Beer News

Will Straub’s Returnable Bottles Get Canned?

It’s a grim reality for Pennsylvania’s Straub Brewery—they need their bottles back, or else they won’t be able to sell you new ones. Despite selling no-refill bottles and implementing a new canning line, Straub has continued to collect, clean, refill and re-sell their returnable bottles—which account for roughly 15 percent of their output—to local consumers.

William Brock, Straub’s president & CEO, tells BA, “It’s a nostalgic package, really. Many of our customers’ parents and grandparents used to drink the beer and return the bottles.”

Refillable bottles are heavier, able to withstand more abuse and, depending on the circumstances, can survive for several years. However, the process requires more of a financial investment up front, and profitability takes a hit if the brewery doesn’t get at least three or four cycles of use from the containers.

Five years ago, Straub spent $900,000 to purchase around 3.6 million refillable glass bottles. Most of these are now unaccounted for—presumably broken, trashed or tossed in the recycle bin. Brock hopes to reclaim enough bottles to keep the tradition alive through the end of the year, or longer. He adds, “There has been a tremendous outpour of customer support for the program, and we’re still looking into available options to keep the program going.”

Straub is one of very few American brewers to use returnables. Yuengling, one of the last remaining holdouts, just recently put an end to their refill process due to low consumer demand.

Independent Brewers United Acquired by North American Breweries

On August 11th, North American Breweries—which own the Gennessee, Dundee, Honey Brown Lager and Seagram’s Escapes brands, and imports other products, including Labatt— announced the purchase of Independent Brewers United, which owns the Magic Hat, Pyramid and MacTarnahan’s beer brands. Details of the sale were not disclosed.

Rich Lozyniak, CEO of North American Breweries, states via press release that the new beers add craft brewing credibility and variety to the beers currently offered by the company. “We are really excited to add Magic Hat, Pyramid and MacTarnahan’s beers to North American Breweries. All three brands have a rich history of craft brewing that helps us gain acceptance in that tight-knit community. By having more beers to offer our customers, wholesalers and retail accounts, we can better compete with the multinational mega brewers who dominate the US beer industry.”

Lozyniak says Independent Brewers United had a good thing going, and they don’t want to mess with their proven success. “The credibility that these brewers have developed in the craft beer segment is key to our success. We will work hard to carefully maintain and grow what was passionately created by people who love to drink and brew beer.”

NAB also promises, “The beer will remain the same: It will be brewed by the same people in the same breweries, using the same recipes, ingredients and commitment to artisanship as it has always been.” All breweries, alehouses and the Artifactory (Magic Hat’s retail store) will remain open, and NAB hopes to grow the brands by introducing them to new consumers in new geographic locations.

No Christmas This Year for Goose Island

When breweries expand, it’s almost always a win-win for everybody involved—brewers grow into new markets and sell more beer, and consumers can find the products in more locations. However, in some cases, breweries expand at a rate that makes it a challenge to produce enough to keep up with this new level of demand. Chicago’s Goose Island is one such brewery that’s grown at an outstanding pace thanks to a boost in distribution from Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc.

This spike in demand for their offerings, like Honker’s Ale and 312 Urban Wheat, has been taxing Goose Island’s existing resources. Without the capacity required to simultaneously keep up with demand for those products and brew a seasonal, they have decided to forego brewing their annual Christmas Ale.

Adam Lilly, Goose Island brand manager, tells BA, “I can confirm that there will be no Christmas this year,” adding they have already let their wholesalers know it’s not in the cards for 2010. Many fans of the brew are hoping it sees the light of day next year.

Sierra Nevada Teaming Up with Trappist Monks

On August 6th, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company announced a new partnership with the Trappist-Cistercian Abbey of New Clairvaux, Calif. Under this agreement, they will work together to brew the only authentic Trappist-style Abbey ales in America.

Three brews are slated to rotate through the seasons, starting with a Dubbel in spring 2011, followed by a Saison in the summer, and finishing off the series with a Quadrupel in the late fall. Proceeds from this joint venture will benefit the monks of the Abbey of New Clairvaux in their efforts to rebuild a 12th-century Cistercian chapter house on their grounds in Vina, Calif.

The Cistercian chapter house is over 800 years old. It was built in the year 1190 near the village of Trullo, Spain. In 1931, the structure was purchased by William Randolph Hearst and transported to its current site in Vina, but the project was never finished. The building wasn’t reconstructed until 1994, and is in dire need of restoration. ■