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THE NEXT DRAFT
Craft beer is on road to recovery in 2022
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Matthew Tota
Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK
Reviewing the latest Brewers Association production report, I found myself glossing over data showing the craft beer industry trending toward pre-pandemic growth, ruminating on the thought that one of the 50 largest craft breweries in the country has never made an alcoholic beer.
Athletic Brewing Co., a trailblazer in the world of non-alcoholic beer, jumped to 27th on the BA’s list of the 50 biggest craft breweries in the nation. It’s not a surprising development if you’ve been following Athletic’s ballooning production numbers and possibly every story in recent months on the popularity of NA brews. Since brewing about 7,500 barrels in 2019, the Connecticut brewery has swelled, brewing 37,500 barrels in 2020 and surging to over 100,000 last year.
I’m not shocked by Athletic’s rise and won’t be when it soon cracks the top 10, which, at its current pace, feels inevitable. Other breweries will certainly take notice, and we’ll begin to see more and varied NA beers flood the market.
Speaking last week about the BA’s report, its chief economist, Bart Watson, said such explosive growth is rare these days.
“One thing that certainly makes this a little more impressive is this is a more mature craft industry. Those type of eye-popping numbers are certainly less common today than they were four or five years ago where you regularly get a couple breweries on the list who had grown at tremendous rates,” he said.
Behind Athletic’s ascension, the biggest news from the BA’s reportwas craft beer’s rebound in 2021: Craft grew 8% last year, increasing its overall market share by volume to 13.1% and nearly erasing 2020’s 9% decline. This year, the BA expects the industry to climb back to pre-pandemic numbers thanks to the returning strength of brewery, restaurant, taproom and bar sales, otherwise known as “on-premise.”
“If we continue to see recovery in that channel shift, especially through the summer, which is a big beer-selling time of year for craft brewers, I think we’ll get back to those 2019 levels in 2022,” Watson said.
Small and independent breweries racked up $26.8 billion in retail sales, according to the BA, accounting for about 27% of the nation’s $100 billion beer market. And the number of craft breweries in the country grew to 9,118, up from 8,905 in 2020.
This will be a two-part column on the BA’s annual data dump, as I expect to have its state-by-state data in the next few weeks. For now, we know that six New England breweries cracked the top-50 last year: Allagash Brewing Co. in Maine, Athletic, Boston Beer Co., Harpoon Brewery, Vermont’s Fiddlehead Brewing and Narragansett Brewing Co. in Rhode Island.
The one wrinkle in the BA’s forecast for 2022 was that brewery closings appear to be trending up and could finish higher than last year, which saw 178 closings compared to 646 new brewery openings. A variety of factors are to blame, Watson said, from expiring leases to difficulty securing COVID-19 relief funds. But one of the main causes is some brewers are having a harder time recovering from the pandemic than others.
“Even with a bounce back year, many breweries are still struggling with the effects of the pandemic, and so 2022 could be a make-or-break year,” Watson said.
Athletic Brewing Co., of Stratford, Conn., which offers an entire line of non-alcoholic beers, jumped to 27th on the BA’s list of the 50 biggest craft breweries in the nation. ATHLETIC BREWING CO.
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Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler, left) lunches with some Hogwarts students in “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.” WARNER BROS. PICTURES
Mikkelsen brings Voldemort vibes to improved ‘Fantastic Beasts’ threequel
Brian Truitt
USA TODAY
Mads Mikkelsen’s the worst thing to happen to J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world since that snaky varmint Voldemort.
Replacing Johnny Depp after his various controversies, Mikkelsen’s a deliciously sinister delight as dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.” The third installment of director David Yates’ “Harry Potter” period prequel series still is overstuffed with characters and subplots, yet polishes a few missteps from previous films. There’s a renewed emphasis on magical creatures and another decidedly political bent to the franchise as it digs into dark themes and offers a bewitching goofy side.
Set in the 1930s, the new film continues the narrative that Grindelwald’s ready to go to war to eradicate the world’s Muggle (non-magical) population. He foments hatred among his followers and enacts a grand plan that will place him in control of the entire wizarding community through electoral means.
His former lover, Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) can’t move against Grindelwald because of a blood oath between them. So he enlists the “Beasts” films’ primary antagonist, lovably awkward magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), to round up a “Dirty Dozen”-style crew of operatives for a counterintelligence mission to stymie the villain until they can strike back.
Along for the ride are Newt’s human baker pal Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), brother Theseus Scamander (Callum Turner) and a new character, Lally (Jessica Williams), a Charms professor at the American counterpart to Hogwarts.
In the previous 2018 outing, “The Crimes of Grindelwald,” Newt took a back seat to young Dumbledore and a host of other characters. “Secrets” puts him back at center stage, in his natural habitat of looking for cool animals and being an all-around likable sort. There’s a daring rescue in which Redmayne does a wacky hip-swiveling dance with a bunch of baby scorpion things that’s so preposterous and silly it’s endearing.
Newt’s critters have key roles: His little stick bud Pickett is as whimsical as ever and the new deer/dragon hybrid Qilin (pronounced “chillin”) is one of the more significant characters in the sprawling story. These computer-generated imaging creatures are astonishingly realized, more so than many of the whizbang, wand-waving magical battles.
Law brings a mercurial side to Dumbledore that’s more in line with the version of the “Potter” films. Williams’ Lally is an enchanting new presence, while Jacob continues to be the comedic heart of this movie series: Kowalski’s goodhearted everyman aims to rescue his mindreading love Queenie (Alison Sudol) –now a member of Grindelwald’s entourage – but finds time to have an enjoyable back-and-forth while lunching with some Hogwarts kids.
Over on the dark side, Mikkelsen provides the Voldemort-level evil personality the “Beasts” movies have been lacking. While Depp’s take – essentially playing Grindelwald as a wild-haired freaky cult leader – was fine, Mikkelsen’s feels more dangerous, as he wields a public charm as a crowd-pleasing, manipulative man of the people while hiding his inherent ruthless cruelty. (The allusions to real-life political figures are not subtle, nor is using 1930s Germany as a locale for a genocidal would-be leader’s shenanigans.)
Reveals about Grindelwald and Dumbledore’s relationship are interesting, although the subplot involving them and Credence (Ezra Miller), the powerful youngster revealed as a Dumbledore at the end of the previous film, seems superfluous.
“Secrets” does a decent job streamlining the busy storytelling in the third of a planned five-movie series that, to be honest, doesn’t have the clearest overarching narrative. And with a surprisingly good climax to go along with Mikkelsen totally understanding his assignment, this “Beasts” is never a burden to watch.
Rating: PG-13 Star rating: eee out of four
