Craft beer statistics and trends

[Mark Jackman]

Does anyone have any ideas for where to find some decent statistics on the craft brewing, craft beer and brewpub market statistics and trends?  The wife and I want to open up a brewpub eventually and I could do with some good info for the business plan.

Cheers

[mattd2]

Just read this on the Brewer's Guild website and remembered this thread

http://brewersguild.org.nz/news/brewers-guild-new-zealand-market-su...

[mattd2]

Reading this had me question one thing tough. It says a medium size brewery in NZ is 40,000 - 100,000 ltr per year. This would be brewing about one batch a week on a 15 - 20 hL brewery, this doesn't seem right for the craft breweries I would consider to be medium size like Croucher, Aotearoa. Or would these guys be on the large end of the scale (which I would be considering Epic, Harrigtons) and medium is more around the 5 - 10 hL brew length?

What is the expected first year volume for a new start-up?

[Mark Jackman]

Cheers for the link Matt!  I'll have a read through all the info. I don't know but I would expect a brewery would most likely be brewing at least twice a week?  To be financially viable they would have to be turning out quite a lot of beer relative to capacity I would have thought.  Brew pubs that I know (Galbraiths, Hallertau, Brewery Britomart) brew once per week, or a bit more preferably and are probably a little less reliant on maximizing productivity than a stand alone brewery.

[FatD]

you really need an on license doing food as well.. keep the punters around. just doing flagon sales wouldn't work I reckon.

Best to start of small I reckon and build gradually.. Got to have a brand and market before you put into a bottle.

I've started this month! :o Doing it for fun for a year, then see if i'm still interested.

[mattd2]

I'm going to assume that $75k is the brewhouse only, I would expect that kegging equipment, building/lease, fit out, working capital is going to raise that amount 5+ times.

Dermot how are things going?

[Tilt]

Its interesting to hear ideas being thrown about fellas - keep it up.

Granted a US not New Zealand story, but this blog on San Diego start up brewery "Modern Times" shares some refreshing honesty on kicking things off in the brewing game.

[mattd2]

I've read another blog (I'll have to find the link somehow) of another US micro's road to startup and it was very interesting. Memorable post were accidently freezing their first beer in the bright tank (Eis-kolsh anyone?) and a hectic busy week between beer fests / brewers association agm / visiting customers = lot of travel / no sleep / missing family and plenty to drink!
I'll try find the link again.

[mattd2]

Found the other blog (direct link to the frozen Kolsch)

http://beausbeer.blogspot.co.nz/2006/07/klsch-bock-or-anyone-for-gi...

And what happened after release

http://beausbeer.blogspot.co.nz/2006_08_01_archive.html

[FatD]

Nah if you get from China, the kegging equipment is part of it. CIP cleaning equipment, refrigeration and jacketed tanks and also a steam generator..

If you are in Wellington and Auckland you have lots of people for your market, so could just do the tap/flagon route. But it's the entertainment, food aspect people want. They won't just come in to chug 2 beers. To have an on licence to do that anyway, you have to have at least 3 decent food items.. Brewpubs are good option though.

If you live outside the main cities, there's just not enough population to cover your brewhouse and rental for a brewpub. So, then you really need a 2 or 3,000 litre brewery and bottle line to sell it in to main areas and you don't have to worry about the food and onsite selling and councils. But you have no fall back if the bottled brand doesn't do well. You just wasted a whole heap of money :o Sure you could sell it for around same price though if you bought it from China.

Ahh nice blog.

[mattd2]

How are you going with your plans Dermot?

So for $75k can you basically buy a 5 hL setup that will cover everything to turn the raw ingrediants into kegged beer and the only extra would be the building/consents/licences? Got any links? If NZ gets more tap houses / craft bars it might make a smaller brewery a goer, but probably only if you already own a property with the brewery and accomadation together.

But as has been told to me a couple times now, contract brewing is a good option for a startup, low risk for a bit higher operation costs. I think one brewery through out the figure of $1800 for 10 hL (that was just equipment "rental" costs thought, ingrediants, packaging, distribution, etc need to be factored in). But look at it as for the $75k in just the brewing equipment you can produce 41,667 litres of beer = 10,500 dozen 330ml bottles (or 82 batches on the 500L equipment), establish a brand, test the waters, build some capital and then build a brewery if you still want to.

I was surpised to see that Modern Times brewery was vey anti contract brewing though. Basically I sounded like they didn't think it was craft brewing. I'd like to see them tell NZ that.

[FatD]

ahh i'm mucking around still thinking about ordering a 2000 litre brewery from China as well. You can get 30l kegs from KegCo in NZ for $105 with spears. They take a month from China.

You just go onto alibaba.com and look for 600 or 1200l breweries. They try sell you a 2 vessel system, but you just tell them you want a HLT, combined mash tun/lauter and combined kettle and whirlpool. They have all the plate chillers, cleaning, control panel and refrigeration all ready in the quote. even keg washers, fillers and mills etc.. CIF pricing is shipping paid for to NZ but not duties. FOB is no shipping.

I'm going up in May for wine, so will look at them then. Mainly Quindao(Tsingtao) area they seem to be produced in. 3 or 4 of them.

I just launched a logo and doing tap sales last few months. Fat Monk Brewing on facebook.. Lucky I can test the market before going too crazy. I definitely wouldn't quit my job to do it though.

Yer contract brewing would be the go, but everyone pretty full up I think?

[Dene McDonald]

You could always move to Dunedin and buy and existing brewery.

http://www.bizoptions.com/11708.htm

I think there's heaps of potential as it near the university. If I had it I'd start making kegs of cider and selling them to the students.