Drinking beer and eating good food has been an American tradition for centuries. In Colonial America, the alehouse served as the unofficial town hall and was the social and political focal point of every town. By 1914, there were more than a thousand breweries operating in the United States, but the trend went flat with the Volstead Act (Prohibition) and the stringent distribution laws that followed prohibiting the same company from manufacturing, selling and distributing malt-ale products.

There was not such a thing as a "microbrewery" until 1977. Prohibitive distribution laws have only recently become less stringent, so the burgeoning craft-beer industry is beginning to regain some of its traditional ground in the American restaurant market. The demand for the microbrewed product has opened a new market niche for restaurateurs and appears to be much more than a passing trend.

A Colonial tradition continues

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, per-capita alcohol consumption in 1995 was 25.1 gallons, down from 28.1 gallons per person in 1990. Although alcohol consumption continues to decline, beer is increasingly the alcohol of choice for consumers. In 1995, beer constituted 88.05 percent of all alcoholic beverages consumed on a per-volume basis. Needless to say, operators can help bolster profits by paying attention to what is brewing in the beer industry.

According to the National Restaurant Association's Restaurant Industry Operations Report — 1996, alcoholic beverages constitute between 14.5 percent and 24 percent of total sales at tableservice restaurants; as the check size increases, so does the proportion of sales attributable to alcohol. The Census Bureau also reported that restaurants sold more than $4 billion worth of beer and ale in 1992.

What is brewing in the industry?

One reason for the rising preference for beer is the growing craft-beer market which has provided more flavorfully diverse beer options and has helped to educate the palate of the beer connoisseur.

According to the Institute for Brewing Studies, located in Boulder, Colorado, 1995 craft-brewed beer sales were almost 4 million barrels, reflecting growth of 51 percent over 1994 production. In fact, industry growth has exceeded 30 percent annually — in terms of production — for the past five years, highlighting both the newness and the popularity of the industry.

In 1995, 287 new breweries opened — 196 brewpubs and 91 microbreweries, while only 32 closed — 26 brewpubs and six microbreweries. One of the most impressive statistics associated with the craft-beer industry is the low failure rate of start-ups — only one out of every seven U.S. brewpubs reportedly fails. For restaurants without the capital or the desire to build their own brewery, there were 122 contract-brewing companies in North America in 1995 that could brew specialty-label beer for operators.

Hopping on board

Restaurant operators — recognizing America's fascination with all-malt beers — are jumping on board the beerwagon. According to a 1996 National Restaurant Association survey of tableservice operators, roughly four out of 10 operators serve microbrewed or locally brewed beer.

The image of the beer drinker has changed over the past decade. Beer is no longer strictly associated with sports bars and blue-collar neighborhoods. CREST reports that the proportion of households with annual household incomes of more than $60,000 that ordered beer at restaurants increased from 15 percent in 1989 to 28.2 percent in 1995. Data from a 1996 National Restaurant Association consumer survey revealed that 18.9 percent of consumers with incomes of more than $50,000 were ordering more microbrewed beer than they did two years before.

The upscale image of beer has not been ignored by restaurants with moderate and higher average check sizes. Association data reveal that operations with average checks of $8 or more are more likely than lower-check operations to serve microbrewed or locally brewed beer and were much more likely to serve those products in 1996 than in 1994.

Profile of a beer drinker

The beer advertisements aired during the Super Bowl reflect many of the demographic changes regarding the typical beer consumer. The advertisements no longer target just male sports enthusiasts — and with good reason. CREST data reveal that when ordering alcohol, women ordered beer on 30.5 percent of eater occasions in 1995. Although more than twice as many men report that beer is their alcoholic beverage of choice when eating out, the number of women ordering beer has increased significantly over the past 10 years. In a 1996 National Restaurant Association consumer survey, six out of 10 men reported ordering microbrewed or locally brewed beer, while five out of 10 women reported ordering microbrewed or locally brewed beer.

Another demographic category loyal to the craft-brewing industry is Generation Xers. Those American young people grew up with microbrewed beer and are the most likely to drink both microbrewed or locally brewed beer, according to a 1996 Association consumer survey. Of those under the age of 34, 70 percent reported purchasing microbrewed or locally brewed beers, compared to only 40 percent of people over 55.

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