Monthly Archives: June 2023

Craft Breweries, International, Ownership

Defining Craft: Italians Do It Better

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On the website of Amaracord, a craft brewery in the Italian town of Appechio, there is a graphic that proclaims, “Italians Do It Better“. They are, of course, referring to Italian craft beer. Whether Italian craft beer is better than that produced by craft brewers in other countries is, of course, a topic of debate. What I can say is that having visited Italy half-a-dozen times since 2013, the country does produce some excellent craft beer.

My most recent trip to Italy was just last month. I was there to visit the Gran Sasso Science Institute (GSSI) in L’Aquila where I made a presentation on craft beer at a workshop for PhD students and early career researchers. Part of my presentation addressed the issue of how craft breweries and craft beer are defined. Prior to my visit, I did quite a bit of research into the Italian craft beer industry, and discovered some interesting differences between how craft breweries and craft beer are defined in the United States and Italy respectively.

In the United States the generally accepted definition of a craft brewery is that provided by the Brewers Association (BA), a trade group representing the interests of craft brewers. According to the BA, to qualify as a craft, a brewery must meet three conditions:

  • It must be small. Annual production cannot exceed 6 million barrels (7 million hectoliters).
  • It must be independently owned. No more than 25 percent of the brewery can be owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by a beverage alcohol industry member that is not itself a craft brewer.
  • It must brew beer and have a license to do so from The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB).

This is the definition that is used by most academic researchers, including myself. Its widespread acceptance and usage are also reflective of the fact that there is no legal definition of a craft brewery in the United States.

One of the shortfalls of the BA definition, in my opinion, is that while it defines a craft beer producer (i.e., a brewery), it does not define craft beer. The closest that the BA gets to defining craft beer is that it is “generally made with traditional ingredients like malted barley; interesting and sometimes non-traditional ingredients are often added for distinctiveness“. This leads me to ponder the question – can a large multinational corporation like AB InBev produce craft beer? In the absence of a definition of craft beer, this is a difficult question to answer. It is, as I will show later, an important question.

As I was to discover from my research, the question of defining a craft brewery and craft beer has been addressed by the Italian government. In 2016, Italy’s lawmakers passed legislation that defined a craft brewery as follows:

  • It must be small. Annual production cannot exceed 200,000 hectoliters (169,000 barrels).
  • It must be legally and economically independent.
  • It must be intellectually independent. A brewery cannot operate under license to use the intellectual property rights of others.
  • It must be physically separate from other breweries. Each brewery must have its own distinct production space.

In addition to the above, the 2016 legislation defined two key characteristics of the product, craft beer. To qualify as craft, beer must be both unpasteurized and non-micro-filtered.

For several reasons, the Italian definition of craft brewery and craft beer is superior to what we have in the United States, First, it is a legal definition. Second, it defines the required characteristics of both the brewery and the beer.

While some may not be particularly interested in how craft brewery and craft beer are defined, or whether they are defined at all, I would suggest that having legal definitions of these two concepts is important.

In 2020, Byron Jackson and Mario Mena Jr. filed a class action lawsuit against the brewing giant AB InBev. At the center of the lawsuit was Veza Sur Brewing Co., which is located in Miami, FL. In patronizing the Veza Sur Brewing Co., and drinking their beer, Jackson and Mena Jr. believed that they were drinking craft beer brewed by a craft brewery. Upon discovering that Veza Sur was owned by AB In Bev, they filed a class action lawsuit. As the plaintiffs’ complaint stated:

“Defendants make and sell beer under the name Veza Sur. Veza Sur pretends to be a craft beer made in Miami and with Latin roots. In reality, it is simply another one of the dozens of brands made by the largest brewer in the world, Anheuser-Busch. It has no authentic Latin roots, and is not even made in Miami. Defendants’ misrepresentations have deceived the Plaintiffs who thought they were purchasing a craft beer that was made in Miami by a small brewery”.

For purposes of full disclosure, I was retained by the legal firm (Twig, Trade, & Tribunal) representing the plaintiffs as an expert witness in this case. In August 2021, the lawsuit was dismissed by U.S. district court judge in Miami, FL. In other words, it never went to trial.

In dismissing the case, Judge Beth Bloom stated that the “Brewer’s Association’s definition of craft beer is but one definition of a term that is otherwise widely used and well known in day-to-day conversation. However, what a certain individual might determine to qualify as “craft” beer is necessarily a subjective one, depending on the individual’s tastes and interests.”

Judge Bloom’s statement was recognition of the fact that there is no legal definition of what constitutes either a craft brewery or craft beer. Of course, the definitional issue was only one aspect of this lawsuit. And so, even if there was a legal definition of craft brewery and/or craft beer in the United States, this would not have guaranteed a successful outcome for the plaintiffs. Indeed, if you read Judge Bloom’s opinion, it is unlikely that a legal definition of craft brewery and/or craft beer would have resulted in a positive outcome for the plaintiffs.

While a legal definition of craft brewery and/or craft beer may not have helped the plaintiffs in their case against AB InBev, it did get me thinking about the issue of having a legal definition of either or both of these. If a legal definition did exist, as it does in Italy, it would certainly un-muddy what are currently some very muddy waters. For example, is Shock Top, a Belgian Wheat beer brewed by Anheuser Busch, a craft beer? Can a multinational corporation produce craft beer? Is Space Dust IPA, brewed by Elysian Brewing Company a craft beer? Is Elysian a craft brewery. Elysian Brewing Company was established in 1995 in Seattle, WA by Dave Buhler, Joe Bisacca, and Dick Cantwell. In 2015, AB InBev purchased Elysian Brewing Company, with the result that the latter lost its status as a craft brewery with the Brewers Association. All the above questions, in the absence of a legal definition, are difficult to answer.

While I was at Rome Airport, waiting to board my bus to L’Aquila, I decided to have a beer. I opted for a beer called Birra ichnusa. From its label, it looks like a craft beer. It is also unfiltered. Brewed on the Italian island of Sardinia, Birra Inchusa has been around since 1912. Despite its appearance (on at least three criteria), it does not meet the Italian government’s definition of a craft beer. First, since 1986, the brewery has been owned by Heineken. Second, the brewery produces over 400,000 hectoliters of beer annually (making it too large to qualify as craft). Third, the beer is pasteurized.

I enjoyed a Birra Ichnusa at Rome Airport while waiting for my bus to L’Aquila

Whether we will ever have a legal definition of craft brewery and craft beer in the United States, I have no idea. If we did it would certainly bring clarity to a very unclear situation.

Beer Tourism, Festivals, International, Local Beer, Small Towns

Craft Beer: A Tourism Opportunity for an Italian Inner Area?

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I just returned from a six-day trip to Italy. I was at the Gran Sasso Science Institute (GSSI) in L’Aquila where I participated in a workshop for PhD students and early career researchers in the fields of Economic Geography and Regional Science. This was my fourth visit to L’Aquila since 2017. Located a two-hour bus-ride east of Rome, L’Aquila is a city of just under 72,000 people. It made international news in 2009 when it was hit with a 6.3 magnitude earthquake, whose epicenter was just outside the city; an earthquake that was responsible for 308 deaths.

In addition to the workshop, I was also invited to participate in a local food and beer festival in Lecce nei Marsi. Located just over an hour drive southeast of L’Aquila, Lecce ne Marsi is a small community of just over 1,600 people. Lecce ne Marsi is located in what the Italian Government has designated as an Inner Area. Inner Areas are parts of Italy that, because of their geographic isolation, have limited access to essential public services such as health care, education, and transportation. They are areas that are suffering from the out migration of younger people, resulting in an ageing population. An estimated 22% of the Italian population live in Inner Areas. In response to the challenges facing Inner Areas, the Italian Government, in 2012, developed the National Strategy for Inner Areas (Strategia Nazionale per le Aree Interne). Known by the acronym SNAI, the goal is to “counteract marginalisation and demographic decline” of these areas. One of the ways in which the SNAI tries to do this is through the protection and promotion of the natural and cultural assets of Inner Areas.

Lecce nei MarsI (indicated by the B on the map) is just over an hour drive from L’Aquila (indictaed by the A on the map)
Welcome to Lecce nei Marsi

In an effort to promote its cultural assets, as well as those of twelve surrounding communities, Lecce nei Marsi decided to organize and host a festival promoting local food and local beer. Prior to its start, the Mayor of Lecce nei Marsi, Augusto Barile, held a short two-hour mini conference titled “Typical Products: The Strength of the Internal Area”. As the festival coincided with my visit to L’Aquila, Mayor Barile invited me to give a short presentation on craft beer. The mayor’s interest in craft beer was driven by the fact that a nearby micro-brewery, Beer Park Brewery, produced a beer whose ingredients include locally-harvested faggiola. Translated into English, faggiola are beechnuts (the fruit of the beech tree). The mayor was particularly interested to learn about beer tourism and how it could be used as part of a broader culinary tourism initiative to boost the local economy. Other presenters at the mini conference included Alessandra Faggian, my colleague from GSSI, the President of the national park within which Lecce ne Marsi is located, local elected officials, and even the local priest (who recognized the importance of economic development to the region). The audience were local residents and the mayors of the twelve surrounding communities. It was a standing-room only audience in the town’s small council chambers. The event was promoted as a Alogastronomia Festival. Alogastronomia was a neologism created in 2015 by the organizers of a local food and beer festival in the town of Appechio, Italy, from “merging of two words: ale, a kind of fermented beer, and gastronomy, . . . the art of regulating the stomach.” As such, it indicates a particular relationship between beer and food.

Promotional materials for the local food and beer festival in Lecce ne Marsi
It was a standing-room only crowd in the small council chambers of Lecce nei Marsi
Talking about the Italian craft beer revolution in Lecce ne Marsi (with the assistance of my wonderful translator Concetta)

Beer tourism is an increasingly popular activity. This is particularly the case in the United States, where the craft brewing industry is more developed than most other countries. However, the potential for beer tourism in Europe is, in my opinion, also significant. Indeed, there are already a number of travel companies who offer packaged vacations focused on visiting breweries and tasting beer in a variety of European countries, including Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, and yes, Italy. These tours tend to focus on larger cities such as Prague, Brussels, and Rome. This leads to the question – can small, geographically isolated communities, such as Lecce nei Marsi capitalize on the growing interest in traveling to taste beer? I believe that they can. However, it will require significant coordination and collaboration on the part of local communities. Attracting people to visit geographically isolated places such as Lecce ne Marsi will also require that non-beer assets be promoted. This may include local food, sites of historical significance, and events and festivals like the one that I attended.

The good news is that there is already an existing organization, the National Association of Beer Cities (Città della Birra Associazione Nazionale), that can perhaps be a source of advice and also used for promotional and branding purposes. Established in 2015, and headquartered in the small town of Appechio (also located in an Italian Inner Area), the goal of the association is to promote beer tourism. As of now, most of the breweries participating in association activities are located in the Marche region of Italy. However, as it is a national association it should be open to assisting breweries in other regions of Italy. Beer and food tourism cannot solve all of the socio-economic challenges facing communities like Lecce nei Marsi. However, they do represent one opportunity that such communities should consider. Indeed, the aforementioned Appechio perhaps offers a model for what is possible for places like Lecce nei Marsi. Appechio has had an annual Alogastrnomia Festival since 2015, whivh has evolved into a three-day event that attracts over 4,000 visitors. Apecchio has also done an excellent job of promoting the region’s other assets such as outdoor activities (biking, hiking, horseback riding etc.). And they have a very impressive website which promotes the region’s assets.

The goal of the National Association of Beer Cities is to promote beer tourism

By the time the mini conference had wrapped up, the food and beer festival was well underway. Each of the thirteen communities had stands offering a food that was typical of their particular place. Baked lamb, frogs’ legs, olive oil, truffles, and ricotta cheese were some of the culinary delights on offer. When it comes to food, I am not particularly adventurous, but I did take the opportunity provided by the festival to taste frogs’ legs for the first time.

Lecce ne Marsi provided a beautiful setting for a local food and beer festival
I had the opportunity to sample local frogs’ legs
My colleague Alessandra sampling some locally produced olive oil
Gioia Dei Marsi was one of thirteen towns participating in the local food and beer festival

While the food was wonderful, I was most interested in sampling the local beer, especially the one made with the local faggiola (beech nuts). Moricento, is an English Brown Ale, and is named after the nearby beech forests from which the beech nuts were harvested. Not only did I get to taste the beer, but I also got to meet both the owner of the brewery, Marco D’Aurelio, and brewer, Luca Fusè. The opportunity to meet both brewery owners and brewers is one aspect of the craft brewing industry that I really enjoy and appreciate. To be able to shake the hand and chat with those responsible for producing the beer that you are drinking is a true privilege.

The ingredients of Moricento beer include beech nuts harvested from local beech trees
With Marco D’Aurelio, owner of Beer Park Brewery
Sampling Moricento beer with brewer Luca Fusè (far right)

This was the first local food and beer festival in Lecce nei Marsi. The plan is to make this an annual event. It will be interesting to see how this event evolves in future years, and what other initiatives Lecce nei Marsi and its neighboring communities develop in their efforts to improve the socio-economic environment of both them and their neighbors.

Further Reading:

Pezzi, Maria Giulia. 2017. From peripheral hamlet to craft beer capital: Apecchio and the ‘Alogastronomia. Italian Journal of Planning and Practice, Volume 7, Issue 1, Pages 154-185.