View Larger Version >>

Fat Head’s Brewery & Saloon plans to become the first craft brewer in Ohio to can its beer. Fat Head’s, which is opening a production brewery in suburban Cleveland, has purchased a small, used canning line from Upslope Brewing Co. in Boulder, Colo. The initial plan is to can its Belgian-style beers and possibly some others, brewer and co-owner Matt Cole said. (Fat Head’s will still bottle, too.) “I think canning is pretty hot right now and I’ve been impressed with the quality of beer I’ve been tasting in cans,” he said. Cole admitted he — like many other craft beer fans — has been skeptical about cans. But he noted that canned beer has won medals at the Great American Beer Festival, and that many well-respected breweries, including Sierra Nevada and New Belgium, are either already canning or have announced plans to start. Not to mention the other benefits. For example, cans protect beer better from light and shipping costs are less. Cole said he’s interested to find out how the Ohio market receives craft beer in a can. While it’s commonplace on the West Coast and in Colorado, craft beer cans are still an emerging trend here. “As long as the quality of the beer is great, people aren’t going to care what kind of container it’s in,” Cole said. He’s still deciding what size can. But Fat Head’s, which also has a brewpub in North Olmsted, may sell four-packs of 12-ounce cans, he said. Meanwhile, work is progressing at the new production brewery. Fat Head’s is still about three weeks out from firing up the brewhouse, Cole said. You can follow the progress at the Fat Head’s Brewer’s Blog by clicking here.