What’s the best way to enjoy an ice-cold beer? Well, Moosehead Breweries has Maritimers divided.
The New Brunswick-based brewer announced Tuesday that it will no longer be serving its popular lager in bottles, instead making the switch to cans and kegs to package its entire product line.
The shift, the company says, is being seen across the country.
“When I started in the beer business 32 years ago, 90 per cent of the beer that was sold in Canada was sold in bottles,” said Andrew Oland, Moosehead Breweries’ president and CEO. “Now it’s seven per cent of beer sold in bottles, and 85 per cent is sold in cans…. So, it’s something we’d been monitoring for the last number of years.”
But Oland says a changing industry isn’t the only reason the company is switching things up.
“There are two big enemies of beer. One is light and one is oxygen,” Oland explains. “And those will cause beer to degrade … and the can provides better protection from both of those than a bottle.”
But some Moosehead fans are convinced that cracking a cold one will never be the same.
“The can is a little more metallic flavoured — the bottle kind of helps with that, I’d say,” said Brittany Kraus, a patron at The BG on the Halifax Waterfront. “I like the pop of the opening, and it’s just a little bit easier to hold — it keeps it colder too.”
And Kraus isn’t alone when it comes to favouring the classic bottle.
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“I’m definitely going to like a bottle more, less tinny of a taste,” fellow bar-goer Bryant Isaacs said.
Others welcome the aluminum with open arms.
“It gives people a chance to collect the cans — people who go collect them throughout the neighbourhood,” said Jordan Evans, who enjoys the odd Moosehead once in a while. “They don’t smash on the street, they stay cooler longer, I think. But yeah, I’m pro-can — let’s go.”
Meanwhile, other Haligonians say they are just happy to kick back and enjoy — regardless of how the beer’s served.
“As the times change, traditions change,” Jacob Coffin said on his way into the NSLC on Agricola St. “As long as it’s still the great Moosehead beer that it is, (it) shouldn’t be a problem, I think, for anybody.”
According to retailers, Moosehead is actually one of the last brands to make the shift.
“The evolution of the business is really towards cans in general — they’re lighter, easier to transport, they don’t break,” said Matt Street, the managing director for Micco Companies — a family-run management group representing three Halifax-area beer and wine stores.
“This is a trend that’s been continuing for a while, so we’re not really surprised Moosehead’s made that decision.”
This trend, Street said, isn’t just being seen among national brands like Moosehead, but regional breweries and local craft brewers as well. The aluminum is lighter, better for the environment and will help bring down costs.
But not every brand in Atlantic Canada plans on canning the bottle altogether.
Labatt corporate affairs representative Wade Keller told Global News that “Labatt continues to use the returnable bottle for our brands produced at the Oland Brewery. We have no plans to change that at this time.”
However, Moosehead says it’s getting rid of the bottle to keep in line with consumer habits.
“That green bottle, it’s iconic. I grew up with that bottle, and so, I understand it.” Street said. “I think Moosehead — it’s an Atlantic Canadian family-run business, and business has to evolve.”
According to the brewery? Whether you prefer a bottle or a can, the best way to enjoy Moosehead beer is in a tried-and-true glass.
Its final run of bottles off the production line will take place in December, and one Moosehead fan will get to take the final bottle home, as part of its The Last Bottle contest — bringing an end to the era of the infamous green bottle.
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