Favorite Beers

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The self-styled king of beers has been toppled by a drink that most Budweiser lovers have never heard of: Snow.

The ascension of Snow, which is expected to outsell world leader Bud Light this year, is due to the growing thirst of Chinese drinkers for beer.

While beer consumption is on the wane in developed markets such as the UK, the Chinese have been developing a taste for home-grown lagers and there is plenty of scope for growth in a country with more than 1.3 billion inhabitants.

Average beer consumption in China is about 28 litres per person per year and that figure is growing fast. It compares with consumption figures of almost 100 litres per person per year in the UK and about 70 litres in Japan.

Last year, Bud Light sold 5.18bn litres – about 9bn pints - while Snow sold 5.12bn litres, according to industry statistics provider Plato Logic.

In the first nine months of this year alone, Snow has sold 5.1bn litres, according to the third-quarter results of its maker, China Resources Snow Breweries (CR Snow). And while sales of Snow are growing at about 20%, sales of Bud Light, according to industry estimates, are down in the first nine months of this year in its biggest market, the US.

As a result, Snow is believed to already be bigger than Bud Light and its position at the top of the global booze league is expected to be confirmed at the end of the year.

It will mark a meteroric rise for Snow’s brewer. Since it was founded in 1994, CR Snow, has grown from a regional brewer with a single plant, in Shenyang in the north-eastern Liaoning province, to one of China’s biggest drinks companies.

CR Snow is a joint venture between China Resources Enterprise and UK-based brewer SABMiller, owner of Grolsch and Pilsner Urquell in the UK. It now has more than 30 brands and more than 60 breweries in China.

It remains to be seen, however, how much of an export market there is for Snow. Reviewers at the monthly beer magazine Beeradvocate  gave it a D describing it as “unimpressive” and “extremely drinkable, like water”.

But its succession to the throne marks a significant success for SABMiller.

A lot of Western brewers went into China in the 1990s and built breweries, expecting to make a killing with their premium brands. They met with limited success because price is so critical in a country where almost one person in five lives on less than $1 a day. A 640ml bottle of Snow costs less than 30 US cents and, as a result, the premium beer sector is only worth about 2% of the entire Chinese market.

Instead, most Chinese drinkers are sticking with local brews. China has a clutch of super-brewers such as Beijing Yanjing Brewery and Tsingtao Brewery and western companies are increasingly getting involved with local partners as they look to offset slowing growth in more mature markets.

Earlier this month, InBev, which makes Stella Artois and Beck’s, warned that the UK was among its worst-performing markets, with its brands falling 5.3% in UK sales volumes over the three months to September. That followed a similarly gloomy statements from Molson Coors, maker of the UK market-leading lager Carling, and Carlsberg – both noted a marked slowdown in British beer drinking.

Molson Coors’ UK brands fell 3.1% in volume over the third quarter of the year, while Carlsberg, which is closing its Tetley brewery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, said a sharp downturn in pub trade had led to a revision in full-year earnings forecasts.

Earlier this week, China’s ministry of commerce approved the acquisition of Budweiser’s owner Anheuser-Busch by InBev and both companies are already involved in the country’s brewing industry.

Anheuser-Busch has a 27% stake in Tsingtao Brewery, while Inbev owns 28.56% of Zhujiang Brewery. Neither company will be allowed to increase their stakes or get involved in either Beijing Yanjing or CR Snow for fear of reducing competition in the market.

guardian.co.uk/business/2008/nov/21/beer-sales-budlight-snow-china

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ASHEVILLE – This is it, that once-a-year brew rush that so many beer lovers have been waiting for. Highland Brewing Co. has released its annual Cold Mountain Winter Ale, and if history repeats itself (as it does year after year), the stuff won’t be around for long.

We say this even though Highland has doubled production of Cold Mountain this year. And we’ve been assured by Highland founder Oscar Wong that this year, Cold Mountain should be in good supply, certainly in Asheville. Some of this precious beer will also be sold outside of Western North Carolina.

But even with greatly increased production, this beer just won’t last long. Of all the beers made in the Asheville area (and that’s about 40 or so) only Cold Mountain has this wild cult of popularity that sets it above the rest. Only Cold Mountain sells out so quickly. The brew is so popular that some drinkers will engage in spirited debates on what vintage was better than another (was the 2002 better than the 2004, and so on). Having already enjoyed a few pints of the stuff, I can say that 2008 Cold Mountain measures up. It’s slightly dryer than in the past. And the hops flavor is more pronounced. But overall, the flavor is basically unchanged from last year.

Why does Cold Mountain have this grip on beer drinkers? Well, we could debate that for days. But this was the first real seasonal beer to be made here. And so from the get-go, it was different from other brews from Highland or the other local breweries.

Also, the flavor is so unusual. Highland starts with a basic brown ale. Then an assortment of flavors and spices are added. The entire Highland brew crew tries out various blends, and goes over what is working, or not working. Finally, the recipe is settled on.

Cold Mountain takes longer to produce than Highland’s year-round brews, six or eight weeks. Many have wondered why the brewery just doesn’t make enough Cold Mountain to satisfy demand. Well, Highland can’t tie up production on this one beer. Also, as a cold-weather seasonal, it really needs to be sold and enjoyed now. And if the beer was out there year-round, it might lose some of unique character.

Not to compare this beer to a grocery store brand, but you might remember the old days, when original Coors was sold only in the Western states and was prized anywhere east of the Mississippi River. When Coors began national production, it lost that edge and became just another brand.

Cold Mountain is sold three ways — in 22-ounce bottles (really the most economical way to enjoy it); in 1-liter stop-top bottles (you are paying for the package, but they make great gifts); and on draft (it seems to last at pubs and restaurants longer than it does in stores).

The brew was bottled and kegged last week, delivered to distributors this week and should be out there right now. Look for it at specialty beer outlets, higher end markets, and it should be in some Ingles grocery stores that stock Highland 22-ounce bottles.

Even as the Cold Mountain comes rolling out, Highland is gearing up for its next brew, Black Mountain Bitter, an English-style pale ale that will be produced in December. It’s the first time Highland hade made this style of beer, which is very smooth, and will be a true “sessions” beer, at 4.5 percent alcohol, or somewhere near there, meaning you can enjoy a couple of them at a time.

It’s also the first time Highland has released a certified organic brew. Those certificates are not easily obtained — the brewery is inspected and must follow strict guidelines. But it’s no secret that Asheville is a city that appreciates and seeks out organic food and drink. Having that certificate should help give Black Mountain Bitter an edge, and that really comes in handy in a competitive beer market like this one.

citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/

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Leinenkugel’s latest release certainly has a name that conjures up warm and fuzzy images of curling up by the fireplace to ward off the late fall and winter chill.

Fireside Nut Brown is a 4.9-percent alcohol beer that claims to be inspired by the English style, but it’s not like any English nut brown I’ve ever had.

It’s a nice-looking beer with red tints poking through the clear amber body. The flavor, though, is dominated by strong hazelnut and maple flavors, accented by a higher-than-normal sweetness and thin body.

Lurking in the background of Fireside is the taste of Leinie’s regular lager that seems to be in most of its beers. It makes me wonder if it uses the same yeast for all of its products.

The amount of sweetness is also similar to several of Leinie’s specialty beers, such as its Berry Weiss and Apple Spice (the latter has been discontinued). Then there is the light body, which again seems to be the same template for most of the Leinie beers.

Those expecting an English-type nut brown, such as the excellent one from Samuel Smith of England, will not find it in Fireside — too light-bodied and sweet. But, while there’s room for improvement, it’s not an unpleasant beer and is a decent sipper. In the meantime, I’m still waiting for the brewery’s excellent Big Eddy Russian Imperial Stout to appear on store shelves.

It’s also worth mentioning that Leinie’s Creamy Dark won a silver medal at the recent Great American Beer Festival in the American Style Dark Lager category. It does have that underlying Leinie’s signature taste, but lots of roasted malt and a decent body places it among the brewery’s top-tasting beers.

wisinfo.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008811200307

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With the rise of craft beers in America, the time has come for them to sit with the grown-ups at the Thanksgiving dinner table. If there’s a wine to match every course on turkey day, there’s also a beer.

I’m not talking about Budweiser with the broccoli or Coors with the cranberries. These are beers crafted with complex and distinctive flavors. The matching principles are the same as for wine, as you’ll see below.

A problem with beer: It’s foamy, and it fills you up. But you can serve it in small quantities – 3- to 4-ounce cocktail glasses like the ones pubs use for beer-tasting flights.

Here’s a course-by-course list of Thanksgiving beers, inspired by one the Beer Advocate magazine did two years ago:

Aperitif

As guests arrive, hand them something crisp and cold, light as air. They sip and whet their appetites, but don’t fill up. The world’s lagers are made for this.

•Stiegl Goldbrau Premium Lager, Stieglbrewery, Salzburg, Austria, alcohol not listed: bright golden color, big, creamy head, light flavors of malt and hops; $3.19 per 1-pint- 9-ounce bottle.

Hors d’oeuvres

As you pass around the canapes, you give your guests pale ales, somewhat fuller in body, hoppier, able to deal with shrimp with sauce, cheese balls and the like.

•Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, California, 5.6 percent alcohol: amber in color, full-bodied, malty, hoppy, spicy; $1.60 per 12-ounce bottle.

•Lagunitas Maximus India Pale Ale, California, 7.5 percent alcohol: deep amber, brutally hoppy, with flavors of pine and citrus; $3.99 per 1 pint, 6-ounce bottle.

Dinner

For the full, complex, fatty flavors of an all-out Thanksgiving main course, you want a muscular beer, with the hops and alcohol to cut through. The category called Belgian-style strong ales works here.

•Collaboration Not Litigation Ale, Colorado, 8.99 percent alcohol: dark brown color, sturdy beige head, starts fruity, then the powerful alcohol kicks in. It’ll handle Cajun turkey, even red meat; $8.49 per 1-pint, 6-ounce bottle.

•Ommegang Brewery Rare Vos Belgian-Style Amber Ale, Cooperstown, N.Y., 6.5 percent alcohol: coppery color, fruity, spicy, muscular, flavors of burnt sugar; $5.79 per 1-pint, 9.4-ounce bottle.

Dessert

With beer, as with wine, the drink should be sweeter than the dessert. The following will handle pecan or pumpkin pies.

•Dogfish Head Punkin Ale, Delaware, 7 percent alcohol: a full-bodied brown ale brewed with real pumpkin, brown sugar, allspice, cinnamon and nutmeg, it tastes like all of them; $10.49 per 4-pack.

•Rogue Chocolate Stout, Ore., 7 per cent alcohol: Yes, they add real imported chocolate to the brew, plus oats and hops, and it tastes like all of its ingredients, with the smooth power of alcohol and a bittersweet finish; $5.79 per 1-pint, 6-ounce bottle.

Digestif

When you mellow out after the meal, watching the game, you need something big, rich, soft and sweet to settle your stomach.

•Dogfish Head Raison d’Extra Ale, Delaware, 18 percent alcohol a big, brown ale brewed with of malt, brown sugar and raisins; $6.25 per 12-ounce bottle.

•Great Divide Brewing Old Ruffian Barleywine-Style Ale, Colorado, 10.2 percent alcohol: smooth, sweet fruit and caramel flavors give way to powerful hops; $5.29 per 1 pint, 6 ounce bottle.

dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/lifetravel/stories/

DN-nf_thanksbeer_1119gd.State.Edition1.1871113.html

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BEIJING—Beijing agreed Tuesday to Belgium-based InBev SA’s takeover of Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc.’s Chinese operations as part of their global merger but limited future acquisitions on anti-monopoly grounds.

The tie-up is part of InBev’s $52 billion purchase of Anheuser-Busch, which was approved Friday by the U.S. Justice Department.

The China portion of the merger was the highest-profile acquisition approved since a new Chinese anti-monopoly law took effect in August.

The Commerce Ministry said it concluded the merger would not reduce competition in China’s fast-growing beer market. But it said the companies were barred from increasing existing stakes in Chinese brewers to preserve competition.

Global brewers are eager to expand in China. Following a string of acquisitions of Chinese brands in the 1990s, Anheuser-Busch and other brewers have spent heavily to build market share.

The Commerce Ministry said Anheuser-Busch is barred from increasing its 27 percent stake in the Tsingtao Beer Ltd. InBev is barred from adding to its 28.5 percent stake in Zhujiang Beer Ltd.

The companies are barred from linking up with two leading Chinese breweries, Huarun Snow Beer Ltd. and Beijing Yanjing Beer Ltd., the ministry said.

The U.S. Justice Department agreed to InBev’s purchase of Anheuser-Busch on condition the Belgian brewer sell its Labatt USA brand to reduce its market dominance.

chicoer.com/business/ci_11012771

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Just in time for holidays. A rich, full-bodied winter warmer crafted in the British tradition of holiday beers. This deep mahogany colored brew balances complex fruit flavors with a refreshingly smooth texture, making Snow Cap a highly drinkable and desirable cold weather companion.

Original Gravity: 17.3
Alcohol By Volume: 7.00%
Malts: 2-Row Barley, Caramel 80L, Chocolate Malt
Hops: Nugget, Willamette, East Kent Goldings
Calories: 225
Availability: October - January
Best Paired With: Shellfish, rich game and even rich chocolatey desserts

-Silver Medal, World Beer Championships, “Strong Ale”, 1998

pyramidbrew.com/our-brews/snowcap#

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 Cape Cod Beer’s Berry Merry Holiday Ale, an Amber Ale infused with Cranberry, Orange and Cloves will be available starting Friday November 14th, so that people can stock up in time for the Thanksgiving holiday. Berry Merry Holiday Ale will be available exclusively between November 14th and December 31st and is available at the brewery or in package stores between Plymouth & Provincetown.

thebeerinme.com/news.php?item.244.1

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InBev has completed its $52 billion (R529 billion) purchase of Budweiser maker Anheuser-Busch, creating the world’s largest beer manufacturer and giving the Belgian brewer half the US beer market.

The firms had received all regulatory approvals for the $70-a-share purchase, InBev said yesterday.

The combined brewer, named Anheuser-Busch InBev, will trade from tomorrow as ABI on the Euronext Brussels stock exchange.

The transaction would be financed with $45 billion in debt and a $9.8 billion bridge loan to be paid back with proceeds from a future stock sale, InBev said.

The board of the merged firm will be made up of InBev’s current board and Anheuser-Busch chief executive August Busch. – Bloomberg

busrep.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=4720234&fSectionId=565&fSetId=662

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BRUSSELS, Belgium — InBev SA formed the world’s largest brewer Tuesday when it finalized its $52 billion (euro41 billion) takeover of Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc.

The new company, named Anheuser-Busch InBev, will be headed by InBev CEO Carlos Brito and will be headquartered at Leuven, Belgium.

InBev promises to keep Anheuser-Busch’s St. Louis base as the company’s North American headquarters but the takeover ends 150 years of family rule at Anheuser-Busch. Anheuser-Busch President and CEO August A. Busch IV joins the new company’s board as a non-executive director.

Anheuser-Busch shares stopped trading Monday and will now be swapped for $70 each in cash.

The Belgian-Brazilian takeover of Anheuser-Busch comes after a bitter takeover battle turned sweeter with a higher offer in July, despite protests in St. Louis that saw politicians criticize the deal and Web sites call for Bud to be saved from ‘the waffle guys.’

Anheuser-Busch provides half of America’s beer but it has not managed to expand around the world as fast as InBev - a Belgian-Brazilian hybrid that owns hundreds of local brands but few real stars.

InBev has promised to keep all 12 North American breweries open as long as the company faces no new U.S. taxes. Anheuser-Busch already plans to shed 1,185 positions - mostly by offering early retirement and not filling vacancies.

The company did not mention a dispute with Mexico’s largest brewer Grupo Modelo - which was 50-percent owned by Anheuser-Busch. Grupo Modelo filed a notice of arbitration against Anheuser-Busch last month, saying the takeover violated their investment agreement and its right of consent to enter into a partnership with InBev.

Taking over Anheuser-Busch gives InBev a jewel of a brand in Budweiser - the world’s top selling beer - which it promises to sell more widely by pushing into emerging economies in Asia, Latin America and eastern Europe. It will sell a fifth of all beer in both Russia and China.

This will help generate growth as beer sales decline in North America and Europe where drinkers are cutting back and turning to wine and other drinks.

The new company leapfrogs SABMiller as top brewer and becomes one of the world’s top five consumer goods companies.

Brito said the combination had created “a stronger, more competitive global company with a leading international brand portfolio and distribution network, and great potential for growth all over the world.”

InBev said it now had all the regulatory clearances it needed for the deal.

China approved the takeover on Tuesday but barred the company from increasing existing stakes in Chinese brewers. It said it was necessary to prevent Anheuser-Busch InBev becoming a monopoly in the country.

This curbs future growth in the world’s most populous nation. It caps Anheuser-Busch’s 27-percent stake in Tsingtao Beer Ltd. and InBev’s 28.5 percent holding in Zhujiang Beer Ltd. They will also be prohibited from linking up with two leading Chinese breweries, Huarun Snow Beer Ltd. and Beijing Yanjing Beer Ltd.

The U.S. Department of Justice cleared the deal last week after InBev agreed to sell Labatt USA, which sells the Canadian beer in the U.S. It will hold on to Labatt in Canada. InBev did not say who would buy the American unit.

U.S. antitrust officials had worried that beer prices would increase in upstate New York because - with Budweiser and Labatt Blue - the two companies would supply most of the beer in the region.

InBev has borrowed $45 billion to pay for the deal and secured $9.8 billion in equity bridge financing that it had planned to replace with a share issue in October.

But rocky financial markets forced it to postpone issuing new shares and it says it can keep the bridge financing in place for up to six months after it closes the deal and issue shares early next year.

InBev says the company is well positioned to cope with a slowing global economy because costs for key ingredients such as grain malt for brewing beer and aluminum for beer cans will fall even as sales stall.

InBev is renowned for shaving costs since it was formed in a 2004 merger between Belgium’s Interbrew and Brazil-based AmBev.

Beer industry analysts Plato Logic says beer sales will slow significantly to expand just 3 percent next year as economies around the world shrink or stagnate.

star-telegram.com/190/story/1045328.html

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In the early 1980s, American craft beer pioneers dreamt of nothing more than producing a few beers that broke through the monotony of humdrum, mainstream lagers. A group of men and women who had traveled through Europe and had their eyes and mouths opened by local beers or who had adventured to brew their own beers. For these early entrepreneurs, the future was uncertain but filled with hopes of building a few hundred or even thousand barrel brewery.

Fast forward two decades and things have changed beyond anyone’s greatest expectations. Once top of the pops, America’s largest breweries are now reeling on their back heels. Once considered little more than a gimmick, craft beer has enjoyed startling success.

As the beer industry has aged, it has both matured and evolved. From its slow infancy to its turbulent teens, craft brewers are now experiencing the complications of adulthood. What started as a fun experiment for some has led to some pretty high stakes. From hobbyist basement systems costing a few hundred or thousand dollars to gleaming new brewhouses costing a few hundred thousand, the craft beer business is hardly just fun and games.

Times are changing quickly in the American beer marketplace and they’re not going to slow down anytime soon. In response to double-digit growth, breweries recently producing 10-15,000 barrels per year suddenly produce 75,000 barrels per year and have tank space capacity for many times more. To meet market expectations and changes, these brewers have traded sore backs for aching pocketbooks.

We are thankful that times are good right now and that despite a weak economy and financial hardships, craft brewers are not yet seeing a reversion to old buying habits.
But the nature of the industry itself is also changing in other ways. Many craft beer pioneers are now elder industry statesmen. Fritz Maytag bought Anchor Brewing 43 years ago; Ken Grossman started Sierra Nevada 28 years ago; Jim Koch toted his briefcase from bar to bar 24 years ago. Beyond these well-known figures, many founders of regional breweries have been in the business for 20 years or more now. And as with any other small business, many are owned by one person or a small group of aging entrepreneurs who’ve long been toiling in the brewhouse, glad-handing distributors, and hawking product every weekend at beer festivals. For these hard working individuals, vacations are few and downtime almost non-existent.

And as with any other hard driving profession, it eventually wears you down. With high debt levels and decades dedicated to building up their companies and employees, these brewery owners can’t just walk away. Not to the mention the disappointment felt by their loyal customers who they’ve worked so hard to gain. And so we must look to an uncertain future but one where we can be certain of corporate shakeups and where change will be a constant.

The Old Dominion Brewing Company of Ashburn, Virginia, for example, is representative of stories we will continue to hear. Founded by Jerry Bailey and other investors in 1989, the brewery was a pioneer in the Mid-Atlantic region. After nearly two decades of work, however, Bailey and others were ready to leave the business. They tried for years to sell to other craft brewery owners, but with no success. Then in 2007, they sold Old Dominion to a joint partnership of the Fordham Brewing Company and Anheuser-Busch. After making a run at it for a year, the group recently announced it will close the brewery’s pub and its future operations as a stand-alone brewery remain in question.

The Old Dominion case, while extreme, is a cautionary tale for the industry and consumers alike. Craft breweries are run by people not corporations and these folks can’t continue in this tough business forever. Shareholders eventually want their initial investments back, owners want to retire, and if they don’t have kids ready to take over the business, end game options remain limited. Consolidation, either with other craft breweries or with larger brewing concerns, will be the norm not the exception. And while we can all appreciate how far craft beer has come since its early days, it’s time to contemplate the business realities that lie ahead.

beerscribe.com/2008/11/17/

the-changing-face-of-the-craft-beer-industry

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