I see it most on Friday afternoons, no matter what the weather: people dressed in uniforms from blue-collar jobs, or dirty overalls, trudging down the street towards their homes, carrying a case of beer, in cans. Sometimes there will be another item in a plastic bag from the corner convenience store: a bag of potato chips, maybe. But the beer never changes.Even more of it than last year, says MillerCoors, the U.S. combination of Molson Coors Brewing Company (NYSE: TAP) and SABMiller Plc (OTC: SBMRY). According to MillerCoors Chief Commercial Officer Tom Long, growth is slowing but, despite a recession, is slowing less than wine or spirits growth; down to 0.6% for 2009-2012 compared to 0.9% between 2004-2008. Among Miller and Coors brands showing market share growth are Miller Lite, Coors Light, Miller Genuine Draft 64, Blue Moon Beer (a craft beer), Miller High Life and Keystone Light. First quarter sales for the company were up 3.8% for profit of $68.5 million.
Another study says beer sales are up 5.6% this year overall. A post on NPR's Planet Money blog details beer sales worldwide; they're up everywhere but Romania (where they've plummeted 12.3%). As they say, there's always beer. And in a recession, there's even more beer; the best and cheapest way to swill away the financial sorrows.
Even in my relatively food-conscious life, when I'm feeling especially financially low, I get a hankering for a cold bottle of beer (I go for a local organic brew, but it's way cheaper than a bottle of wine). Is it the plentiful marketing that has us connecting beer with the blue collar existence? Or is it just that there's a lot more of it, on a dollar-per-ounce basis, than wine? I think it's some cultural connection between low incomes and drinking beer, and while I can't bear to recommend that we all start drinking Keystone Light, I think there are worse ways to drown your sorrows than in a bottle of (good) American beer.
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