The usual lineup in Irish pubs
How may people does it take to support craft brewing?
I found the beer situation in Ireland a bit depressing for a country with such a long history of brewing. True, my tastes have changed since I was there ten years ago, but, the choices in most pubs now are sadly limiting. While pubs may have five to ten taps, they are mostly duplicates of the same five beers: Guinness, Carlsberg, Heineken, Budweiser, and Bulmers (cider). Some pubs have Smithwicks, Coors Light, Harp, or Kilkenny on tap in addition to the standard lineup (I saw more Coors Light than Harp or any of the others). In some pubs you might even find some Czech or German lagers or wheat bottled beers. The best find of the trip was a bar in Limerick that had several Belgian beers in bottles. I was in a very small area of Ireland, and the situation in bigger cities (at least for bottled beer) is likely different.
A pub owner told us that a few years ago Budweiser outsold Guinness in Ireland. I haven’t confirmed the statement, but it’s almost believable given what I saw. Most pubs also go through a lot of sugary pre-mixed drinks - hipper versions of 90’s wine coolers. There are only a small handful of craft breweries in all of Ireland.
While many of the people we met wanted better selections, and thought microbreweries were a good idea, they all sited the small Irish population as a reason craft brewing could not prosper in Ireland. “You have to remember, there are only 4.5 million people in the entire country; we’re just too small to support something like that.” It got me thinking about Fort Collins, a town of about 130,000 people that supports five breweries, with more in the works. Sure, several of those breweries distribute out of the area, but, we are 3% of Ireland’s population.
The UK has seen growth in the craft beer industry, not only in the number of microbreweries opening, but in sales growth for the market. While craft beer is still a small percentage of the UK beer market, it is gaining wider appeal among drinkers unsatisfied with the standard selections. Most of the craft breweries in the UK, like many in the US, started out as brewpubs that grew to distribute nationally.
Ireland could be ripe for such a change as well. Distribution would be hard at first, nearly impossible since many of the pubs are subsidized or outright owned by the bigger breweries. Like craft brewing in the US and UK, it can start small and local with a brewpub. Something that many towns and villages in Ireland could certainly support.
I found the beer situation in Ireland a bit depressing for a country with such a long history of brewing. True, my tastes have changed since I was there ten years ago, but, the choices in most pubs now are sadly limiting. While pubs may have five to ten taps, they are mostly duplicates of the same five beers: Guinness, Carlsberg, Heineken, Budweiser, and Bulmers (cider). Some pubs have Smithwicks, Coors Light, Harp, or Kilkenny on tap in addition to the standard lineup (I saw more Coors Light than Harp or any of the others). In some pubs you might even find some Czech or German lagers or wheat bottled beers. The best find of the trip was a bar in Limerick that had several Belgian beers in bottles. I was in a very small area of Ireland, and the situation in bigger cities (at least for bottled beer) is likely different.
A pub owner told us that a few years ago Budweiser outsold Guinness in Ireland. I haven’t confirmed the statement, but it’s almost believable given what I saw. Most pubs also go through a lot of sugary pre-mixed drinks - hipper versions of 90’s wine coolers. There are only a small handful of craft breweries in all of Ireland.
While many of the people we met wanted better selections, and thought microbreweries were a good idea, they all sited the small Irish population as a reason craft brewing could not prosper in Ireland. “You have to remember, there are only 4.5 million people in the entire country; we’re just too small to support something like that.” It got me thinking about Fort Collins, a town of about 130,000 people that supports five breweries, with more in the works. Sure, several of those breweries distribute out of the area, but, we are 3% of Ireland’s population.
How big does a population need to be to support good beer? In the upper peninsula of Michigan (“da U.P.”), there are eight craft breweries, supported by a total population of a little over 300,000 people. Vermont, with a population of a little over 600,000 supports 21 craft breweries (and most of them do not distribute out of the area). I don’t think population is necessarily the problem.
The UK has seen growth in the craft beer industry, not only in the number of microbreweries opening, but in sales growth for the market. While craft beer is still a small percentage of the UK beer market, it is gaining wider appeal among drinkers unsatisfied with the standard selections. Most of the craft breweries in the UK, like many in the US, started out as brewpubs that grew to distribute nationally.
Ireland could be ripe for such a change as well. Distribution would be hard at first, nearly impossible since many of the pubs are subsidized or outright owned by the bigger breweries. Like craft brewing in the US and UK, it can start small and local with a brewpub. Something that many towns and villages in Ireland could certainly support.
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