America’s Beer Renaissance: Consumer Choice and Variety in the U.S. Beer Market

What a wonderful time to be a beer drinker!  America is truly in the midst of a beer renaissance.    The number of breweries in the U.S. has risen from 89 in 1980 to 2,538 in June 2013*.  That's a 27-fold increase in less than 35 years!  You don't have to be a statistician to understand this growth though - simply look around at the number of local breweries popping up in your town or the number of brands/styles of beer available in the grocery stores you frequent.  At a grocery store near my house, there are close to fifty different craft beers from which to choose.  Some of them are brewed within 10 miles of the store, many more within 100 miles.  The challenge for today's beer drinker has changed from finding good beer to drink, to deciding which beer to drink.  With so many choices, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. However, several conditions have changed in the last 35 years that favor the beer drinker.

1. Quality:  The overall quality of beer being sold today is excellent so it's difficult to make a bad choice - even when staring at a wall of six-packs.  Equipment, knowledge, techniques and accessibility to high quality ingredients have evolved to the point where many brewers can produce a beer of superb quality.
2. Information:  The internet has allowed people to share ideas, thoughts, and opinions regarding their experiences about any beer on the market.  In addition, most breweries offer websites that provide information including the ingredients and techniques involved in making a particular brew, which allows a consumer to make an informed purchasing decision.  Lastly, due to the popularity of craft beer, many liquor stores offer beer tastings in an effort to inform their customers about the wonderful qualities of the new beers that hit the shelves every day.  All of this information allows a beer drinker to be make better decisions about what they choose to drink.  This leads to a better overall beer experience for the consumer.
3. People's Taste:  As consumers are exposed to better products, their tastes evolve.  Starbucks proved that one's experience drinking coffee can be far more enjoyable than that which many would have thought possible just 25 years earlier.  As consumers tried great coffee, they began to appreciate the complexity and nuances that weren't available with inferior java presented to them before Starbucks.  This concept has even trickled down to fast-food restaurants.  Drive-through joints no long simply offer consumers a simple hamburger.  Instead, these places are offering the public gourmet burgers with bacon, fancy cheeses, high-quality buns and flavorful sauces in an effort to improve a customer's eating experience.  Brewers have realized that consumers feel the same way about beer.  Once a person is exposed to fresh craft beers, it is difficult to go back to drinking watered-down, mass-produced beer.  Consumers are looking for interesting choices in their beer aisle and the market has responded with high quality brews.

Yes - we are in the midst of a beer renaissance.  Grab your glass and rejoice!


*Data obtained from the Brewers Association website