GABF Coverage: Oskar Blues Unveils New 19.2 Oz. Can

Colorado’s Oskar Blues is innovating once again.

Oskar Blues — the first U.S. craft brewer to begin canning its beer – unveiled a new, slightly larger can on Thursday night following the first Great American Beer Festival sampling session.

The new 19.2 oz. package is dubbed the ‘royal pint’ by Ball Corporation, which manufactured the can and has suppliedOskar Blues with other innovative packages, including a 16-oz. resealable Alumi-Tek bottle for its Chaka collaboration beer. According to Oskar Blues spokesman Chad Melis, the new can provides a new sampling opportunity for Oskar Blues and also helps to keep the company at the forefront of the “innovation” discussion.

“We are trying to push the boundaries of what people expect from a can,” he said. “As more breweries continue to introduce different offerings, we must continue to be creative and innovative on the packaging side just to remain relevant.”

Melis said the new can will open the door for single-serve selling opportunities in both the liquor and convenience store channels.

“We are continuing to put the can in places where it wasn’t before,” said Melis. “The single-serve grab is not a huge commitment and it creates a sampling opportunity in those single-serve doors that didn’t previously exist.”

The new cans will initially be launched in Colorado, Ohio and Kentucky before being rolled out across the company’s entire distribution footprint in the first quarter of 2013. The suggested retail price will range between $2.99 and $3.29.

The company currently packages Dale’s Pale Ale in 12 oz. six-packs and 12-packs, and Melis said he doesn’t expect the new offering to cannibalize existing sales.