Victory to begin canning soon

I always through Donnybrook would be awesome in a nitro can. Super drinkable.

 

While I prefer my beer in cans, the sales in our store paint a bleak picture. Canned craft beers that aren't whales (or very close to whale status) take longer to move than their bottled brethren. Cans from breweries that historically bottle... they collect dust and usually go out of code.

As much as I love cans and Victory's beers, I don't think this is a smart idea.

 

You make an interesting point here, and one that I think is widely overlooked by a lot of people- if you are given the option between a canned and bottled version, which would you pick? I think most would reach for the bottles first, for whatever reason, and the can second. I think for a craft beer drinker to reach for the can first, there is incentive beyond simple beer drinking- I'll probably buy bottles unless I'm going to be in an environment where either cans are easier to store or are required (e.g. tailgating). That or the fact that cans are easier to produce in 16oz format, if you want a proper pint.

That said, I think that for this reason, Victory's cans will move though their sales won't match those of their bottles. If they do it right, and hone in on the sweet spot, I think the cans will move in decent time. They need to pick the right beers and bottle in the right formats (4pk 16oz, for instance) and they'll be fine.

 

“I think most would reach for the bottles first, for whatever reason…”. The alleged marketing explanation is that the majority of beer drinkers associate cans with megaswill beer (e.g., Budweiser, etc.) and bottles with ‘better’ beers.

The can is the superior package for a number of reasons: lighter in weight (less energy cost for transport), impermeable to air/oxygen, totally impervious to light (zero chance of skunking), etc.

The can is my preferred package for the aforementioned reasons. Perhaps if the benefits of the can were marketed better they would become the preferred package for the majority of beer drinkers?

Cheers!

P.S. And yes, I am looking forward to these canned Victory beers too!!

 

This segment of the industry has such can-fever... I doubt responsible breweries aren't looking carefully at the numbers, but your observation is interesting.

Jack, given your proximity to the brewery, I believe bottles are a good choice. The transportation benefits of cans become greatly outweighed by the manufacturing "costs" of cans in this case (supposedly). This rational excludes any conveniences to the consumer.

 

Sounds like good news to me. Now, if they would purchase a "Crowler" from Oskar Blues, that would be another plus!

 

Reread the OP

 

I have never once seen V Lager on the shelf that wasn't passed the best by date. I've always wanted to try some.

 

Well, the biggest plus of cans is the 100% impermeability of cans to air (oxygen) ingress. Lots of folks are unaware that oxygen diffuses into bottled beers through the cap liner. I personally am not too concerned about skunking in a brown bottle but the oxygen impermeability of cans is a BIG benefit IMO.

If I got into a beer store and they have the same beer in bottles and cans I always buy the cans. As an example, for some reason Troegs made their Sunshine Pils available to my beer stores in bottles early this season (May - June). I did not buy those bottles but the first time I saw Sunshine Pils in cans (July sometime) I bought a 12-pack of Sunshine Pils in cans.

Cheers!

 

There has been a fair amount of discussion about Victory Lager; by @TongoRad , @Shroud0fdoom , @Davidstan , @DrStiffington .

I guess I am oblivious since I live in SEPA where Victory Lager is readily available; I regularly get this beer on draft at Phillies games at Alley Brewing Beer Garden for example. Yes, Victory Lager is a tasty Munich Helles beer. Unfortunately it appears to be a poor seller based upon the posts in this thread? I would recommend as a potential alternative to those who have difficulty finding Victory Lager (fresh) to get Sly Fox Helles Golden Lager instead (which comes in cans).

Cheers!

 

I totally agree that cans are superior to bottles in terms of being a beer holding device. I think few would debate that fact, but I seriously don't think educated craft beer drinker's refusal to grab canned craft beer lies with some weird association of that beer with swill just because you need to crack the top of the can rather than pull out a bottle opener. There has to be a different reason why, when presented with glass bottles or cans, educated BAs reach for bottles even if they know the beer in the cans is likely to be of higher quality.

 

Thanks, Jack. I do enjoy the Sly Fox from time to time.

 

Tallboys of Dirt Wolf.......

Looks like I'll finally have a use for my bottom crisper in the fridge.

 

Hop Devil and Dirt Wolf in a can is something I would definitely enjoy, but can't help to wonder how great it would had been to open a can of Hop Wallop if they hadn't retired it.

 

This is wonderful news.

 

Jack, I was clumsily referring to the notion that in your case, buying bottles of Victory is probably better for the environment than buying cans of Victory (if that is a factor in your decision making). The benefits of cans to the consumer should be clear to any readers here.

I'm dissappointed that you have not yet used this thread to request for canned Victory kolsch. Cheers.

 

We see lots and lots of Victory product around here, but Victory Lager is oddly ultra rare to come by. Unfortunately, the last time I had it at their brewpub, it tasted like an off batch(?).

 

I'm starting to warm up to canned craft beers. They are very convenient, so sounds good to me.

 

I know this is a reach, but some canned Hop Ranch to hit the slopes with would be awesome

 

Sly Fox Helles Lager in the 360 can is unbelievably good in the summer. Scratch that, unbelievably excellent in the summer.

I'd love to see Prima and HopDevil in cans personally.