It's been mostly a man's world when it comes to beer.
Women are a big, untapped market for North American beer brewers as they face more competition from wine and spirits and specialty craft brewers, according to a Bank of Montreal report.
"At this juncture, 80 per cent of beer sales are sold to guys," David Rinneard, national manager of agriculture at BMO, said Wednesday from Toronto.
What women want is lowcalorie, lighter flavoured beer and beer-based beverages, Rinneard said.
Brewers will appeal to female sensibilities with such niche products along with commercials and marketing targeted at women, he said.
"They're making a diligent effort and attempt to go after that new market," Rinneard said.
Calories are "unquestionably" a factor in getting women to drink more beer, Rinneard said, adding that men can also be calorieconscious.
Traditionally, women were not pursued by brewers because they did not need the market with the "prosperous" and defined market of male beer drinkers, Rinneard said.
But beer for women is starting to make inroads. "Chick Beer" is an American craft-brewed beer specifically aimed at women. It boasts just 97 calories, 3.5 carbohydrates per bottle and 4.2 per cent alcohol.
For the calorieconscious, there is Molson Ultra with 2.5 grams of carbohydrates, 97 calories and 4.5 per cent alcohol.
As wine and spirits affect beer consumption and the population ages, brewers have to look for other growth opportunities, Rinneard said.
"In essence, they're competing for a defined or limited amount of stomach space, if you can call it that."
There are also beerbased beverages with tomato juice and other flavours. Budweiser has introduced a Bud Light Lime Mojito, while MolsonCoors is tapping into the market with a Coors Light Iced Tea.
Rinneard noted that, in recent years, "everything from lime to pumpkin" has been added to beer to move away from a traditional core lager offering, and toward a specialized product.
Per capita consumption of beer remains flat in Canada and has fallen in the United States, the bank's study said.
Rinneard said brewers can also appeal to an aging population, which considers itself to have a more "discerning" palate, with niche beer beverages.
Some European brewers have already targeted older beer drinkers, he said.
But there are other challenges ahead for the North American brewing industry, including scorching temperatures this summer that could push up prices.
Prices for barley, wheat and, to a lesser extent, hops have been going up, Rinneard said.
"It's really the drought that is pushing those commodity prices up. When you've got less supply and a static demand, the price goes up."
