I only knew Anchor Steam because I think Red Lobster used to make salt and pepper shakers out of old bottles.
My Facebook feed is full of people saying, “This sucks. I love Anchor Steam. I used to drink it all the time but I haven’t had one in years”.
All it takes for evil beer to triumph is for good beer to go unbought for years.
Spread the love by buying the stuff you care about, or watch it disappear. Your choice. Nobody else will do it for you.
Wow, quite a bummer to hear this news. What timing too, I had just bought a 24-pack of their beer a week ago, maybe I should just not drink it and hope they become collector’s items in the future.
I also went on a tour of the brewery and tasting room some years back, which was pretty fun and IMO better value than the actual beer itself.
I’ve been doing that. Unfortunately, I’m not a heavy drinker.
< hangs head >
Well, I’m heading out to Total Wine for my bi-weekly beer restock. Hopefully they still have some Anchor Steam in stock (I’m a little worried the announcement might create a run on it). It’ll probably be my last case.
Guilty.
Granted my beer consumption is pretty low these day in general. But still.
I was just over there. Empty shelves where they once were. Same at Safeway. 
I am hoping there is still some in the supply chain that make there way over here. In the mean time Total Wine has a good selection of local and CA brew, so I ended up with some Fort Rock. 
BevMo was sold out of the original Anchor Steam as well, but they did have four six packs of Anchor Porter. Well, now three since I bought one. Not exactly what I was looking for, but a decent consolation prize. I’ll check Trader Joe’s tomorrow but I suspect it will be the same.
The article linked above outlines many management mistakes, but I’ve been wondering how much of the problem was due to changing tastes. There is a just ton of variety in both brands and styles at my local liquor store – lots of beer with added flavors, lots of non-beers, tons of IPAs. It’s got to be impossible to get shelf space and if the brewery isn’t sized for the reduced sales, then it’s inevitable.
It occurs to me that the craft/micro beer revolution happened nationwide ~30 years ago. The hip beers of our time are now relegated to the ‘boring Dad beer’ category.
Around here, at least, there’s also now a lot of local breweries; a recent phenomenon, but it caught on fast once it got started.
Stocked coolers in a liquor store in college in the early 80s. We had one of the better selections of crafts/imports - maybe 20 or so. Back then, I was aware Anchor had a special place and history (tho I preferred Cooper’s).
Boy, that rebrand is horrific!
(Been sober nearly 20 years now.)
Maybe this one?
Changing tastes certainly have an impact, but that wasn’t Anchor’s problem. It’s the problem a lot of regional breweries are facing: not big enough to weather the storm and diversify, but too big to be nimble, and most importantly too much debt to service. The big ones and the true micros are doing ok.
Infante believes that the best place to be in beer currently is a smaller brewery where you can make 70 to 80 percent of your revenue from taproom sales or “on-site carry-away sales.” If you can make a living doing that for you and your three employees, “do that all fucking day long,” he says. “Don’t get any bigger. Ever.”
Not being very familiar with the brand (I don’t think I’ve ever had one), I actually like the redesigned logo. I prefer simplicity and clean lines in my logos. The old one is very busy.
The last time I had an Anchor Steam was at our recent San Francisco dopefest. I hadn’t had one for years before that, I haven’t seen it in the stores (that I routinely go to) for quite a while now. It’s a shame, it’s good beer.
Like everybody else, Anchor was my first exposure to “good” beer. Also like everybody else, I haven’t had one in years. If I had ever seen the redesigned label in the wild, I would have refused to buy any on the basis of the crappy design alone.
I’m going to miss it, but only as a fond memory. Too many better beers being produced semi-locally for me to feel their loss. I say semi-locally because the 2 breweries in my town both suck. One just plain doesn’t know how to brew decent beer and the other is a hang-out for MAGAts and their ilk. So I am forced to drive 10 miles to the neighboring town, which has 3 excellent brewery/taprooms.
The old one is very 1880s owner-knows-best. The new one is very 1990s graphic-designer/focus group-knows-best.
I know which era I associate with “real” beer and “real” labeling.
Despite being a wee bit too young to have experienced the 1880s first hand.
No shit?!? I am going to look tomorrow. I haven’t had an Anchor Porter since the 1980’s and that is well past due!
The Anchor Porter was freaking great (at the time and may have stood the taste of time), and Fritz Maytag invented what is American Porter. He didn’t like the English version and therefore made the American. Sierra Nevada quickly followed suit.
IIRC, I much prefered the Anchor Porter and the Sierra Nevada Stout. Sheesh have choices changed since the early 1980’s, and for the better!
Hey @snowthx, it’s back in stock at Total Wine! There’s a big stack of 12 packs at the end of the aisle, and some 6 packs on the shelf. I overheard the cashier say they had placed a big final order.
The Union that represents Anchor employees is attempting to buy the brewery and turn it into an employee owned co-op: