Should brewers focus on pints and 500 ml servings?

Whether they "should be" they sure seem to be

 

I say pint or half-pints. Half-pints are great for high-ABV beers, say 14+% ABV. I recently had two Hoppin' Frog high-ABV beers in half-pint cans, and they were the perfect dose.

 

I don't actually enjoy every new beer I drink and finishing off that extra 4 ounces can be off putting.

 

U.S. or Imperial?

 

Yes!

 

I prefer to buy 24 x 12oz. cases of beer at an affordable price. 12 packs are ok too.

 

I understand affordable is a relative term but agree 12 or more is the way to travel.

 

To me, both the 12 & 16 ounce formats have their advantages and disadvantages, it really depends on the day and beer in question, but, for reasons I can’t really explain, I think a 500 ml bottle looks cooler than a 12 oz bottle.

 

I prefer proper Imperial Pints!

 

Give me 12oz all day. Also, I do not miss bombers.

 

12 oz cans for me. And don’t get me started on the whole need for two different size can koozies! I hate having half nekkid 16 oz cans trying to get by wearing a 12 oz koozie so I need both sizes.

 

If they have the ability, brewers should offer a variety of sizes vs 1 set size for all their beers. Criteria based on what others have mentioned.

 

Bombers like 16oz /4 packs… the complaint is mostly about realization that the consumer is getting ripped off on a price per oz

 

I feel like most of the major format have their place. While I like the 16oz format for more drinkable styles, I don't want 16oz of brownie batter or a hazy DIPA, either. Hell, I wouldn't mind those little bottles/cans catching on for some of those. For something like an everyday pale lager or APA I'd happily welcome the old "bomber" format that has mostly died off.

 

Agree. I know there has been a ton of discusions on the 20oz single cans, but it’s odd they are putting most DIPAs in this format. I have seen AALs and Founders All-Day in the stovepipe cans for cheap price, but majority seem to be DIPAs.

 

Yes finding that consumer base today might be challenging, but I clearly remember returnable 16oz bottles were mine and others preferred package. Luging them back and forth to the distributor then didn't seem a problem, but I was young then and the heft of them didn't factor in, but it would now.

 

That will only result in most retailers carrying a smaller selection of different beers (either from the same brewer or other brewers) since most retailers do not have unlimited shelf space.

About 10 years ago now, after avoiding the macro section for decades, I had to buy someone some Coors Light as a favor - of course, I wanted to spend as little as possible but the variety behind that door made "doing the math" impossible. 7 oz., 8 oz. 12 oz., 16 oz, cans and bottles, 6 - 12 - 14 - 18 - 24 - 30 packs.

 

Half a century of US brewers' packaging mix, returnable/refillable bottles in red.

The demise caused by numerous factors - fuel costs for returning empties, labor costs at retailers, distributors and breweries, water and utility costs at breweries, even consumer resistance:
"Eh, someone else once drank beer from this bottle? GROSS!"

"Ummm... ever eat at a real restaurant? The kind with glasses made of glass, not waxed paper, served with metal, not plastic, flatware and on china dishes - rather than wrapped in paper or cardboard? That fork and spoon you used - been in someone's mouth..."

 

To sum up it became cheaper for brewers to switch to single use packaging.

What will happen in the next 30 years is that beverage companies and restaurants will become liable for their post consumer waste disposal. This will happen due to the proliferation of plastic and the realization that it can’t be recycled. It will be extended to cans and bottles necessitating a move back to reusable bottles as that will become the cheaper option for brewers who don’t want massive fines.

 

Well, that would suck! The convenience of disposable bottles/cans is what makes them so appealing.

Who wants to bring a case of returnable bottles up to the mountains during a camping trip? Once you and your buddies have finished the beer, you’d have to carefully repack all the bottles back into a cardboard box instead of just throwing them into a trash bag in the bed of the truck.

Plus, there a many rural/suburban areas that have limited recycling options. You may have to drive hours just to get the refund back on your bottle! Currently, I see people in Oregon storing boxes and boxes of empty bottles so that they can gather enough together to make the trip worth the hassle. Some people in Portland don’t even take their bottles in anymore because of all the homeless people who congregate around the recycling center.