When they go big, we go small. How do you refresh an older brand?

Just Tapped 

The notion that bigger is better does not necessarily jive with craft beer. Also, brand familiarity is great, but when does a brand become too familiar? Let's explore those topics. Read on.

What just happened in Seattle matters everywhere

Russian River Brewing, the well-known and much-loved brewery from Santa Rosa, California, just announced its return to the Seattle market after a 10-year hiatus. "Woo-hoo!" said a lot of beer drinkers living in Seattle. Yeah, it's nice for them, but what really matters is how Russian River executed this maneuver. That's the bigger story. Or, I should say, the smaller story. That's what speaks to craft beer's future.

To handle distribution in the Seattle metro area, Russian River decided to partner with Stoup Distro, a small, independent, craft-focused beer distributor in the Seattle area. Stoup Distro is an offshoot of Stoup Brewing, a craft brewery in Seattle. Currently, Stoup Distro manages distribution for about 15 other craft breweries in the area. Stoup's small size and its singular focus on craft beer appealed to Russian River. It's not the first time the brewery has worked with this kind of distributor.

"Stoup is a known entity to us,” Natalie Cilurzo, co-owner of Russian River Brewing, told The Taster Tray. "They’re in the craft beer industry and they make great beer. They’re good people first and foremost. They appreciate quality and respect craft beer, they treat it well, they don’t want to see it sitting in their warehouse or sitting on the shelf… we just knew that they would be the right partner to treat our brand and our beers correctly and with quality and integrity.”

Industry observers already know what’s happening in the wholesale beer industry. Up at the top, the big distributors are consolidating, making their portfolios even bigger. Increasingly, it’s easy for craft breweries to get lost in those great big catalogs that include, among many other things, the largest brewers on earth. At the same time, it is hard for a craft brewery to ensure that a big distributor is handling its brand and its beer properly. That was a key driver in Russian River Brewing’s decision to go with a small, craft-focused distributor.

What Stoup Brewing did in creating Stoup Distro is akin to what Stone Brewing did in creating Stone Distributing, a craft-focused beer distributor serving Southern California. (BTW, when Japanese beer behemoth Sapporo assimilated Stone Brewing, Stone Distributing was not part of the deal; Stone Distributing remains independent.) “We’ve had tremendous success working with Stone Distributing,” added Natalie. “What I'm hoping is that there is more of this -- these smaller breweries who decide they want to help out other breweries in the community.”

Small, craft-focused distributors who understand and appreciate the product. That, and self-distribution, which is not yet legal in every state, is what Natalie hopes to see more of in the future. As the big fellas consolidate at the top, it seems inevitable that this is part of the way forward for craft beer. 

So in states where it's legal, we're already seeing self-distributed volume growth, and we think we will continue to see the re-growth of smaller distributors as the landscape diverges between large and small. Expect smaller distributors to pop up, offering more choices to bar managers, more options to brewers, and more competition in the wholesale sector.

You're only as old as you look. And taste

This is the kind of move that every "legacy" bar, brewery, and beer should consider. For many of today's craft beer drinkers, this literally is "your grandpa's beer." New Belgium's 30-year-old boomer beer just got a facelift: a new look and taste. The brewery hopes the revamped Fat Tire will appeal to a new generation of beer drinkers who don't remember when Nirvana was the hot, new band.  

“Longtime Fat Tire drinkers will clearly recognize the original Fat Tire flavor when tasting the new recipe,” said New Belgium Brewmaster Christian Holbrook, who developed the new recipe. “So far, many are telling us they prefer the crisper, brighter version and feel excited for the change.”

There are a couple of ways to update a brand. A brand refresh involves taking the bare bones of a brand and updating it. The core elements of the brand remain the same. A rebrand involves recreating the brand itself, making it almost indistinguishable from the original. There's little to correlate to the past. You've almost started with a blank slate. The difference between refreshing and rebranding is an important one. If you have a successful brand you rarely want to start from scratch again. You want to leverage what you've created, you want to leverage the brand equity that already exists. Another key consideration of a brand update is that you need to do it before you need to do it. If you wait too long before updating, the tanker has already left the dock and it's hard to change direction. 

I know of other legacy breweries that have done (or plan to do) the same with their entire brand as well as their individual flagship beers. Is it enough? Will these updates change the trajectory of brands? What do you think about the two brand updates illustrated above? Are they refreshes or rebrands? Did they happen in time, or are they too late? Let us know your thoughts by responding to this email. We read all responses!

As craft beer ages, more brands may need to be updated to remain aligned with market changes, palate changes, and other shifts. Expect to see more of these types of moves in the future. 

Around the Web

• Despite rising prices, beer drinkers remain loyal. At least that's what this market analytics company says. (Story by Fox Business.).

Say What?

Feedback from last week, in their own words: "I'm really enjoying these updates! They are short and informative." - robyn@...

Thanks for the feedback, Robyn. I've never been so thrilled to have someone call me short and informative! That's the goal.

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This week's Taster Tray was composed by Kendall Jones.