party, I am not dropping $150+ for a keg of something nice because 1) I'm not made of money, and 2) 90% of it will be had by people who don't appreciate it or are just going to use it to fill up beirut cups. Those are the occasions when you get a 2 kegs of Key Light for $70 and call it a day

Yup, even BMC has its place. Did I really just say that?!?
 
I beg to differ my friend. Thats not the debate however.
I wish I took pics...It was 1AM sitting in a frat basement behind the bar/ VIP area drinking me a Bells while tons of kids held their empty glass begging for beer...at one point there were swapping out Kegs and a few guys left because service wasn't fast enough. These guys didn't even know what swill they were drinking. They were there for the effect not the taste.


As for me I was worried because the beer store closed at 1:30 and I only had 2 beers left and would be forced to drink the swill :drunk:
 
I wish I took pics...It was 1AM sitting in a frat basement behind the bar/ VIP area

Well your first problem is being at a frat party that has a "VIP area". Please don't confuse real college students with frat boys:mug:
 
Ok we can have this battle else where. Back on topic...The cost of Micros is whats driving sales down. For example I bought a 4 pack of this for $19.99 this past weekend and almost shot myself for doing it.

bourbon_top.gif



bourbon_left.jpg
 
Yea, there are a lot of pricey micros out there. I don't claim to know their costs, or how much it gets marked up. I'm willing to bet it gets marked up substantially.

I recently saw a bottle of Terrapin Hop Shortage at a local pub known for a great beer selection going for $15 (750 mL). I went and bought the same thing at the liquor store for $6.

Oskar Blues' Gordon's really gets me. I usually see it for $12 a 4 pack! I've heard its a great beer. Thats a little rich for my blood.

I do get pretty decent prices on the South Eastern micros like Highland Brewing Company, Terrapin, Thomas Creek etc.
 
Yea, there are a lot of pricey micros out there. I don't claim to know their costs, or how much it gets marked up. I'm willing to bet it gets marked up substantially.

I recently saw a bottle of Terrapin Hop Shortage at a local pub known for a great beer selection going for $15 (750 mL). I went and bought the same thing at the liquor store for $6.

Oskar Blues' Gordon's really gets me. I usually see it for $12 a 4 pack! I've heard its a great beer. Thats a little rich for my blood.

I do get pretty decent prices on the South Eastern micros like Highland Brewing Company, Terrapin, Thomas Creek etc.

Ya, buying anything in a 750 at a restaurant and it gets pricey - usually marked up to 2-3x what you can get at the local liquor store.

I'm very surprised you can get Oskar Blues all the way out in SC. I thought it was just a small Colorado thing
 
It just started showing up here when the ABV ban got lifted not much over a year ago. Another more BMC drinking oriented bar here serves Old Chub cans. Pricey too, but a nice change up from Miller Light pitchers.
 
You think college kids drink beer for the taste? I was visiting the bother-in-law at a frat 2 weekends ago. Friday night we were sitting around with a few of his brother and I brought in 2 6 packs of Bells 2 hearted Ale. They all loved it but I don't see any of them buying a keg of it for the party that night. College is about getting the effects of beer not the taste.

Yep. My daughter is a beer snob. The guys as SDSU all buy Keystone Light or Natty Light by the keg for parties. Why??? Because is is the cheapest buzz. No other requirements. She won't touch the stuff. Next year she'll be making her own Apfelwein. :D
 

She's on an athletic scholarship and she's not yet 21. Messing with Apfelwein before she's legal is asking for trouble if she wants to continue to enjoy an almost full ride. The cons far outweigh any pros at this stage for her.
 
How is it yuppie to drink PBR? Hahaha. Do you mean it in a "we do it because it's perceived to be cool" way? I don't think I've ever done something because it was publicly considered to be cool. I buy a case of Busch or PBR now and then because I'm a piss-poor college student who can appreciate the light nature of an American light lager and can't afford $35 cases of Bass or Sam Adams or $50 cases of Troegs or Dogfish Head, despite how good they might taste.

Just be happy that I personally do not waste money on Starbucks coffee, drive a BMW X5 my Daddy paid for, wear collared shirts from Abercrombie, and pay for college/cell phone/insurance/gas myself.

:mug:
 
i'm done spending ten bucks on six pack, i'm gonna simply get a 12er of something a little lower shelf, bass, harp, smithwicks, st. pauli girl, sierra nevada for five bucks more.

if i'm gonna buy a micro, it's gonna be something local like great lakes.
 
willo is east side cleveland, you'll have a twenty minute drive to great lakes, but should be able to get it in most beer stores. the pub itself is really nice, especially the cellar.
 
But shes a beer snob..nice very European of you

My brews have trained her well, plus that exchange student trip to Germany kinda spoiled her.

Imagine being 17 years old and it's legal to purchase and drink beer and there are only German beers on tap available.
 
I can imagine that, I did a post-high school exchange year in Belgium and in the more popular bars we frequented there was only Maes and Jupiler on tap... Belge equivalent of BMC...

I could, however, get pints of Stella Artois for 2 euros, or go to the supermarche and pick up bottles at $0.33/bottle
 
I don't understand the packaging of Micro beers sometimes. $10.99 for a 6 pack of Rogue Dead Guy Ale. $5.99 for a 22 oz bomber of Dead Guy. I thought buying in bulk usually meant a discounted price, not an increase in price.
 
It goes both ways. I don't think its fair to assume that all 21-25 year olds are to blame for increased prices on micros. Sure, there will always be the "yuppies" who drink micros because they make you look cool (sophisticated, different, classy), but there are also a great portion of us who are out there because the beer is good. $9 a six pack is a lot to pay to look cool, especially for a low profile micro (Parker36 had it dead on --> if you're going to "look cool" you're going to do it with a known beer, not too expensive, not Keystone water either, but something like Sam Adams). Also, who hasn't turned 16 and wanted to get out and drive? Who hasn't turned 18 and wants to buy a lotto ticket or a cigar (even if you won't smoke it). The point is, when you turn 21 (college yuppie), you are going to buy beer. When you become passionate about beer (thats why I brew), you want to experience the options. My friends and I sometimes have beer night. We all buy a six pack of whatever micro, and pass bottles around. Why? Not to get %$#@&# up, but rather to experience the world of beers. Call it being amateur drinkers, but I wouldn't call it a yuppie fad. As far as I have seen, there are just as many "elders" as there are "yuppies" who either enjoy beer or do it for buzz. Its what I call...an "unjust stereotype".
As far as increasing prices...I would blame inflation and most definitely the shortage of hops (the good ol' factor of supply and demand and how it can drive up prices!)
 
Agreed, at least I don't see much "yuppie" micro consumption. From my experiences, the only people who drop major dollars on expensive beer are the people who actually enjoy them. Those who don't, buy BMCs. Hell I have to buy BMCs because I am far too poor to regularly consume micros.

And frats are not a good guage of college or that specific age group.
 
I can imagine that, I did a post-high school exchange year in Belgium and in the more popular bars we frequented there was only Maes and Jupiler on tap... Belge equivalent of BMC...

I could, however, get pints of Stella Artois for 2 euros, or go to the supermarche and pick up bottles at $0.33/bottle


Oh God Jupiler! The Coors Light of Belgium! I bought a 24 oz can out of a vending machine while waiting for a train in Brugges, haha.:mug:
 
The nice thing about all these things diving in price means that waiting in the wings are people ready, willing and able to purchase them. The estimated 2.7% increase nationwide in home sales is evidence of this. This and this alone will turn the economy. Let gas prices fall, people will use more again (not saying conservation is a bad thing, just making a point).
 
Lots of good observations in this thread. The hoi polloi have common tastes, by definition. As Abe Lincoln said, "God must have loved the common people, he made so many of them." I attended my brother's wedding two weeks ago, and the featured malt (I think....) beverage was Coors Light. Given that I haven't had a beer like that in ages, it tasted exactly like soda water.....and I then gravitated to the gallon jugs of H20. Most people, most of the time, drink beer as a social lubricant. What its taste, aroma, mouthfeel, other characteristics might be are totally irrelevant.
 
Yep. My daughter is a beer snob. The guys as SDSU all buy Keystone Light or Natty Light by the keg for parties. Why??? Because is is the cheapest buzz. No other requirements. She won't touch the stuff. Next year she'll be making her own Apfelwein. :D

Cheapest buzz indeed.
 
Back
Top