Craft beer outselling regular as beer snobbery takes over


Monday, 14 December, 2015


Craft beer outselling regular as beer snobbery takes over

It seems that beer is following the same path as coffee and wine, with ‘craft’ and ‘artisanal’ options gaining consumer attention. Driven by a need for an ‘experience’, beer consumers are seeking variety in the beers they purchase this Christmas.

Clipp, the provider of a mobile payment and deals app for bars, pubs and restaurants, collected beer purchase data in five beer categories — craft*, regular, cider, low-alcohol and special-diet — from its 55,000-strong customer base across more than 600 establishments Australia during September and October

Analysis of this data revealed that more urbanites are consuming craft beer — beer made traditionally by small breweries in limited quantities — rather than the regular beer Australians have traditionally known and loved. 

With urban areas leading the charge, craft beer accounted for 45% of all purchases nationally, with regular beer coming in second at 40%. Melbourne takes the craft beer crown, with the highest percentage of craft beer purchases (55%) against just 34% of regular beer purchases. Perth comes in second, with 48% of craft purchases and regular beer at 35%. Sydney is third, with 46% of craft beer purchases and regular beer at 39%.  

In contrast, Brisbane and the Gold Coast, Adelaide and Darwin are holding onto their love of regular beer, with this category accounting for 59%, 63% and 65% of all beer purchases respectively.

Greg Taylor, the CEO and co-founder of Clipp, says: “With the variety of beers on offer at Australian establishments, urban beer lovers now regard beer as an experience — much like they do wine and coffee. People seek to be more adventurous and it’s common now to be offered ‘beer tastings’ at pubs to enable you to choose your preferred beer.

“Beer drinkers also like the idea of supporting a small craft brewery and its story, and they like the personality of the craft brand. As a consequence, their craft beer of choice becomes a talking point among their friends and better enables them to show their own personality. Additionally, I believe people are now eating better and are seeking to drink better.”

When it comes to spend volume, the number one craft beer Aussies purchased most — and are expected to purchase over Christmas — is James Squire, followed by Stone & Wood, Little Creatures, Feral and then Young Henrys.

“Smaller breweries are catching up to the big players and showing their prevalence in the industry. The craft beer company Young Henrys, from Sydney’s Newtown, made it into the ‘top five’ list nationally, which is a great achievement for a relatively newcomer on the scene,” said Taylor. 

Interestingly, craft beer consumption is driven mostly by those in their 20s and 30s, with consumption consistently higher the lower the age bracket: 54% of those in their 20s purchased craft beer, compared with 51% of those in their 30s, 42% of 40-somethings, 31% of 50-somethings and just 15% of those over 60.

A city-by-city analysis by Clipp reveals Aussies in each city share similar tastes in craft beer. In regular beer, Aussies have different favourites depending on where they are from, with Carlton Draught the only beer to make it into the top five rankings across all cities.

National — craft beer (45%)

  1. James Squire
  2. Stone & Wood
  3. Little Creatures
  4. Feral
  5. Young Henrys

National — regular beer (40%)

  1. Carlton Draught
  2. Hahn
  3. Coopers
  4. Victoria Bitter
  5. Peroni (imported)

Sydney — craft beer (46%)

  1. James Squire
  2. Stone & Wood
  3. Young Henrys
  4. Little Creatures
  5. Fat Yak

Sydney — regular beer (39%)

  1. Coopers
  2. Hahn
  3. Carlton Draught
  4. Pure Blonde
  5. Peroni (imported)

Melbourne — craft beer (55%)

  1. Little Creatures
  2. Feral
  3. James Squire
  4. Holgate
  5. Stone & Wood

Melbourne — regular beer (34%)

  1. Carlton Draught
  2. Victoria Bitter
  3. James Boags
  4. Peroni (imported)
  5. Coopers

Brisbane & Gold Coast — craft beer (27%)

  1. James Squire
  2. Stone & Wood
  3. Little Creatures
  4. Fat Yak
  5. 4 Pines

Brisbane & Gold Coast — regular beer (59%)

  1. XXXX
  2. Hahn
  3. Corona (imported)
  4. Carlton Draught
  5. Tooheys

Adelaide — craft beer (29%)

  1. Little Creatures
  2. James Squire
  3. Pike
  4. Stone & Wood
  5. Feral

Adelaide — regular beer (63%)

  1. Coopers
  2. Hahn
  3. XXXX
  4. Carlton Draught
  5. Peroni (imported)

Perth — craft beer (48%)

  1. James Squire
  2. Feral
  3. Little Creatures
  4. Stone & Wood
  5. Mountain Goat

Perth — regular beer (35%)

  1. Hahn
  2. Carlton Draught
  3. Heineken
  4. Guinness (imported)
  5. Stella Artois (imported)

Darwin — craft beer (16%)

  1. Little Creatures
  2. James Squire
  3. Gage Roads
  4. Feral

Darwin — regular beer (65%)

  1. Coopers
  2. Carlton Draught
  3. XXXX
  4. Guinness (imported)
  5. Hahn

*Clipp’s craft beer data includes craft beers produced by the major beer manufacturers, such as James Squire.

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