Craft Beer's Frenetic, Trendy New Culture

Last week's Craft Beer Conference spewed a lot of data relating to the state of the industry. Craft segment growth slowed last year. You knew that. And the part of the segment that accounted for the bulk of the growth that occurred is the one that connects most directly with its patrons.

The facts are these: Breweries that produce less than 15,000 bbls accounted for 75 percent of the segment's growth, about 1.4 million bbls. Taprooms did nicely. Brewpubs experienced a great year, up nearly 15 percent to 1.35 million total bbls.

On the other side of the ledger, regional brewers were up just 150,000 bbls or 10 percent of segment growth. Keep in mind that regional brewers account for roughly 75 of total craft volume. In effect, these guys are having their lunch eaten largely by smaller, local breweries.

This theme has been gathering momentum for a while, related to the fact that craft breweries have been opening all over the place. Given a choice, consumers are often choosing local beer over beer produced elsewhere, at least when it comes to craft beer. Remember, craft is still only a small share of overall beer.

This isn't strictly about the quality of the beer. Nope. There's a game being played that involves brand connection. The folks who chase craft beer are driven to connect with brands. Smaller, local brands are much better-positioned to make those connections than stodgy, older breweries.

Who are the beer chasers? Mostly, though not entirely, millennials. Yep. Somewhere along the line, a swath of the millennial generation got hooked on craft beer. Their (21-35) age group is historically the largest beer consumer. But millennials have migrated to craft in droves. Don't ask me why. Maybe because it's one of the few things they can get excited about. We know their trophy cases are full. (I kid.)

The effort to reach this crowd has strategic layers. Breweries strive to project an identity that resonates with the youthful fan crowd. Identities are conceptualized accordingly. The outdoor motif seems in vogue currently. The need to stand out in an increasingly crowded market has led to packaging that carries wild graphics, bright colors and clever names. All that glitters might not be gold, but shiny things can and do attract attention.

Of course, the beer itself is also caught up in what's happening. New interpretations of existing styles, as well as newly imagined styles, are the order of the day. That's more or less how we arrived at the point where hazy IPAs and eclectic fruit and barrel beers have become the rage. Something else will come along soon enough. Trust me.

Don't forget the role of social media in pushing the envelope forward. Smartphone-addicted millennials depend on social media for news and information. That's where brand identities are amplified by some exponential factor, creating chatter that fuels the fan crowd and ignites feeding frenzies for new beers, events, brewery schwag, etc.

What this arrangement has produced is a frenetic, stifling trendiness. Brand churn is accelerating. Beers come and go relentlessly in bottleshops, taprooms and pubs. Brands we saw regularly in past years are nowhere to be found these days, replaced by brands that will themselves be gone in a proverbial flash. Change is a speeding bullet.

Some years ago, a few of us talked about event fatigue. The events calendar was exploding and it was becoming impossible to keep up. That's ancient history now. Today we have widespread industry fatigue. Even people inside the industry have a hard time keeping pace. The gimmicks and gambits used to attract interest in beers are crazy and getting crazier.

Where does this end? Good question. I'm old enough to have seen frenetic trends come and go more than a few times. I suspect the current craft craze will collapse or significantly moderate at some point. That may involve a generational shift in tastes. Or not. But it will happen.