Gambero Rosso – July-August 2019

STORIES

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BEER LIKE WINE?

Wine, or rather, grapes, will gradually be-

come an ingredient increasingly used by

breweries, to the point of giving birth to a

very precise style, internationally recog-

nized. The IGA (Italian Grape Ale) are now

different, perhaps the phenomenon has

never exploded in quantitative terms, but

the average quality of the beers of this style

is high. But before the IGA space has been

given to many highly territorial ingredients,

from fruit, fresh or dried, through chest-

nuts: «A style that has had its peak several

years ago but now little used - always reminds

us of Utzeri - Currently the There are lots of

styles with which Italian producers compete,

from the Gose (to salt) to the Berliner Weisse,

up to the Lager and the whole world of low

fermentation. In the face of growing quality,

however, there was too much euphoria between

2010 and 2015. Euphoria that led some com-

panies to make optimistic investments and as

far as the sign is (between closures and new

openings) always positive are not few compa-

nies that have gone bankrupt or have closed

down. It is no coincidence that the world of

brew-firm has grown so much, a phenomenon

that is worth a third (in volumes) of the total

beer produced». Perhaps, we add, it is also

“thanks” to this paradox (qualitative growth

and affirmation of a brand in the face of dif-

ficulties in creating real companies capable

of facing the difficulties of the market) that

some multinationals have begun to make

almost indispensable proposals to different

realities Italian artisans. Proposals, some of

which, in fact, have turned in front of the

amazement (and anger) of so many who

have always believed in the independence

of the movement, especially from the great

realities of industrial beer. Not only. When

the artisan movement ironizes (on social

media, for example) about the behavior of

the beer industry that mimics the artisan

BEER BEHEMOTHS AND CONTROLLED BRANDS

AbInbev

AbInBev with over 500 brands owns

31.4% of the world’s beer production

Heineken (Dibevit)

11.2% of the world’s beer production

China Res. Snow Breweries

world production of Snow beer (5.4%

of overall world beer consumption,

the most sold worldwide)

Carlsberg

5,8% of the world’s beer production

Molson Coors

5,7% of the world’s beer production

Duvel Moortgat

0,9% of the world’s beer production