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November/December 2014 • Beverage Dynamics 41
Holiday Cheers!
DECK THE HALLS
Festivities start with the pack-
aging. Bright and colorful labels
evoking icons like sleds, Christ-
mas trees and snowy scenes
stand out on shelves. "Impactful
packaging," is how Guender at
Sweetwater puts it. Many winter
warmers get the impressive, 750-
ml, wire-and-cork fi nish — fun to
pop open at a party.
"We are fans of big beers in
small formats because winter
beers can reach 9% or more,"
says Sahara. As an example he
cites St. Bernardus Christmas
Ale that is imported in 11.2-oz.
bottles.
Many breweries release a
seasonal variety six- or 12-pack
over the holidays. SweetWater includes seasonals in its Tackle Box
pack, for example. Cans are competing in the holiday market, too.
Oskar Blues Brewery releases its Ten Fidy Imperial Stout in 12-oz.
cans; the gigantic 10/5% beer is viscous chocolate-caramel, coffee
stout amped with 65 IBUs of hops.
"More small brewers are packaging in bombers," Crokus notes. At
Steve's, seasonals are grouped together on end caps and fl oor stacks.
There is also a door of new release singles in the cooler to encourage
trial. Crokus holds weekly in-store tastings, and tries to arrange food
pairings as well.
Unlike most retailers, JB's shelves seasonals right alongside the
entire lineup; brands are in alphabetical order. "Our customers are
used to the way we display the beers. Seasonals are easy to fi nd and
easy for us to locate," says Singh.
Instead of advertising, at Heritage, Bremer sinks his merchandising
dough into an annual event called Beer Geek
Christmas. Over the years, the retailer has
been cellaring big beers, some 300-400 cases,
which will improve over time. One day a year,
he pulls out some of those treasures, offering
his lucky customers six-pack verticals of vin-
tages. A bottle each, 2007-12 of Sierra Neva-
da's Bigfoot, or six vintages of Surly Darkness.
He sells the bottles at a small markup
over the cellaring rate, a time-warp bargain.
Food is served; it's a party. "It's a way to say
thank you to my customers," Bremer says.
Beer Geek Christmas has people's attention:
The line begins outside his door at 4 am for
the holiday sale.
BD
Brooklyn Winter Ale, and Brooklyn
Black Chocolate Stout
Ten Fidy Imperial Stout
Fax to 847-763-9569
Want faster results —
request your information Online at:
www.submag.com/sub/bg
CI1411
