As craft brewers gathered in Denver for the nation’s premier beer festival, concern surfaced Wednesday over distribution problems the brewers could face in the wake of the proposed new joint venture between beer giants Molson Coors and SABMiller.
Talk of the proposed new MillerCoors, which would combine the brewers’ U.S. operations, and its competitive effect on smaller brewers was creating a buzz at the 26th annual Great American Beer Festival.
Craft brewers, however, said they were more excited over the event than the beer consolidation.
Thousands of beer lovers are expected to descend on the Colorado Convention Center today through Saturday for the mother of all beer festivals. The event is sold out.
Brian Dunn, owner of Denver- based Great Divide Brewing Co., said he and other craft brewers are watching to see if the combination of Coors and Miller will in turn result in consolidation among beer distributors, leaving less visibility for smaller beer brands.
The Boulder-based Brewers Association defines craft brewers as American firms that produce fewer than 2 million barrels a year. Coors’ and Miller’s combined production would be 69 million barrels, second in the U.S. to Anheuser-Busch, the parent of Budweiser.
Dunn said many craft-beer breweries distribute their products through the same distribution houses that carry large domestic brands like Coors or Miller. Smaller brewers worry that a more powerful marketing push by the proposed MillerCoors could reduce the exposure of craft beers.
“If they decide to consolidate the wholesalers, it reduces the number of choices that people have to sell their beers,” Dunn said.
Distributors are particularly important to craft brewers in helping them market their products, he said.
Craft beers and imports have been gaining market share against mass-produced American beers in recent years.
Steve Findley, president of the Colorado Beer Distributors Association in Denver, said he doesn’t know what the impact of a merger could be but believes it will be neutral.
Kabira Hatland, a spokeswoman for Coors, said Molson Coors and SABMiller have no say over whether distributors consolidate because they operate independently.
Craft brewer Eric Warner, president of Flying Dog Brewery in Denver, said in addition to distribution issues, craft brewers also are watching to see if the two domestics would focus on creating new beers to compete in the craft market – if the consolidation were to be approved.
Blue Moon, a Coors brand sold as a craft brew, has had huge success, with sales rising 81 percent in the first six months of 2007. If the company increases research and development on craft beers, it could be a threat to small brewers, Warner said.
“They’ve had so much success with Blue Moon. (It) has been the only brand that either Bud, Miller or Coors has developed in the last 15 years, a flavorful nontraditional brand, that has done anything,” he said.
Still, craft brewers say they don’t expect the popularity of their products to slow.
“We’re up 37 percent year to date” in revenue and production, said Dunn of Great Divide, which just added Samurai, a rice-and-barley-malt product, to its line that includes Saint Bridget’s Porter and Wild Raspberry Ale.
“I think people’s tastes are changing,” said Dunn. “They’re looking for high-quality beers with lots of flavors.”
The Great American Beer Festival is expected to draw 46,000 people – the largest crowd ever – said Julia Herz, a spokeswoman for the Brewers Association.
Hundreds of breweries will compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in a variety of lager, ale and specialty beer styles.
The event also includes sessions on beer-and-food pairings and women in beer, said founder Charlie Papazian, who held the event for the first time in Boulder in 1982 with 1,000 people, 20 brewers and 40 beers.
Beer, he said, “is the new wine. There’s so much flavor and variety out there that it’s more easy to complement various foods and dishes.”
Herz said Americans are willing to go beyond the traditional light lager styles.
“The American public is trading up in what they consume … in coffees, chocolates, cheeses, breads – and the beer category.”
Karen Rouse: 303-954-1684 or krouse@denverpost.com
BY THE NUMBERS
25,000
Gallons of beer to flow during the beer fest
2,832
Beers from 474 brewers competing, 422 more than in 2006
75
Beer categories to be judged
Beer Festival
Site: Colorado Convention Center, Hall F, 700 14th St., Denver
Time: 5:30-10 p.m., today through Saturday; 12:30-4:30 p.m. Saturday
Tickets: Sold out
