Salty Crew Blonde Ale is well on its way to becoming the premier blonde ale in California. The partnership, uniting two iconic San Diego brands, Coronado Brewing and Salty Crew, has blossomed from a small-batch draft collaboration to one of the hottest beer brands in the entire state. In the past year, Salty Crew Blonde has seen an explosion in popularity and has quickly become the leading growth brand among the top 50 SoCal Craft brands in both Dollar Sales1 (+100.9%) and Volume Sales2(+100.4%). With its rapid rise in growth over the previous 52 weeks, Salty Crew Blonde is now the #3 overall Blonde Ale/Golden Ale brand according to scan data in SoCal grocery chains3. In San Diego, Los Angeles, and Orange County markets, the brand is up +67.4%, +141.3%, and +300.4% respectively4.
Representatives from Coronado attribute the rapid growth to a few key factors. First, having an authentic partnership with an established brand that’s exploding in popularity. Salty Crew’s global growth in the action sports, fishing, and outdoor market is a result of their ability to align their product and the simple message “Find Refuge in the Sea”. It truly speaks to those who share that passion. The same product and brand alignment is displayed in the Salty Crew Blonde as it is coined “a boat beer”. A crisp beer that is nostalgic of a long day on the water. The synergies in the partnership between Coronado and Salty Crew have made the collaboration a winning formula.
The second factor catapulting the brand has been its success in the on-premise. Salty Crew Blonde Ale is now Coronado Brewing’s #1 overall draft brand, surpassing the company’s other flagship brands like Weekend Vibes IPA and Orange Ave Wit. The blonde ale now makes up about 32% of overall draft sales for the company, 90% of which are sold in California. Coronado says that it has plans to launch Salty Crew Blonde in 7 more states by the end of 2023 and sees the addition of new package types, including 19.2 oz single serve and 12oz 12-packs, to be major drivers to the brand’s continued growth in distribution and volume.
Another contributing factor to the brand’s early development is its extensive distribution to larger venues and area sponsorships. Local fans of the brand can currently find the beer available at stadiums like Petco Park, Snapdragon Stadium, and Pechanga Arena. Similarly, neighboring markets like Orange County and Arizona can grab the boat beers at venues like Disney’s California Adventure, Bear Mountain Resort, and the Peoria Sports Complex. (For a full list of venues and retailers head to coronadobrewing.com/brew-finder)
