According to a post today on Miller’s BrewBlog, craft brewers are getting increased placement on supermarket shelves. Citing ACNielsen statistics through the middle of February, craft beers’ presence in grocery stores has increased 16%, while at the same time imports went up 6.5%. As BrewBlog’s Jim Arndorfer notes, the real question now isn’t who’s gaining and how much, but “what brands will lose out?” This will be especially interesting to watch as beer season is about to kick into high gear with spring fast approaching.
I knew things were shifting when my local Safeway renovated and renamed their beer aisle “Wine and Craft Beers” or some such thing. They have a decent selection focusing on local breweries, and even a handful of craft bombers sitting next to the Bud tall boys. Of course, I still hate Safeway…