Buffalo slammed with six feet of snow

[derspiess]

And yes you can carry out here.  That is actually where the Micros here make most of their money because their tap rooms are regulated to be quite small - the bar and restaurant lobby made sure of that.

In Ohio they reduced the licensing costs/requirements for breweries to sell on premises, with the result that all sorts of breweries (mostly small and nano) are popping up.  Not sure when we'll hit the saturation point, but it's nice to see the little guys thriving, at least for the time being.

[crazy canuck]

In Ohio they reduced the licensing costs/requirements for breweries to sell on premises, with the result that all sorts of breweries (mostly small and nano) are popping up.  Not sure when we'll hit the saturation point, but it's nice to see the little guys thriving, at least for the time being.

Agreed.  I think we are living in the golden age of beer production. 

[Grey Fox]

Nah, we just finish getting out of the rut the prohibition put us in. Took almost 100 years, thanks again 1920's.

[Jacob]

In Ohio they reduced the licensing costs/requirements for breweries to sell on premises, with the result that all sorts of breweries (mostly small and nano) are popping up.  Not sure when we'll hit the saturation point, but it's nice to see the little guys thriving, at least for the time being.

Agreed.  I think we are living in the golden age of beer production. 

Yeah it's quite nice.

My expectation is that we're near the peak of the trend and within a few years, some of the various micros will fail, there'll be consolidation, and the ooh-new shine will wear off and something else will come along. But it's good fun while it last, and I'm sure some of the micros will stick around.

[derspiess]

Nah, we just finish getting out of the rut the prohibition put us in. Took almost 100 years, thanks again 1920's.

It wasn't just prohibition, but consolidation.  In fact, I'd say the latter was a bigger factor.  Advertising, improved transportation, economy of scale, etc. all helped kill the small breweries in the latter half of the 20th century. 

FWIW, in the US we are back to about 1870 levels in terms of the number of breweries.  We've gone from about 80 in 1983 to 3,040 as of June of this year.

[derspiess]

My expectation is that we're near the peak of the trend and within a few years, some of the various micros will fail, there'll be consolidation, and the ooh-new shine will wear off and something else will come along. But it's good fun while it last, and I'm sure some of the micros will stick around.

I think it's something that will continue to ebb & flow, with the long term trend still moving in favor of craft beer.  It started slowly in the 80s, exploded in the 90s with a literal bubble, regressed/corrected in the early 2000s and now we're going through another boom.  What's notable in the US is that while overall beer consumption is going down slightly, craft beer consumption is rising and is gaining what was once thought to be unobtainable market share.

[crazy canuck]

My expectation is that we're near the peak of the trend and within a few years, some of the various micros will fail, there'll be consolidation, and the ooh-new shine will wear off and something else will come along. But it's good fun while it last, and I'm sure some of the micros will stick around.

I think it's something that will continue to ebb & flow, with the long term trend still moving in favor of craft beer.  It started slowly in the 80s, exploded in the 90s with a literal bubble, regressed/corrected in the early 2000s and now we're going through another boom.  What's notable in the US is that while overall beer consumption is going down slightly, craft beer consumption is rising and is gaining what was once thought to be unobtainable market share.

I agree.  It is the same trend here.