Beer distribution in the U.S.
One of the questions we get around here fairly often is whether we carry Yuengling beer. While Yuengling is the oldest operating brewery in the U.S., and a maker of quality beers, they do not distribute west of Tennessee. Since we are a tourist destination, we get asked a lot about beers that people drink back home, many of which are not available here. I recently took a trip back home to Wisconsin, and was eager to drink some beer from the New Glarus brewery, a brewery that is highly regarded, but who's beers are only sold in Wisconsin. I was also happy to try some beers from Bell's, Founders and Lakefront Brewery, none of which are available here in the Colorado high country. It got me to thinking about beer distribution here in the U.S.
The U.S. operates on a 3 tiered beer distribution system. This came about in 1933 when the 21st amendment was enacted to repeal prohibition. Section 3 of the 21st amendment specifies that the ability to regulate the sale of alcohol lies with the states. The 3 tier system was instituted as a way to regulate the way beer is distributed and sold in the U.S., and to prevent the excesses and abuses that led to prohibition 13 years earlier. The states were eager to implement a system in which they could tax alcohol.
The 3 tier system basically states that producers of alcohol are only allowed to sell to wholesalers, who then are allowed to sell to retailers. Only retailers are allowed to sell to consumers. In addition, retail stores are not allowed to charge fees to stock certain beers. Therefore, the wholesalers and retailers are independent businesses that make their own decisions on what beers to carry. Most states have laws that grant distributors exclusive rights to a producer's goods, thereby preventing more than one distributor from carrying the same product.
The system was set up to prevent the ownership of all three tiers (production, distribution and retail) by one entity, thus prohibiting monopolies. This differs from the way many countries around the world handle alcohol sales. For instance, in England, a brewery is allowed to own pubs. About 9000 pubs in England are owned by breweries, and it is the brewery that hires the pub employees and makes the decisions on which beers to sell at the pub. In the U.S., the independent wholesalers dictated by the 3 tier system are seen as a key factor in the resurgence of the craft beer industry. While laws regulating the sale of alcohol can differ widely from state to state, almost all states use the 3 tier system. Some states allow exceptions, such as that of a brewpub or small winery that is allowed to sell its products directly to the consumer, without using a distributor. In Colorado, a self distribution law allows breweries to have a wholesale license and sell directly to retail outlets as long as their yearly output is less than 300,000 gallons. Colorado also has a law that prevents a retailer from having more than one outlet, thus restricting chains. It is this law that prevents major supermarkets and convenience stores from selling full strength alcohol, limiting them to selling 3.2% beer only. Craft brewers in Colorado credit this law as a major reason for the burgeoning success of small breweries in the state.
The reality of beer distribution in the U.S. is that most breweries are simply not big enough to make enough beer to ship everywhere, and therefore concentrate on the region in their immediate area. Of course there are the mass marketed U.S. domestic breweries like Coors, Miller and Bud. And even the craft world has major producers like Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada, available almost everywhere. But there are now almost 2500 craft breweries in the U.S. There are so many beers out there that "you can't get here."
Back in the 70's, we'd collect beer cans that we'd find out in the woods, or get from our relatives (we were too young to buy beer at the time.) There were only about 42 breweries in the U.S. by the late 70's, and many of those beers were distributed widely throughout the U.S. But there was always a mystique about Coors. You could only get it in Colorado, so finding a Coors can was a major score! The game has changed greatly since then, and while many of today's craft beers are available in a wide range of states, there are still those mystical beers that you can only get in small areas around the country, such as Yuengling, Russian River, New Glarus or Three Floyds. And to me, that's what makes the current craft beer industry cool. Sure it's great to be able to buy lots of different beers at your local shop, and we'd probably get a little bored without all of the variety that is available to us these days. But it's those hard to find beers that are only available in certain areas that give the industry a little mystery, and a sense of the unknown. It's fun to travel, and to try new beers that are unavailable to you at home. And for those who travel here, it is fun for us to be able to offer that same experience!
Beers available only in Colorado that we carry: Backcountry, Bonfire, Colorado Native, Crooked Stave, Dry Dock, Eddyline, Funkwerks, Grand Lake, Grimm Brothers, Hall, Paradox, Steamworks (sold in a few parts of Texas), Trinity and Upslope.
Here are some Colorado Breweries that are carried in a wide variety of states (approximate numbers): Avery-20 states, Boulder-36 states, Breckenridge-35 states, Great Divide-25 states, Left Hand-29 states, New Belgium-30 states, Oskar Blues-25 states.
And a little more limited are: Odell-9 states, Ska-8 states.
Check out the great web site seekabrew.com for more information on where certain beers are available in the U.S.
Chip Bartsch
Beer Buyer
