Hugh's blog

Anybody paying attention to business in the last few weeks - beer business or no - has certainly seen a lot of attention focused on InBev's offer for Anheuser-Busch.  It is symptomatic of today's global economy that the big keep getting bigger - whether it makes economic sense or not.  At the end of the day, I think the consumer pays a high price.

The recent pending InBev/AB deal not withstanding – and how interesting that has the potential to get – there has recently been a number of other mergers in the beer industry that absolutely merit notice.
 

Branding is a very inexact science.  There are countless books available that each purport  to tell you exactly how to zero in on your critical brand message and increase sales!  But if it were so easy, why are there so many books on the subject!  I think I personally own at least 100, and I admit I am still confused – at least that’s what my wife says.

The truth of the matter is that no one can REALLY predict what makes one product resonate with the consumer, and another fall flat (beer pun, get it!).

Okay so it’s now 90 degrees, 90 percent humidity, BGE (or fill in the name of your local utility here) is having a stellar week, and all of us are in our annual “too much fun zone” as regards our annual weather pattern.  So what kind of beer should we have in the fridge?  Understanding that I am not a believer in “lite” beer – less filling to me means less taste – there are a couple of beer styles that lend themselves perfectly to this time of year and still deliver full flavor and complexity.

Most of the alcoholic beverages sold in the US are distributed through what is called the “3 tier system”.  Simply put, this means that there are separate business entities that manufacture the products (suppliers), take the products to the market (distributors), and sell the products to consumers (retailers).  This system (legally mandated in most areas of the country) is certainly far from perfect, but it has been for the most part extremely effective in developing and maintaining the great diversity of beverage products available to the consumer.

There has been some discussion in the local media lately encouraging Governor O’Malley to veto a bill defining “alcopops” (flavored malt beverage based alcoholic beverages) as “beer”.  The general argument is that these beverages are targeted at underage consumers and consequently should be discouraged by being taxed at the higher tax rate applied to liquor.  Also, the Attorney General has stated his opinion that these beverages bear no resemblance to beer, and should therefore be reclassified anyway.

Just spent a couple of days with noted beer cookbook author Lucy Saunders (click here for more info) doing a blitz of the local market on the topic of beer and food pairings in particular, and beer cuisine in general.  It was refreshing to see the high level of enthusiasm with which we were greeted.  Indeed, there seems to be (at long last!) some serious interest in the topic of beer and food pairings, and perhaps someday it will be treated with the same respect afforded to wine and food pairings.  The good news is &ndash

We are about to release our first ever “organic beer” under our Oxford brand – the entire line is being relabeled Oxford Organic Ales – sometime in mid March if all goes well.  I have been often asked what does this “organic” beer thing really mean?

First off, in order for any product to use the term “organic” in its name it must be certified by an accredited governmental organization – usually the state Department of Agriculture.  Our certification comes from the Maryland department.

As the Super Bowl approaches beer drinkers may be starting to notice that beer prices – at least from some of the smaller breweries – have begun to creep up, in some cases rather substantially.  This is not the result of a grand conspiracy of brewers who, motivated by greed, have concurrently decided to raise prices.

Now that the holidaze are behind us (my waistline rejoices!) it is time for that most wonderful of Winter Traditions – the Fireplace Beer!  So what is that? While it works better if you live where it snows, you can still use your imagination and create your own appropriate circumstances if you are fortunate enough to live in a warmer clime.