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Many bars have seen slower traffic since the recession reduced manufacturing jobs in places such as Milwaukee, Wis., according to industry analysts.
MILWAUKEE — A tattooed man with a goatee shakes five dice in a black cup, slams it down on the bar and watches as they come to rest among half-full beer bottles and empty shot glasses.
"Nothin," he says in disgust as he quickly slaps down a $20 bill to buy another round of drinks, in a U.S. ritual of beer drinking after work that is undergoing a gradual decline.
"I used to get the third-shift Allen Bradley guys in the morning, but they have cut and cut jobs," said Terry Zadra, owner of the 177-year-old Zad's Roadhouse on the south side of Milwaukee.
The bar is just blocks from an industrial plant owned by Rockwell Automation, which bought Allen Bradley, a factory equipment company, in 1985.
One result of the 2008-2009 recession that reduced manufacturing jobs in places such as Milwaukee has been slower traffic at some bars, and sluggish beer sales nationwide over the past four years, according to industry analysts.
"Contrary to the myth that people go out and drown their sorrows, the truth is that beer drinkers are pretty responsible people and when they have to cut back, they're cutting back on their pleasures," said Chris Thorne, vice president of communications at the Beer Institute, a Washington-based trade group.
According to the institute, beer drinkers last year in the United States drank 203.4 million barrels, about 5 percent less than in 2008.
More concern about healthy living, stiffer drunk-driving laws and measures that ban smoking in places such as taverns have hit beer sales during the last couple of decades in Milwaukee and throughout the country.
"There has been a definite shift from the on-premise to the off-premise consumption," said Pete Madland, executive director of the Tavern League of Wisconsin. "The smoker, for instance, is going to the liquor store, buying a 12-pack of beer and going home."
Over the past few decades, it has become much less acceptable in the business community to have a drink during lunch or tip a few after work with colleagues.
"Society looks at that person that has a glass of beer with his burger like he has a drinking problem," Madland said.
A glimmer of hope for the industry is the high-end craft beer segment, which has seen sales increase by 14 percent during the first half of 2012 compared with the same period last year, according to the Beer Institute.
These regional and local brews are more expensive and tend to be more recession-proof than mass-consumption brands like Miller Lite and Bud Light.
"Those occupations that weathered the storm of the Great Recession and then a very weak recovery ... they were always able to afford a high-end beer," Thorne said. "We would still like to see that American pilsner part of the brewing market get back its share."
Despite the cultural and economic pressures, beer remains synonymous with Milwaukee, where brewers such as Fred Miller, Joseph Schlitz, Val Blatz and Frederick Pabst built their empires more than a century ago.
Even after heavy manufacturing of farm equipment, marine diesels and cranes became the dominant force in Milwaukee's economy, MillerCoors remains an institution, brewing about 10 million barrels of beer each year on the city's west side.
The love affair the city has for beer remains strong, evident in its Major League baseball team — the Milwaukee Brewers — paying homage to the city's beer makers while playing in Miller Park, sponsored by MillerCoors.
While beer consumption nationwide may be down, in Wisconsin it has increased a bit. In the first eight months of 2012, about 2 percent more beer was sold than the same period of 2011, the state revenue department said.
Milwaukee also remains a blue-collar town with a fair number of neighborhood taverns such as Zad's Roadhouse still serving a shot and a beer to the working class from early morning until late into the night, according to Milwaukee historian John Gurda.
"The scene is far from gone. I'm talking about saloons and bars being the communal living rooms of Milwaukee, and in many neighborhoods, that's still very much the case," Gurda said.
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The American pilsner i.e. Bud Miller Coors is losing market share because people are realizing that it really is not good beer. You can literally go any place that sells craft beer, swing a dead cat around and hit something better.
I agree, not real beer, but I still like an ice cold Coors Light on a hot summer day. It goes down like water (which it pretty much tastes like, I guess.)
I think that this is just indicative of a disturbing trend in that people are just no socializing face to face the way they used to. Instead of getting together with friends to catch up and socialize over a beer or two people are going home and posting the details of their lives on line on their Facebook pages. In general, we are losing personal contact with each other more and more. Part of this is the fact that more people are working from home, so they do not have the personal contact in the office to build those friendships. There has also been a general shift towards using text messages and Facebook instead of calling someone or getting together in person. We need to start getting back to the idea of getting together with friends over a beer or two and put the personal element back into our society. The current shift has resulted in a loss of social skills among people and this is part of what has caused this drop in personal interactions and the old ritual of getting together after work with your coworkers for a beer.
The real reason has nothing to do with whether the beer is "good" or not. It's the cost of drinking in a bar AND the chance of getting pulled over by the law on the way home.
There is no more after work beer drinking for me, which I thoroughly enjoyed all of my life, because there is no more after work. I still enjoy beer with friends on bike rides and with my sometimes burger for lunch.
M Var you said it craft beer is so much better than the regular non taste beer. I find myself drinking less and enjoying it more with them. I'm happy to see them catch on and craft breweries growing everywhere. It is always my first choice in a bar.
Society sets such a double standard when it comes to drinking. Especially at bars.
Hurr hurr hurr don't drink and drive kids. Unless you're driving home from the bar and just drive really carefully so you don't get caught breaking the law.
sr71 is right. Cost and risk are the issues. No one has money and you can't safely have a couple and drive home anymore anyway. That doesn't sound right... You can certainly drive safely after a couple, but with the legal limits, the push for enforcement of them, and the harsh penalties associated, it just isn't worth the risk. Taking an alcohol based cough suppressant is enough to get you a DUI in today's America (thanks ladies), and most police are scum which definitely does not help.
@ M Var: Quite true. When I drink beer, I want to taste it. I don't want it to be an alcoholic version of the watered down juices they served at summer camp when I was a kid. There are some absolutely fantastic beers around America, and Bud, Coors, Michelob, don't fall under those categories.
The even larger problem is, bar variety. Sure, I love Guinness, and many bars do serve it. But, I shouldn't have to seek financial aid just to get a couple of one of the most populous stouts in the world. I'd much rather take that money, go to Winooski Beverage (Winooski, Vermont), and pick and choose from among hundreds of options.
I'm also a smoker, and I refuse to pay to go to a business, that was literally dreamed up by someone with a cigarette in their mouth. Not sure about anywhere else, but in Vermont, the State Legislators decided to take a stand for the 'waitstaff'. It wasn't the waitstaff who complained. I'm pretty sure they realized going into it, that applying for a job in the bar would likely subject you to cigarette smoke, go figure.
There's a much greater selection at the Beverage outlet, it's cheaper on a whole, and I have much greater freedom at my home or a friends house, than I do at a bar. Plus, we get to pick and choose the individuals who attend...no rowdy morons, or idiot college kids to ruin our nights. And no music that makes you want to jam an ice pick in your ear, either.
Bars have no chance.
This is true, it used to be all Americans knew, like folgers coffee. Now no one really drinks that crap. I still like a good Bud high test on a hot summer day though. It's easy drinking but I do love the craft beers too.
Hmmm. What could be the cause.... Maybe because the 99%ers are being worked like machines, too tired to socialize with work buddies after work, and then there's that increase of crazy a-holes or lazy drugging millenials that you want nothing to do with before, during, or after work. Maybe THAT'S the reason.
Beer drinking tanked when Obama tried to quell a dispute over a cold beer.
Thank Bejesus that the drinking beer tradition is on the decline. I'm tired of paying for those slobs health care after they've drank themselves in to a hospital.
Serves you right!
simple fact; people do not have any disposal income left; the middle class is dead broke, in hock, and wages per inflation are dropping; bring the money home to help feed the wife and kids, she probably works also, even with two incomes there is nothing left at the end of the month; we have destroyed the engine(middle class) that pulled the train.
huh - the main reason I drink less at bars in general is because all my friends (and co-workers) are married with kids. Add in long commutes and everyone has to get home as soon as possible for sport activities, time with the family, house chores, etc.
NO, NO YOU CAN NOT.
JS in SD and Saxon 'hit the nail on the head' about the reason for the decline of drinking.
And a little trivia: The best thirst quencher in the world is nonalcoholic beer.
"When I drink beer, I want to taste it. "
"I'm also a smoker..."
That tree, along with the other trees, is part of the forest.
And everyone else is right too, but they gave the most important reasons.
If we had ever embraced the concept of the neighborhood bar like most of Europe then I bet beer sales would not be on the decline.
I have to say post #1.3 seems like the most likely reason.
CaptainHeartMan you deserve national health care.
"After-work beer tradition on the decline"
That's because the bartender ladies at the beer holes are getting uglier...
@ Cheetah: Yes, I'm firmly aware that in culinary schools most professors/chefs discourage smoking as it effects your palate's ability to finely discern flavoring. However, I've got no problems identifying numerous flavors and notes in countless types of beer, liquor, wine and yes, even food. Amusingly enough, some of the best Chef's I've known were smokers, and more than capable of cooking circles around non-smokers. So, while you may have a point, it isn't the end all be all of the discussion.
That and the fact that I actually pay good money (10-17/6 pack, and sometimes 14/4pk) to buy good beer, instead of piss-water like Budweiser and it's equally uninspired cousins, should at least tell you I have a sense of taste. And if it doesn't, who cares, you're simply making assumptions, anyway.
You would get to know your neighbors! You could have a few and walk home. Stupid zoning laws and sprawling suburbs kind of ruin that idea, but I like it.
M Var, while I like craft beers, the alcohol content is too high for after work beers. I like to socialize for an hour or so, not get soused. My friend owns a brew pub, but I wont go anymore because 2or 3 leaves me a little over the limit in a short amount of time.
Call me what you will.
I spent two decades in the bar and restaurant business and can cook like no tomorrow. I think I have a pretty well developed palette and quit smoking ten years ago.
I like some of the micro brews maybe one or two with a good steak sometimes but when it comes time to sit around the barbeque and bull@!$%# with friends and family, I think my favorite will always be plain old Budweiser.
Just stout enough that it doesn't taste like water but smooth enough to drink what is probably a little too many of 'em. Ohh yeah!
Those that have jobs are being asked to work tons of overtime and have no time to drink.
Those that don't have jobs cannot afford to drink.
.
I know of exactly zero of my co-workers who go out together, let alone for a beer, after work. People lead their own lives now, and seriously, if you have kids, you can bet it is a giant PITA to get out these days. That's aside from having a job to pay for a beer.
Maybe people will care enough to be social face to face again. I doubt it. Look here on Newsvine for further reasons why not...
No, no, no. you don't have to go to the bar anymore to get a beer after work! Just stop by the local convenience store and grab a couple of tall-boy singles out of the ice chest. They fit right in your console and you can get hammered on your way home.
Happens here all the time.
Beer drinkers are some of the most responsible people indeed.
It's the "during" work beer break I will miss.
You must play for the Red Sox.
The local bar here is $7.50 for a Sam Adams. I can get a 12 pack for $15 including deposit. 600% markup just for atmosphere?
Agreed. The bar mark-ups are so high that I could buy a 6-pack for the cost of one beer. Why would I do that, and especially on more that one? The bar atmosphere only goes so far when money is tight.
Exactly - the price of beer at most neighborhood bars is what keeps people from continuing that tradition.
I can remember when a six-pack was $1.50.
And a bottle of beer at the bar was 45c.
.
I remember $1.00 pitchers of Stag. Bars have got to making serious money if they can sell beer at 3 bucks a bottle.
Its back to the after work DRINK that they ram down your throat on so many TV programs and commercials.
Not sure what you mean. If anything, product placement of all alcohol, and tobacco also, has all but disappeared from T.V. and film.
If you think your television is capable of ramming anything down your throat, then I think you have larger problems.
No one forces you to watch a particular television program or the commercials. My family has not had cable or satellite for over five years.
Mmmmmmm Beer.
I would surmise that the person who has a burger with his beer has an eating problem.
LOL WilliamOfRites: Becoming such a nanny-state in the US now that God-forbid a person should have something they like, tradition, etc... I have a beer with a fully-loaded burger and no one looks sideways at me. Maybe it depends on where you eat it :) LOL
So I got to the bar after work, have two beers and then Johny law throws me in jail for a DUI. Not worth it.
light weight....lol
And Jonny Law is parked just a few parking lots down from the bar where you leave. He's watching, and you have no defense.
The real reason the industry is undergoing a gradual decline is because there is a steady increase of people that work at home. Why go out and have a drink after work when you can have one while you are working!!
Or the IT industry where you are allowed to drink during working hours.
Manufacturing and the jobs are now in China. The Chinese are now drinking after work. I thank both Democrats and Republicans for selling out our country to the Global elite agenda 21 gang.
$7.00 for a beer and $15 for a burger and fries is why people aren't going to Ye Ole Watering Hole after work. For $30 plus tip, I can buy a 12 pack...fire up the George Foreman...and watch TV on my 60 in HDTV for far less money.
That is a real down side. I hate paying a $100.00 bill for drinks and appetizers at happy hour with my wife when we join some friends. I always think what else I could have done with that 100 dollars.
Maybe it's declining because Folks have found a better way A Fat Bud of Chronic, Then you can TRULY say "This BUDS for Me"
"Society looks at that person that has a glass of beer with his burger like he has a drinking problem," Madland said.
Its because the liquor industry has been pushing cocktails and vodka for years...imagine clubbing when everyone's drinking martinis and you sit down with a Bud lite?
As far as whether beer is acceptable when clubbing, it depends upon what part of the country that you are in. Generallly, the west coast just does not have a true appreciation of beer.
I don't always drink beer but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis. Stay thirsty my friends.
Gotta love Milwaukee! Its the home of many great craft beers, as well as the macrobrews.
"After-work beer tradition on the decline"...but!
Before work beer drinking is on the increase...since most have to kiss their bosses butt everyday.
Whatever happened to the quarter for a bottle of beer and the fifty cent shot.
The 1940s ended...
The 1840's ended...
Maybe this shows the true number of unemployed Americans.
Society is retarded...
In Europe you drink with every meal and nobody has a problem with it
They are also a happier gang, more on the 'up and up'.
9 year old Timmy especially likes his warm stout!
People still go out, but you have to be careful not to get a DUI. People also don't work in the same buildings, state, etc. There is telecommuting, which really hurts the social aspect of a work team. Virtual beers?
I would love to have a virtual beer with my work team, as soon as they come to see me as part of the team and not their object.
The rising cost of beer drinking and the shrinking economy does not seem to me to be the pressing issue that the RISING COST OF FOOD eating and the shrinking economy does. Beer drinkers are resonsible people? Nice try at introducing a positive stereotype but it ain't gonna work. How about a story on the rising cost of food and the decrease in food stamp allotments to the desperately poor?
Any given beer drinker is just as responsible a person as any given non-alcohol drinker. As for the rest of your post, I completely agree with you. Except for the prejudiced implication that it would be wrong for the desperately poor to occasionally enjoy a beer.
After work beer less popular?
That's because fewer people have a job!
I agree, people are just now waking up to the fact that their hours will be cut, less take home pay, and will have to work two jobs, to provide for their families, as Oboma Care hits employers! Not to mention the increased taxes that will be levied on all workers to support the Democratic ways! Thanks Democrats! {:-(}
Way to go way off subject.
The sore losers are out in force today...must've sobered up enough to type.