Beer Wars

Beer Wars is a documentary that provides a behind-the-scenes examination of the ultra competitive beer industry. Director Anat Baron, former General Manager of Mike’s Hard Lemonade, reveals the obstacles small breweries must overcome to make their mark in an industry dominated by an evil empire of mega breweries.

The documentary reviews a brief history of the beer industry in America over the past century. Highlights include Prohibition, the rise of TV advertising, the decline of the local brewery, and the emergence of the three mega breweries – Anheuser-Busch, Miller Brewing, and Coors Brewing Company (movie filmed before recent mergers). This is the real story of beer in America – how it went from good to bad, and how demand for good beer is changing the market once again. If you like cold hard facts and random statistics, this movie is for you.

Anat Baron features the stories of micro and craft breweries. One of the craft breweries highlighted is Dogfish Head, a personal favorite. Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head founder) discusses his passion for beer as well as the unruly competitive tactics of the three mega breweries. He has created a niche market for beer drinkers that appreciate not just good beer, but great beer. Dogfish Head stands out from the competition by creating quality beer made from the highest quality ingredients. They also focus on taking an innovative approach to old world recipes. “If it’s already on the market, we aren’t interested in making it,” says Sam Calagione.

Dogfish Head and every other brewery featured in this documentary tell the same story – an unfair marketplace for small breweries in North America. It’s truly David vs. Goliath. These mega brewers have an unlimited amount of resources in terms of marketing and advertising budgets, but they also seem to control much more, i.e. politicians in their pockets?

What’s to come for the privately-owned craft breweries and micro breweries in America? Only time will tell, but there has definitely been an emergence of new breweries entering the marketplace since this documentary was created. Could the rise of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook be the ultimate tool of promotion for smaller breweries? Maybe Beer Bloggers and Beer Evangelists will continue to gain the attention of beer drinkers in America? Let’s hope.

Beginning today, Beer Wars is available to rent On Demand through Digital Cable and Satellite providers Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox, Cablevision, Charter, Insight, Bresnan, Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-Verse, Dish Network and DirecTV. It is also available for download on iTunes, Amazon Video On Demand, Xbox 360 and PS3.

Beer Wars definitely opened my eyes to the challenges that micro and craft brewers face when taking on the mega breweries. Here’s an idea, count how many beer commercials will be featured in the Super Bowl next weekend? The cost of one commercial airing during the Super Bowl outweighs the typical marketing budget of a micro brewery for an entire year. This is a movie that all beer drinkers need to watch.

Beer Wars website: http://beerwarsmovie.com/