No Skunks Allowed

Microbrewers know there’s no contest between aluminum and glass when it comes to fresh-tasting beer.
-By Betsy Andrews

A straight-from-the-cooler PBR hits the spot on a 90-degree day; it’s wet, cold, and has so little flavor that the taste doesn’t get in the way of quenching your thirst. But canned beer has moved beyond lawn-mower lager.

A decade ago, only big players like Bud could afford to can beer. Now, with the growth of micro-canning systems, even craft-beer makers—the guys brewing good stuff in small batches—can get into the game. In 2002, Colorado’s Oskar Blues became the first microbrewery in the United States to can its own ale. Today, it has grown from a 700-barrel-a-year brewpub to a 35,000-barrel A-lister, and American craft brewers are canning everything from Hefeweizen to stout.

Consider Oskar Blues’ Dale’s Pale Ale: Imagine the jolt its spicy hops and deep European malt taste could deliver to your dulled senses on a hot day. It might even revive you enough to go another row on the lawn mower. Here are seven smart reasons why you should get with the can:

1. COLDER BEER
Dreaming of an icy quaff? Metal cools faster than glass, so if you need it cold in a hurry, go for cans.

2. FRESHER BEER
Light is beer’s worst enemy. Hops, the flowers responsible for beer’s bracing aroma and bitterness, contain acids that break down in either sunlight or fluorescent light and turn beer “skunky.” Brown or green glass helps protect beer from sunlight, but metal does an even better job. It’s pitch black inside a can, where no skunks lurk.

Oxygen is beer enemy No. 2. Unlike bottles, which retain air in their necks, cans can be filled right to the brim. This means less oxidation, so your beer stays fresher longer, and pours with a nice, foamy head.

You counter with: What good is head when the stuff you’re swallowing tastes like metal? Today’s cans are polymer-lined, so the brew never touches the aluminum. Your beer will taste fresh-tapped, especially if you pour it before drinking.

3. BEER WHERE YOU WANT IT
Cans are lighter and more compact than bottles, and they’re easier to carry. Plus, their pull-tab openers are built in. You can shove a six-pack in your backpack and hit the links or the boat dock without a church key.

4. SAFER SIPPING
Why are cans allowed at the Indy 500 and glass bottles are not? Ask any frat boy. Or, as Oskar Blues brewer Dale Katechis says, “Ever try to crush a bottle against your forehead?”

5. GREENER PACKAGING
What’s not to like about something that uses less resources to transport, and is more recyclable than glass?

6. BETTER LOOKS
Thirsty Beaver? Santa’s Butt? Whether they’re snazzy, snarky, or downright dirty, beer labels on cans can be wildly creative. Cans offer 360-degree displays, and craft brewers are taking their can art to the max. Will you look cool tipping a blazing can of Sly Fox Phoenix Pale Ale? You bet!

7. VARIETY
Although availability varies by state, as with most microbrews, there’s a canned craft beer out there to suit everyone’s taste.