he state of beer within the hospitality industry is best illustrated by the new post Scott Kerkmans has assumed with Starwood’s Four Points by Sheraton brand: chief beer officer (CBO). The creation of this executive position shows the attention the industry is giving the brew segment, which produces over half of all retail sales dollars among alcoholic beverages. It also highlights the special interest food and beverage departments are taking in providing the most satisfying and memorable experience for guests—be it in detail-oriented service, thoughtful wine selections, or an array of fresh high-quality craft brews.

Kerkmans takes on his at-large assignment— seeking out and promoting exceptional brews for all Four Points locations—at a critical point in American beer culture. The $86.1 billion beer category has bounced back from a diminished showing in 2005 to add a typical 1 percent in sales in 2006 (source: Adams Beer Handbook 2006).

TRADING-UP TREND
The real story, however, lies in the balance of subcategories giving the beer industry a fresh look. Ten percent of beer brands continue to produce ninety percent of total sales, but the trend of “trading up” is strongly evident in American beer tastes, with craft beers becoming the fastestgrowing segment among alcoholic beverages.

While slightly greater margins are a payoff for offering microbrews, Kerkmans believes providing guests the opportunity to experience the flavors of regional brews or sample worldfamous drafts is the true benefit of assembling a great selection. He claims the American beer culture has entered a period of curiosity and awareness, not unlike that of the fledgling domestic wine industry of the 1970s.

While beer has struggled to maintain its overwhelming dominance in alcoholic beverage sales—52 percent, more than all other segments combined (source: Adams Handbook Advance 2006)—the current proliferation of high-quality craft brews and previously unfamiliar styles is renewing interest in brew culture.

The Four Points LAX property pioneered its corporate beer program with fresh regional offerings and a demand for well-crafted brews. From that success came its Best Brews program for all Four Points properties and a worldwide search for the first CBO, a position that will no doubt foster dreams of greatness in amateur brewmeisters. More than 7,800 applicants from 30 countries vied for the job, but when the dust settled, former distributor and brewmaster Kerkmans triumphed.

A VIEW TO THE FUTURE
Kerkmans’s familiarity with beer, from brewing to distribution, made him particularly suited for the job. He is keenly aware of the cost and demand of quality brewing, the wide spectrum of possibility in creating beer, and the fact that the average beer drinker is a 20-something male—not really an exact match for most hotel patrons—but he has his eye on the future.

“The trends I see put the fastest-growing group, craft brew drinkers, at the forefront of where the beer industry will be,“ says Kerkmans. “They are young professionals, maybe in their thirties.” Kerkmans also notes that nearly 38 percent of craft beer drinkers are women, as compared with the 15 percent of mainstream beer drinkers. “These are beer drinkers searching for a ‘better beer’ with high-quality ingredients and made by someone who cares.”

While craft beers make up a small percentage of total beer sales (statistics vary according to the definition of “craft brew,” but around 4 percent), the big producers seem to be noticing the coming change in consumer taste. Information Resources, Inc., puts the off-premise sales of craft brews for the first quarter of 2007 up by 19.4 percent, a good jump whatever the definition. “The big three”—Anheuser-Busch, Miller, and Molson Coors—and other large producers are climbing onboard the craft brew bandwagon, creating, acquiring, or importing beers to quench beer drinkers’ thirst for new and varied offerings.

Coors and Miller have expanded their portfolios with Blue Moon Belgian White Ale, Leinenkugel’s, and others, while the 900- pound gorilla, Anheuser-Busch, has secured distribution rights to InBev’s massive line of beers, which includes Hoegaarden, Stella Artois, and Bass. As has always been the case with consolidation, only time will tell if individual craft breweries can maintain their overall integrity under corporate control.

Large producers will not be excluded at Four Points properties. The Best Brews program will add smaller, lesser-known regional brews to the selection of more popular brands. Kerkmans will implement training programs specifically designed for each location and will designate a “beer ambassador” to help educate guests and aid them in selecting beers and pairing them with foods. As a model for beer programs, Kerkmans points to the success of wine education in producing a generation of knowledgeable wine drinkers.

A great many beer styles are unknown to Americans, plus the American brewer seems freer to experiment in this younger beer culture, creating a rich landscape for the brewadventurer to discover. In particular, seasonal brews are innovative, strong sellers, and important points of interest for consumers.

“Seasonals are growing faster than any other style. There is something special about getting a unique fresh beer that is available only for a few months … and when you drink it again, it brings back wonderful memories of the last time you had it,” says Kerkmans. You have only to look in your beer store case to discover that every microbrewery is churning out small batches of seasonal and limited-run brews. It is that great volume of diversity and regional character that makes the beer category exciting.

Kerkmans is optimistic about the desire of Americans to explore and develop a genuine beer culture. Producers are learning the limitations of gimmicky marketing and beginning to sell the culinary aspects of their products to a maturing audience. While lambics, French farmhouse brews, and mead are still the province of connoisseurs and the ultra-curious, beer is gaining widespread acceptance as a beverage to be savored and to enhance the flavors of food rather than solely to be gulped ice cold.

Glassware and special styles of service are drawing the attention of consumers, garnering for beer the mystique of wine—without the perceived snootiness—and the stylishness of martini culture that appeals to the larger group of beer-drinking patrons.

Kerkmans says to expect:
• More women to enter the fraternity of beer drinkers.
• Increased interest in fruity beers.
• Continued elevation of American beer-making prowess and—maybe—to watch Italy as an emerging source for world-class beers.

While the big three of beers still hold sway over the bulk of the domestic market, and there will always be light beers and fad beers, the industry seems to be trying to reach a respectable maturity. Lessons learned from the earlier microbrewery goldrush and subsequent fizzle of the 1990s have thinned out the field of brewers to the fewer passionate brewmasters who craft their brews with care and quality. Kerkmans believes craft brewers are raising the bar for quality American beers as well as heightening beer-drinkers’ expectations of what they want in a beer, and that those brewers will be the standard-bearers who define the future of beer.

Denny Lewis is a frequent contributor to HOTEL F&B.