Beer, one of the world’s oldest and most popular beverages, is much like music and fine art. It is subjective. What is appealing to one person may be appalling to another. And as the craft beer revolution in America continues, many craft brewers are utilizing their cans as a canvas for more than just listing what is inside the can, they are also putting some extremely impressive artwork out there. And some that are not so impressive.
Beer labels as we know them today are not a particularly old concept. Prior to the mid-1800’s beer wasn’t bottled in mass. Prior to then, consumers usually used their own containers to collect beer from their local brewery or pub. These were frequently marked with their own personal identifiers. Many used a family coat of arms to signify their own containers. As bottling beer became the norm, many breweries used labels to highlight their brand awareness and as a way to set themselves away from other breweries.
A beer label has a few jobs to do including telling the consumer which brewery produces the beer, what the style of beer is, the alcohol content of the beer, and how many ounces/milliliters of beer are in the vessel. If your beer label is not clearly stating that basic information, it has failed to do its job.
That said, in recent years more and more American craft beer producers have turned to canning their beer instead of bottling it. Canning beer allows for better protection of the product inside by eliminating the opportunity to being exposed to light, as it does in bottles. Cans also allow for less oxygen exposure for the beer. Both ultra-violet light and heat are enemies to beer quality. Cans are also lighter in weight than bottles, allowing for less expensive shipping.
Now, with the increase of cans on the market, these breweries have more of a canvas to work with to showcase their unique graphics and design. Here at Cans as Canvas, we showcase some of the latest brewery submissions. Remember, just like the beer inside the can, and the music you are listening to while you drink that beer, craft beer Can Art is subjective. Check it out!