Thursday’s ad is for Sapporo, since the Japanese brewery was founded today in 1889. Following western brewery advertising standards of the day, this one was published nineteen years later in 1908.
Beer In Ads #51: Schlitz, Just The Kiss Of Hops
Wednesday’s ad is for Schlitz, one from their long-running “Just the Kiss of Hops” series, and apparently published around 1960. It looks to me like those luscious red lips on the raven-haired beauty are about to kiss the hops, rather than being kissed by them, as the tagline suggests.
Yet Another SF Beer Week Video
Here’s yet another video from SF Beer Week, this one by the local NBC affiliate for a news segment. It features the Toronado Pub in lower Haight, owner Dave Keene, and Natalie Cilurzo, co-owner of Russian River Brewing.
If you can’t see the video embedded here, try this link.
Beer In Ads #50: Carling’s Light As A Feather
Tuesday’s ad is for Carling Black Label and was originally published September 25, 1957. While quite effective in getting across its message, it’s an odd message nonetheless. Carling is trying to convince its customers that its beer is so light it’s like a feather. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t want to drink a feather, do you? Visually, though — especially before the digital age — having the beer bottle resemble a feather is quite well done. Now that’s a light beer!
UK Craft Paralleling US Craft Market
For several years now — maybe a decade? — craft beer has been growing at a faster rate than the older, big breweries. Naturally, they’re so big that even small percentage growth adds up to big dollars while craft beer, for the most part, with a smaller base has far more room to grow. As a result, this has been happening year after year without changing the overall landscape of the American beer market very much. It is changing, but very, very slowly (or at least slower than I’d like).
Perhaps more importantly, this sustained growth in the craft segment while the mainstream market continues to slip suggests a broader trend and what the future might hold, at least eventually. It certainly has worried the big brewers to some extent as they continue to test market micro-like products, niche products, buy into existing craft brewers and other actions calculated to take back some of the market share lost to the craft segment, no matter how small. It’s nothing sinister, just the way corporations operate. Perpetual growth sets the share price, and they must answer to the shareholders when sales goals are not met.
As our economy tanked this trend continued, with growth slowing in both big and small segments of the industry. While beer narrowly upheld its status as “recession-proof,” it did slow somewhat. Big beer went negative while craft continues to grow, but at a slower rate, at least in terms of volume of sales. In dollars, growth remained strong, but mostly because of higher prices. Of course, I also think that craft beer can sustain higher margins than big beer, whose drive to increase volume has seen price wars for decades. That gives craft another advantage, I think, because reaching a sustainable, profitable business model doesn’t have to involve going public, huge growth or answering to shareholders. Anchor Brewery is an excellent example of growing big enough and then sustaining that level while remaining profitable. Anchor has no desire to grow larger, and their future is entirely positive. It’s the opposite of the corporate model, and the one employed by most craft brewers. And I think it bodes well for the future of craft beer.
Today, the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) released a report about the state of things in the UK beer market, and there are some interesting parallels between the two markets.
Some key findings:
- Local brewers achieved a 3.75% increase in volume sales in 2009, while the overall beer market fell 4.2%
- Three-quarters of all local brewers recorded volume growth in 2009
- On average, they achieved a 17% increase in sales turnover
- Pubs continue to close, but local cask ale volumes rise by 1.27%
- Local bottled beer production up by 16%
The entire report is available as a pdf at the bottom of the article about it in today’s Morning Advertiser. Another interesting stat not mentioned is that 22%, the highest percentage, of independent beer is sold to the consumer directly by the brewery in their shops or via their website. Second was Supermarkets (21%) and third was through independent pubs (19%).
Beer In Ads #49: Buffalo Brewing’s Bison Riding Native
Monday’s ad is for Buffalo Brewing, a Sacramento, California brewery that opened in 1890, in honor of the first day of Sacramento Beer Week. Though I can’t be sure, my guess is it’s from around the turn of the last century, when vague art and beautiful, often naked or scantily clad, women were all the rage — not like in the more enlightened future of today.
Fullsteam’s Brewery Porn From Space
Regular Bulletin readers already know I have an unnatural, some might say unhealthy, love of brewing equipment — a.k.a. brewery porn — so I was thrilled to see Fullsteam Brewery’s new brewhouse from space. I especially love the artists rendering of where his brewhouse might have ended up had it not been for the hand of fate stepping in and cutting NASA’s budget.
Recently, the reworked-for-full-gravity brewhouse was “docked” at the Fullsteam space in Durham, North Carolina.
To see more of it, check out the original post or the Flickr gallery.
James Beard Foundation Nominates 4 Beer Personalities
The semi-finalist nominations for the prestigious James Beard Foundation awards were recently released. If you’re not familiar with the awards, here’s a description from their website.
Deemed “the Oscars of the food world,” by Time magazine, The James Beard Foundation Awards are the country’s most coveted honor for chefs; food and beverage professionals; broadcast media, journalists, and authors working on food; and restaurant architects and designers.
In the misnamed category “Outstanding Wine and Spirits Professional,” four luminaries from the world of beer made the cut. Those semi-finalists are Larry Bell (Bell’s Brewery), Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head Craft Brewery), Jim Koch (Boston Beer Co.) and Garrett Oliver (Brooklyn Brewery), any one of which deserves to win, or at least move on to the final round. Of the 20 semifinalists in each category, five final nominees will be announced March 22, and the awards themselves will be presented May 3.
At the risk of losing my own media nomination (that’s a joke BTW) isn’t it time to lose the wine and spirits bias? With 20% of the semi-finalists from the world of craft beer, wouldn’t something like “Outstanding Beverage Professional” be more appropriate and less insulting?
Beer In Art #66: Rembrandt’s The Prodigal Son
Today work of art is a return to the old masters, a place we haven’t been for some time now. The artist is Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn better known simply as Rembrandt, one of history’s most famous artists. Today’s painting is officially known as “Portrait of the Artist with his Wife Saskia” though more commonly as “The Prodigal Son” or “The Prodigal Son in the Tavern.” It was painted in 1635 and currently resides in the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister (Old Masters Picture Gallery) in Dresden, Germany. I was fortunate enough to see the original when I was there visiting the Radeberger brewery a few years ago.
In the painting, Rembrandt painted himself hoisting a flute of beer high in the air, with his wife, Saskia, seated on his lap. Set in a tavern, she is dressed as a courtesan while Rembrandt is dressed richly, indulging in his whim and squandering his resources. The painting depicts the Biblical scene from Luke, as explained on Olga’s Gallery:
Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). A man divided his estate between his two sons. The younger went off, squandered his portion in riotous living and was finally, in poverty, reduced to tending a farmer’s pigs. He returned home penitently and was joyfully received by his father who said “My boy, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.” (Luke 15:31). This parable, which teaches the virtues of repentance and forgiveness, is most often represented in art.
You can read more about Rembrandt’s life in the biography at the Rembrandt Painting website, Encyclopedia Britannica, and the Web Museum. You can also see more of his work at Complete Catalogue of Rembrandt van Rijn’s Paintings and A Web Catalogue of Rembrandt Paintings.
Two American & Two Italian Brewers To Open Brewpub In NYC
Well, this is certainly big news in the craft beer community, news Russian River’s Vinnie and Natalie Cilurzo have been playing close to the vest. They’re teaming up with Dogfish Head and two Italian craft breweries to open a rooftop brewpub in New York City. Dogfish Head issued a press release this morning with the details. From the press release:
Four well-know brewers are joining forces with Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, and Italian food emporium Eataly to open a brewery-pub on a New York City rooftop with breathtaking views of the Flatiron and Empire State Buildings.
The four breweries collaborating on this project include two Italian craft brewers — Teo Musso, Brewmaster of Birrificio Le Baladin and Leonardo Di Vincenzo of Birra del Borgo, and two Italian-American craft brewers — Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and Vinnie Cilurzo of the Russian River Brewing Company.
The first floor of the building at 200 5th Avenue will house Eataly, an epic Italian specialty foods market and multiple restaurants which pair gourmet foods with artisanal beers and wines. Additionally, there will be an 8,000 square foot rooftop brewery and restaurant operated by B&B Hospitalitys Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich.
The rooftop bar and restaurant will house a copper-clad brewing system. The idea is to create an artisanal, old world Italian craft brewery that just happens to be located on a rooftop in Manhattan, says Dogfish Heads Sam Calagione. The four brewers are working together on recipes for Eatalys house beers. Those beers will feature Italian and American ingredients. The beers will be unpasteurized, unfiltered, naturally carbonated, and hand-pulled through traditional beer engines for the most authentic and pure presentation. The four individual brewers will also occasionally brew beers under their own names on site. The rooftop restaurant project will pair artisanal rustic, homemade beers with the artisanal, rustic cooking of Chef Mario Batali. Additional Italian and American regional craft beers will be served both at the rooftop bar and within the downstairs restaurants.
Vinnie Cilurzo (Russian River), Leonardo Di Vincenzo (Birra del Borgo), Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head) and Teo Musso (Birrificio Le Baladin). [Photo by Ryan Collerd.]
The four consulting brewers met in Boston this week to brew the first test batch of Eataly beer, an English Mild fermented with Italian chestnut powder (photos above). Plans call for Eataly New York to open late summer 2010.
More from the press release:
“Eataly is the representation of the earth, its products and an example of real Italian taste. The brewery will surely be a fusion of Italian and Italian/American styles and I am very happy to make this journey with this fantastic group!” Teo Musso, Brewmaster , Birrificio Le Baladin
“In 2006 I went to the Slow Food Salone del Gusto in Italy. Upon meeting many Italian craft brewers, I was not only impressed by the quality of their beer, but, their passion for brewing as well. It was at that time I learned how great Italian craft beer was! To now collaborate with two of the most dynamic Italian craft brewers along with my friend Sam Calagione at Eataly New York will not only be a lot of fun, but, very educational as well.” Vinnie Cilurzo, Brewer/Owner, Russian River Brewing Company
“Eataly Brewery will be a great fusion of the well-known Italian gastronomic culture and our rising beer culture with the taste and the creativity of the American craft beer movement. This may well be the craziest and amazing brewery in the world” Leonardo Di Vincenzo, Brewmaster, Birra del Borgo
“While the Italian craft brewing renaissance started later than ours here in the states , they have quickly made up for lost time with world class artisanal beers. Both Dogfish Head and Russian River have pushed the boundries of beer, particularly those that pair well with food, for many years. We are looking forward to working with our Italian Brewing Brethren, Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, and the folks at Eataly to further strengthen the bond between world class beer and world class food in the most beautiful setting for a brewery I have ever seen.” Sam Calagione, President/Founder, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery.