Yet in the past several years the once-lowly can has been seeing its reputation grow in the craft-brewing community. Thanks in large part to new microcanning equipment, smaller brewers like Colorado’s Oskar Blues, Minnesota’s Surly Brewing, Oregon’s Caldera Brewing, and California’s 21st Amendment are able to enter the canned-beer business alongside mainstream brands like Budweiser and Miller.
Surly Brewing’s Furious Beer
Add one more: Just this past summer, New Belgium Brewing began canning its popular Fat Tire Amber Ale and selling it in 12-packs in limited markets across the western United States, in stores such as Fred Meyer and Whole Foods, with plans to expand.
“This really came out of our own lifestyles,” writes Greg Owsley, chief branding officer at New Belgium, on the brewery’s blog, the Tinkerer. “Now, I can finally take Fat Tire in the backpack, in the boat, all those places we felt a little guilty taking our bottles and treated them so preciously to make sure they didn’t break.”
New Belgium may be the biggest U.S. craft brewer to offer its beer in cans, but it’s Colorado brewpub Oskar Blues that’s credited as the pioneer in the microcanning trend: The company began canning its flagship Dale’s Pale Ale in 2002. Fans took notice, sales took off, and other brewers have since followed suit. According to Jennifer Hoover, marketing communications manager for the Ball Corporation—which manufactures aluminum cans for both majors and micros—the company’s customers now include “more than 30 craft brewers in the United States and 16 in Canada.”
Why Now?
A major impetus behind the recent microcanning trend is a change in canning technology, which for decades was geared toward large producers. The Buds and Millers of the world utilize massive industrial canning machinery and 
Oskar Blues’ Gordon Ale, Old Chub, Ten Fidy, and Dale’s Pale Alepurchase blank aluminum cans by the billions every year, according to Hoover. The landscape changed, however, in 2001 when Canadian company Cask Brewing Systems began offering a manual, two-at-a-time canning system designed specifically for small brewers; Cask also worked out a deal with the Ball Corporation to make Cask’s cans available in smaller quantities (says Hoover: “The minimum order is generally 24 pallets per label or 196,056 12-ounce cans”). Oskar Blues was the first U.S. craft brewery to adopt Cask’s system—the Colorado brewer now offers several of its beers in cans, including Scottish ale Old Chub and even its monster Ten Fidy, a 10 percent ABV imperial stout—and as Hoover says, “the list continues to grow.”
Like screw tops on fine wine bottles, cans are deeply associated with a low-grade product. But as with wine, those associations are more myth than reality. In fact, the can is arguably better for the beer inside, which is fragile and easily damaged by exposure to heat, oxygen, and light. Dark brown glass bottles help with the light issue (and do a much better job than clear or green glass—take note, Corona and Heineken fans), but a can seals the deal more completely. That skunky association you have with canned beer? Most likely the package is not to blame.
Guiness has been packaging beer in cans for years. I think this is one of the best examples that great tasting beer can be packaged in cans. As a craft beer lover and homebrewer I am all for canned beer!
I tried a couple brews from Oskar Blues and Caldera brewing a few months ago....first off, they were very good beers, package doesn't matter if the beer tastes like crap. but honestly, no disadvantage to the can at all. it was a little shocking though to open a can and have it smell/taste like a microbrew. I've just NEVER had canned beer that tasted any different from the light american lager (budweiser).
if you can find it in your area, try the Old Chub (pictured above). hadn't heard of Oskar Blues before but i'm a big fan now.
Surly, the Minnesota Beer listed, is great. My favorite of theirs is a hoppy, hoppy, tasty thing called Furious. So good. Also on tap many places. I was a little put off at first by the cans, especially since they are bigger than normal cans. They look like energy drinks, which I don't want anyone to think I'm drinking.
Some beers actually taste better in cans. Heinekens for example, the cans let in no light to interact with the hops. Heinekens in the green bottle tends to have a skunky smell and flavor.
Trader Joe's is stocking a new, fun, canned beer called Simpler Times. Pretty good! I believe its from Minhas Craft Brewery in Wisconsin.
http://www.minhasbrewery.com/
TJ's has always carried a couple of types of canned beer, I love the Whitbeer in the blue and yellow can. Someone who works there mentioned that they are getting more in cans this fall.
FYI
New Belgium's Fat Tire Amber Ale now comes in cans.
I haven't tried it yet, so i can't vouch for its quality.
I love Pork Slap and Moo Thunder stout in a can. There some of my favorite, affordable micro brews up here in NYS.
Plus the cans have really fun designs on them.
Caldera brewing, out of Ashland, Oregon is one of the most underappreciated brewers I think. The IPA and Pale are perfect representations of the style and that of the pacific northwest. It is distributed in the PNW fairly well, but outside of that it gets a little sketchy.
companies like Liquid Solutions(google it) can get it and ship it anywhere......
Try the Red Derby 3718 14th st NW...Great place and they sell like 40 beers...all in cans..
Try the Red Derby 3718 14th st NW...40 different beers...all in cans..
Uh, gee . . . your place? or dedicated drinker???
Uh, gee . . . your place? or dedicated drinker???
lol we live around the corner and we really like the owners
Here's the places link to the Red Derby, which, it in turns out, is in D.C.
http://www.chow.com/places/39585
caldera is tremendous. I wish they would put their Red in a can.
Sly Fox is the best I have had. Pikeland Pils I believe is what is in the cans. That Dale's Pale Ale is everywhere lately but I just can't imagine buying a case of canned beer, unless I'm tailgating and it costs less than like twelve bucks.
Surly Furious is my go to weeknight beer. 16 oz of that malty hop fueled bliss is perfect year-round. It's also great that it looks like an energy drink can, so I can sneak it onto the bench @ softball leagues with beer bans. Also love Dale's Pale Ale for the same reasons...but I hate that they don't import to MN and I have to drive 40 minutes each way to WI just to pick up a 6 pack.
do they have green beer in a can for st pattys?
Does anybody know of good breweries that sell beer in pouches, similar to a capri sun? Backpacker magazine ran an article years ago about breweries in the Pacific Northwest that were starting to produce these.
I'd love to find a place that would ship these - if anyone knows. We brought bottles on a canoe trip to Lake Umbagog in New Hampshire a few weeks ago because the thought of drinking a Bud Lt just didn't sit well.