Light at the crossroads: roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer—those days of soda and pretzels and light, low-carb, lemony, summer beers

Cheers, June, 2004 by Howard Riell

Americans today are looking for types of brews suitable for the warm weather, and lately they've been able to choose from among a growing crop of light, flavorful or low-carb offerings that better suit their lifestyles.

In fact, about 40% of consumers say they will try low-carb diets in 2004, according to a survey released by the Grocery Manufacturers of America. According to a recent ACNielsen Home Survey, 17 percent of American households include someone who is currently following some form of a low-carb diet.

The low-carb brews appear to be cannibalizing light beer sales to some degree, yet light beers have turned the tables by promoting the fact that, as light beers, they are already low in carbs.

The big three low-carbs thus far are Michelob Ultra, Rolling Rock's Green Light and Coors' Aspen Edge. Miller Lite has countered with its own low-carb claims. New York's regional brewer FX Matt has added its low-carb Accel, and others are expected to follow soon.

Imported light beers are up across the board, while domestic lights are a mixed bag. More craft lights and low-carb beers are certainly on the way. Among light brews, Sam Adams Light has grown quickly, other craft brewers like Shipyard, Portland, ME, have joined the light bandwagon, and seasonals like Sam Adams Summer Ale also do well. Many other craft brewers now market a pilsner or summer/light brew.

While not necessarily low calorie or low carb, classic wheat beers and their yeasty cousins, hefeweizens, are gaining traction as a lightly flavorful and summery alternative; American hefeweizens like Pyramid and Widmer, and imports like Paulaner, see surges in the warmer months. The cateogry is growing; Samuel Adams just added a hefeweizen, and each week, it seems, a new domestic or imported hefeweizen or wheat beer appears in shops and restaurants. A recent unscientific survey of a NYC grocery store found at least 20 wheat and hefeweizens stocked.

LOW CARB LEGS?

Despite the low-carb explosion, however, one question lingers among restaurant and bar operators. How long will the low-carb craze last?

"I don't like to predict the future," says Kip Snider, corporate beverage manager for the soon-to-be eight-unit Yard House Restaurants. Low-carb beer, he adds, "might be a fad; it might come and go with people who are sticking to their diets. I just don't have a large call for the new ones coming out. Whatever is on tap is what the guests are looking for. But Michelob Ultra sells quite well."

"Certainly it's the hot topic in the brewing industry right now," agrees David Richter, director of brewing for Hops Grillhouse & Brewery, Madison, GA. "I just got back from the Craft Brewing Conference in San Diego. There are craft brewers who are doing bigger styles and things like that, but people were talking about low-carb products."

Richter is another who believes the low-carbs are going to be around for a while. "I don't think that just because of all the low-carb foods that have come out recently," he explains. "I think it's a very similar phenomenon to low-fat foods, which was the hot thing a few years ago. This is kind of following in those footsteps, with the Atkins and South Beach Diets being pretty popular."

Hops units have been given permission to add Michelob Ultra to their menus. Thus far, only about one-third have, by Richter's estimate. In the last week of April, 61 Hops breweries introduced a proprietary new low-carb beer called Love Handles Low-Carb Ale. Says Richter, "We're having a lot of fun with it. It's a little bit of poking fun at it. I mean c'mon, it's beer, let's not get too serious about it."

LIGHTEN UP

"We've actually been studying and watching the carb trend, with our menu as well as our beverage department," says Kirk Aardahl, vice president of beverages for RAM International LLC, Tacoma, WA. "We have always seen a light beer trend come around in the summertime. We watch light beer, we watch our own beers."

The company, which sells its own brews as well as massproduced beers, places greater emphasis during the hot months on light beers than, say, the heavier ambers, bocks and porters, which are big in the wintertime. "Our corporate brewer ups the par, you might say," he notes, "just getting ready for the summertime.

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"When you look at the low-carb beers right now, we haven't seen a decline in the craft brewing industry," notes Aardahl. "We have seen a decline in light beer sales. They seem to be trading--people who drink Bud or Miller Light seem to be going to the low-carb beer, and they're even pulling sales from themselves, it looks like."

RAM serves Coor's Aspen Edge as well as Michelob Ultra. "If you look at sales we're selling thousands and thousands of cases of them, but we're not selling more domestic beer, per se. It seems to be taking from domestic beer sales rather than the craft brewing sales," explains Aardahl.

Indeed, he adds, RAM executives have seen a rise in bottled beer sales at the expense of draft sales, and for a very simple reason. "The low-carb beers are only bottled. A Bud drinker on draft who is going to the low-carb beer has got to grab a bottle of it."