CBC
Wed, October 11, 2023
The Windsor Craft Beer Festival set for Oct. 14, 2023, has been cancelled - but a smaller event is being held that day at WindsorEats. (Dalson Chen/CBC - image credit)
At its height, the Windsor Craft Beer Festival attracted thousands of thirsty brew enthusiasts, beckoned by the promise of hoppy IPAs and other artisanal suds.
But the 2023 edition of the festival — which was set to happen this coming Saturday — has been cancelled with short notice.
Adriano Ciotoli of WindsorEats raises a mug at 400 Erie St. East in Windsor. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
Instead of holding a major festival at Willistead Park, event organizers Windsor Eats are planning a much smaller scale event on their property at 400 Erie St. East.
"I don't think (craft beer) has necessarily lost its hip-ness or its cache. It's just that there's a lot more being offered in the market right now for people to enjoy," said WindsorEats co-owner Adriano Ciotoli.
Ciotoli said the Fall Beer & Cider Festival taking place Oct. 14 will have a capacity of around 400 people — compared to the sell-out crowds of more than 4,000 that the Windsor Craft Beer Festival commanded in its early years, 2013 to 2016.
"We wanted to offer something a little more intimate," Ciotoli explained
WindsorEats announced the cancellation of the larger event at the start of the month, and refunded all advance ticket sales.
Jordan Goure of BREW Microbrewery and VIN Winery shows off the independent company's new Rosito canned sparkling wine beverage on their property in Essex on Oct. 6, 2023. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
Ciotoli said the change of plans was partly motivated by rising costs: He estimates the festival's expenses would have reached $80,000 this year.
But another factor in the decision was recognition of changing public tastes — reflected by lower ticket sales.
Ciotoli pointed out that the Windsor Craft Beer Festival isn't the only beer celebration that pulled the plug this year. There have been similar stories across North America.
Two craft beer festivals in Colorado — the Big Beers Festival in Breckenbridge and the WeldWerks Invitational in Greeley — didn't have 2023 editions.
The Washington Summer Brewers Festival, a tradition since the 1990s and considered the largest craft beer event in Washington state, was also cancelled.
Even the hipsters in Portland, Ore., have lost interest in craft beer: The Oregon Brewers Festival, one of the longest-running craft beer events in the United States, was among this year's cancellations.
Products of BREW Microbrewery in Essex. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
"Beer festivals have really been going through a transformation," Ciotoli said. "You're seeing lower attendance across the board at multiple beer-focused festivals."
But if people aren't interested in craft beer anymore — what beverages are they excited about?
"We've seen a big shift toward non-alcohol cocktails, at least at our establishment," Ciotoli said. "We're definitely seeing an uptick in ciders."
Ciotoli said the Fall Beer & Cider Festival on Oct. 14 will have 10 vendors, and four of them will be cideries.
An illustration of beer mugs that's part of a promotional image for the Fall Beer & Cider Festival happening Oct. 14, organized by WindsorEats. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
WindsorEats aren't alone in changing to meet the preferences of the market.
BREW Microbrewery in Windsor-Essex has been a participant and vendor at the Windsor Craft Beer Festival since 2014.
This year's cancellation feels "a bit like the end of an era," BREW co-founder and co-owner Jordan Goure said. "it's a little sad, for sure."
But Goure is excited about his latest non-beer product: Rosito, a sparkling wine beverage in a can, offered through BREW's sister company, VIN Winery.
"The flavour is a little minty, a little sweet," Goure said. "We carbonate it and get it down to 5.5 per cent alcohol. It's more of a wine cooler.. We just launched it this summer. We plan on scaling this up and hopefully getting it into stores over the next few years."
Along with expanding to wine, Goure is pursuing other business interests such as hosting wedding events on the BREW property in Essex County.
"We get to see some of the LCBO stats and some of the internal numbers. Really, the sales trends have been down for craft beer," Goure said. "That's why, as a company, we decided to get into a growth beverage category, which is wine coolers and wine beverages."
Beer sales declining, stats show
Indeed, craft beer festivals being put on pause are only a symptom of a larger consumer trend.
Data from Statistics Canada released in February found that the volume of beer sold per person in Canada reached an "all-time low" from 2021 to 2022.
Total Canadian beer sales during that period dropped to about 2 million litres — the equivalent of 3.7 standard bottles of beer per week for every person in the country who is old enough to legally drink alcohol.
According to Statistics Canada, that's the lowest the figure has been since they began tracking alcohol sales in 1949.
In fact, Canadian beer sales have been trending downward since the 1970s.
Meanwhile, Canadian sales of ciders and wine coolers increased by 13.5 per cent from 2021 to 2022, and by 40.2 per cent from 2020 to 2021.
Despite such data, Ciotoli still believes there's always going to a segment of drinkers who are passionate about beer — especially craft beer.
"Craft beer is definitely still cool," he insisted. "If you love it, then it's cool to you."
At its height, the Windsor Craft Beer Festival attracted thousands of thirsty brew enthusiasts, beckoned by the promise of hoppy IPAs and other artisanal suds.
But the 2023 edition of the festival — which was set to happen this coming Saturday — has been cancelled with short notice.
Adriano Ciotoli of WindsorEats raises a mug at 400 Erie St. East in Windsor. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
Instead of holding a major festival at Willistead Park, event organizers Windsor Eats are planning a much smaller scale event on their property at 400 Erie St. East.
"I don't think (craft beer) has necessarily lost its hip-ness or its cache. It's just that there's a lot more being offered in the market right now for people to enjoy," said WindsorEats co-owner Adriano Ciotoli.
Ciotoli said the Fall Beer & Cider Festival taking place Oct. 14 will have a capacity of around 400 people — compared to the sell-out crowds of more than 4,000 that the Windsor Craft Beer Festival commanded in its early years, 2013 to 2016.
"We wanted to offer something a little more intimate," Ciotoli explained
WindsorEats announced the cancellation of the larger event at the start of the month, and refunded all advance ticket sales.
Jordan Goure of BREW Microbrewery and VIN Winery shows off the independent company's new Rosito canned sparkling wine beverage on their property in Essex on Oct. 6, 2023. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
Ciotoli said the change of plans was partly motivated by rising costs: He estimates the festival's expenses would have reached $80,000 this year.
But another factor in the decision was recognition of changing public tastes — reflected by lower ticket sales.
Ciotoli pointed out that the Windsor Craft Beer Festival isn't the only beer celebration that pulled the plug this year. There have been similar stories across North America.
Two craft beer festivals in Colorado — the Big Beers Festival in Breckenbridge and the WeldWerks Invitational in Greeley — didn't have 2023 editions.
The Washington Summer Brewers Festival, a tradition since the 1990s and considered the largest craft beer event in Washington state, was also cancelled.
Even the hipsters in Portland, Ore., have lost interest in craft beer: The Oregon Brewers Festival, one of the longest-running craft beer events in the United States, was among this year's cancellations.
Products of BREW Microbrewery in Essex. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
"Beer festivals have really been going through a transformation," Ciotoli said. "You're seeing lower attendance across the board at multiple beer-focused festivals."
But if people aren't interested in craft beer anymore — what beverages are they excited about?
"We've seen a big shift toward non-alcohol cocktails, at least at our establishment," Ciotoli said. "We're definitely seeing an uptick in ciders."
Ciotoli said the Fall Beer & Cider Festival on Oct. 14 will have 10 vendors, and four of them will be cideries.
An illustration of beer mugs that's part of a promotional image for the Fall Beer & Cider Festival happening Oct. 14, organized by WindsorEats. (Dalson Chen/CBC)
WindsorEats aren't alone in changing to meet the preferences of the market.
BREW Microbrewery in Windsor-Essex has been a participant and vendor at the Windsor Craft Beer Festival since 2014.
This year's cancellation feels "a bit like the end of an era," BREW co-founder and co-owner Jordan Goure said. "it's a little sad, for sure."
But Goure is excited about his latest non-beer product: Rosito, a sparkling wine beverage in a can, offered through BREW's sister company, VIN Winery.
"The flavour is a little minty, a little sweet," Goure said. "We carbonate it and get it down to 5.5 per cent alcohol. It's more of a wine cooler.. We just launched it this summer. We plan on scaling this up and hopefully getting it into stores over the next few years."
Along with expanding to wine, Goure is pursuing other business interests such as hosting wedding events on the BREW property in Essex County.
"We get to see some of the LCBO stats and some of the internal numbers. Really, the sales trends have been down for craft beer," Goure said. "That's why, as a company, we decided to get into a growth beverage category, which is wine coolers and wine beverages."
Beer sales declining, stats show
Indeed, craft beer festivals being put on pause are only a symptom of a larger consumer trend.
Data from Statistics Canada released in February found that the volume of beer sold per person in Canada reached an "all-time low" from 2021 to 2022.
Total Canadian beer sales during that period dropped to about 2 million litres — the equivalent of 3.7 standard bottles of beer per week for every person in the country who is old enough to legally drink alcohol.
According to Statistics Canada, that's the lowest the figure has been since they began tracking alcohol sales in 1949.
In fact, Canadian beer sales have been trending downward since the 1970s.
Meanwhile, Canadian sales of ciders and wine coolers increased by 13.5 per cent from 2021 to 2022, and by 40.2 per cent from 2020 to 2021.
Despite such data, Ciotoli still believes there's always going to a segment of drinkers who are passionate about beer — especially craft beer.
"Craft beer is definitely still cool," he insisted. "If you love it, then it's cool to you."
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