BITTERNESS OVER BEER PLAN

Riders and brewers shed light on why craft beer is out at stadium

The Facebook comments varied. Some called it a travesty and mused about the idea of a boycott.

Others suggested craft beer lovers “get over it.” And a few were more concerned with the discontinuation of the vodka infused pink lemonade drink than anything else after the announcement earlier this week that no craft beer will be sold at Mosaic Stadium in 2017.

It has been made clear by all parties involved that several options were offered during months of discussions, and none could be agreed upon. But like a dark ale, exact details of those offers are murky.

According to Kari Stenson, president of the Saskatchewan Craft Brewers Association and co-owner of Black Bridge Brewery in Swift Current, the latest offers did not include the opportunity to sell craft beer in the stadium during Rider games.

“For the SCBA membership, not having the product available during the Rider games inside the stadium was why we didn’t agree to the proposal,” Stenson said Friday.

Gregg Sauter, vice-president of business development and marketing for the Saskatchewan Roughriders Football Club, said while he can’t discuss details of the offers, somewhere along the way the SCBA was offered a chance to sell in the stadium during games.

He said other offers included the opportunity to sell in Confederation Park, which would have allowed the club more space and flexibility.

“We’ve tried to carve out a little piece for the local craft folks, and they didn’t seem to want to take advantage of that,” said Sauter.

Discussions with the SCBA were led by Kent Paul, the football club’s chief financial officer. Requests to speak with Paul directly were declined.

Sauter said the exclusive pouring rights deal with Molson was negotiated with the Molson group and brand teams out of Toronto. He said Steve Mazurak, vice-president of sales and partnerships for the football club, pulled himself out of conversations with Molson in order to avoid speculation over a conflict of interest because his son works for the beer company.

“This kind of discussion is certainly something we just didn’t want to go down, and it just made it really easy for Steve to just step aside on that,” said Sauter.

Sauter said the Riders have a 20-year history with Molson, and he emphasized that the stadium would not have been possible without corporate sponsorship.

“They help us out with events and training camp, and they help us out on away game parties across the country. They’re a really good partner and we have a lot of loyalty to them and them to us,” said Sauter.

He said the club is very happy with its partnership with Molson and the variety of drinks it offers, including Granville Island, Dos Equis, Coors Light, Pilsner, ciders and more. Sauter said from what the club has heard, the public supports the offer to have craft beer in the stadium, but are quite content with the status quo.

Sauter said it would have been nice to have a craft beer presence in the stadium to “maybe get several hundred people to have a beer, one of the craft brews that they’ve never had before.” But he added that a mass market for craft beer is not in the cards while an exclusive deal with Molson exists. He said it’s not realistic to think the stadium could accommodate the 13 different craft breweries which are members of the SCBA.

“We applaud the entrepreneurial spirit of the craft brewers, but it’s also probably less than one per cent of the market right now,” Sauter. “Maybe that will change one day, but right now it’s very niche.”

He also speculated that pleasing 13 different members of an association is challenging and may have been the reason the SCBA couldn’t settle on an agreement. Stenson declined further comment on the discussions.

Sauter said the arrangement the stadium has with Molson and other corporate sponsors is standard in similar facilities across the country and that the club has done more than others to try and make space for craft beer.

“We’re a little frustrated that our giving back doesn’t seem to be enough,” said Sauter. But he said the door is always open for further discussion.