ALTOONA, Pa.—Yesterday, Sheetz announced the release of a limited-edition vanilla cappuccino craft beer dubbed “Project Vanilla Shteam Machine.” The second craft beer brewed in partnership with Evil Genius Beer Company, the beer will go on sale at 4 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 3, and will be available at 58 Sheetz stores across Pennsylvania.
“We are excited to partner once again with Evil Genius Beer Company,” said Ryan Sheetz, vice president of marketing and brand at Sheetz, in a press release. “Our first craft beer collaboration, Project Brewberry Muffinz, sold out in just five days. We anticipate similar customer demand for this limited-edition beer that will only be available while supplies last.”
Brewed with Sheetz’s vanilla cappuccino, this new cream ale has a light vanilla flavor with subtle coffee notes and a delicate hop aroma. Four packs of 16-ounce cans of Project Vanilla Shteam Machine will retail for $7.99. Each store will carry a very limited supply of four-packs while supplies last. The beer will not be restocked once sold out.
“We are proud to be partnering with Sheetz for our second craft beer collaboration,” said Luke Bowen, owner at Evil Genius Beer Company. “Sheetz is an amazing family run and independent business that cares and is supportive of other local companies and breweries in the areas they reside in.”
Sheetz has teamed up with other craft brewers for collaboration craft beers. Kwik Trip, Wawa and The PRIDE stores among others have also gotten in on the craft beer boom as NACS Magazine shared in “Crushing on Craft Brews” in the July 2021 issue.
The percentage of adults who drink craft reached 44% last year, up from 35% in 2015, according to the Brewers Association, the Boulder, Colorado-based trade association for craft brewers.
Data from NACS Convenience Voices indicate that 25 to 34 year-olds make up the largest share (47.5%) of craft beer purchasers in the convenience store channel, followed by 35 to 44 year-olds (31.3%) and consumers 24 and younger (15%). Males account for 62.5% of craft beer purchases. When it comes to beer occasions, nearly 60% of shoppers participating in the NACS Convenience Voices mobile intercepts program said they purchased craft beer to relax either by themselves or with a significant other, and 23.6% said they would share beer to connect with close friends or family.
Register to attend the 2021 NACS Show October 5-8 at McCormick Place in Chicago and take advantage of the education sessions on category management, including the sessions Cold Vault in 2021: Trends and Takeaways and Private Label Trends on October 5, Determining the Perfect Product Mix on October 6 and Top Strategies for Transforming a Fragile Food Supply Chain and What’s New With Cannabis on October 7.