Venezuela craft brewers rare bright spot in crisis economy
CARACAS: With Venezuela’s economic crisis leaving consumers struggling to buy basic staple foods, small Caracas brewery Social Club might seem out of place selling craft beer that costs per bottle what a worker earning the minimum wage makes in two days. But business is booming. Demand for Social Club’s beer regularly outstrips the 3,000 litres (793 gallons) it produces a month, according to its owners.
Most of it is sold on weekends at a beer garden set up in the garage of its small production facility.
Brewers like Social Club are a reminder that despite the widespread social misery caused by the country’s economic crisis, an appetite remains among well-heeled Venezuelans for high- end niche products like craft beer.
At the same time, these small brewers are carving out a market in preparation for an eventual economic rebound.
“Venezuelans continue to be vain creatures who like to be in the vanguard, who like to keep up with what’s in fashion,” said Victor Querales, 32, one of Social Club’s owners, speaking on a Friday afternoon before clients began arriving.
“There’s still a premium market that isn’t very sensitive to prices.” The country now has around 30 craft brewers with commercial operations that supply high- end liquor stores and restaurants or deliver made-to- order brews for parties or weddings, according to the Craft Beer Association of Venezuela.
Craft brew still represents less than 1 percent of the market, which remains dominated by domestic brewing giant Polar and its smaller rival Regional.
But the last five years has seen the emergence of start-ups such as Norte del Sur and Pisse Des Gottes, both of which have won medals in international brewing contests. — Reuters