Random Notes from the Beer World

Sleeman Bids Expected: Canada's third largest brewer, Sleeman Breweries, will likely soon cease to exist. Molson Coors Brewing Co. and Labatt Brewing Co. Ltd., the two largest Canadian brewers, along with Royal Grolsch NV of the Netherlands and Sapporo Breweries Ltd. of Japan are expected to make formal bids for the Guelph, Ontario-based company. Sleeman, which has 7 percent of the Canadian beer market, announced in the Spring it was conducting a strategic review that might include the sale of the company. Molson Coors holds 42 percent of the Canadian market, with Labatt, which is part of InBev SA, holding 41.5 percent. If either are successful in bidding for Sleeman it would further consolidate the Canadian beer market.

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Great British Beer Festival: The 2006 edition of the Great British Beer Festival opens tomorrow in London. Hailed as the "World's Largest Pub," the festival has moved to Earls Court this year. A parade of horse drawn brewery wagons, antique steam carts and vintage trucks is being held in London to mark the festival. Last year 47,000 people visited the GBBF.

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New York Rolls Back a Blue Law: It will be easier to get a six pack of beer in New York for a Sunday barbecue. On July 30th it became legal for retailers to sell beer before noon on a Sunday. Now consumers can buy beer starting at 8 a.m. New York passed a law several years ago to allow liquor stores to open on Sundays.

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Oregon Festival Sets Record: Organizers of the just completed Oregon Brewers Festival estimate that a record 55,000 people attended this year's outdoor event. Saturday is said to have been the biggest in the 19-year history of the Portland celebration.

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Arctic Brewery: Greenland Brewhouse, located in the southern Greenland hamlet of Narsaq, is up and running. It is the first commercial brewery in Greenland. Salik Hard, the Greenlander behind the $679,000 brewery that makes a dark and a pale ale, said the brewery uses water from the arctic ice cap so that the beer is pure. The company is shipping its beer to Germany for bottling. It will be sold in several European markets.