Beer Can – easily chilled, spontaneously outdoorsy mini kegs

In the first stages of production, we ran up against the convention that all good beer comes in bottles. Which, as it turns out, is blatantly untrue. Bottles certainly have a better publicist, but cans are more than up to the task of protecting your beer on its journey from brewery to your mouth. Here’s what influenced our decision making process.

THE ENVIRONMENT

The environment is one of our most important concerns, so we consider all factors when choosing how to sell our beer. Over 90% of the beer cans filled in North America are made in north America. This is not true of glass bottles. Glass is heavier than cans, requiring more material to make and more energy to transport. Aluminium cans are lighter than glass bottles, made of less material, and already contain post consumer waste recycled material. They cause fewer transport-related emissions. For the environmentally conscious, cans are the way to go.

THE TASTE

Beer tastes better in a can. This is an inflammatory statement for those staunch defenders of the beer bottle, but the science behind it is sound. Beer has two major enemies: light and oxygen (and that cousin of yours who only drinks vodka and water). These enemies do two different things to the flavour of beer: lightstruck beer takes on a skunky profile and oxidized beer often tastes metallic.

LIGHT AND OXYGEN

If you’ve ever popped open a bottle of beer and encountered a skunky odour, that’s because your beer has been exposed to light. The science is a little more involved than this, but the straightforward explanation is that when light interacts with specific molecules found in hops, it provides the energy for that molecule to change into something a little more… odourous. This is why beer typically comes in a brown bottle; the dark bottles allow less light through than clear glass. A can, however, protects your beer perfectly by blocking 100% of the light, and completely eliminates the risk of drinking lightstruck beer.

The second thing that cans protect the beer from is oxygen. You know how your beer tastes different after you’ve left it open overnight? That’s the action of oxygen on your beer. Oxygen introduced at any stage in a beer’s life can affect it negatively, creating taste changes like carboardy or metalic. A can has an airtight seal when capped, so assuming that no oxygen was picked up in the canning process, a can acts like a keg: completely protecting the beer from oxygen.

TEST FOR YOURSELF

Everything that goes into making our beer portable is a result of the two things that Dogwood Brewing is committed to: responsible decisions for sustainability and making the best beer possible. Pick up a six pack at a location near you; we’re sure you’ll agree.