St. Michael, Albertville Beer Lovers Might Be Busted on MillerCoors

Thanks to the state shutdown, in a matter of days, the Silver Bullet may not be allowed to make any more beer runs to St. Michael-Albertville’s bars, restaurants and liquor stores.

And “tastes great” or “less filling” won’t matter.

According to a report in the Star Tribune, MillerCoors, the company that brews and distributes products like Coors Light, Miller Lite and Blue Moon, failed to properly renew their brand label registration with the state before the shutdown began according to Doug Neville, a spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety which over sees liquor regulation.

At Westside Liquors in Albertville, the news had already spread, and people were stocking up.

“I got an e-mail today about it,” said Jackie Holker of Monticello, who was stopping in Albertville for some Coors Light. “So, yeah, I’m stocking up.”

Another customer with a few cases of Miller High Life Light was taking beer to his truck by the cartload. Another had six cases of Coors Light.

“Saw it in an e-mail, yeah,” he said.

Westside Liquor manager Michelle Bixler said she has been told, as of right now, not to move anything. But, that could change.

“I know our distributor (Dahlheimer Distributing of Monticello) is very unhappy about it. They’re telling us to hold on for right now,” Bixler said.

Dahlheimer, which serves the north and west metro, runs hundreds of trucks each day filled with Miller and Coors products. The company has St. Michael roots, with its original location on what is now St. Michael Parkway, near Walgreens.

Representatives from the distributor were contacted, but did not call back with comments. 

According to the Star Tribune report, a MillerCoors spokesman said they are working with state officials to fix the problem.

“Right now we are exploring all options that are available to us," MillerCoors spokesman Julian Green said in the report. "We are currently in discussions and hoping that we can get a resolution with the state, with the agency that enforces the sale ... of alcohol.

Green acknowledged that Minnesota is one of MillerCoors largest markets in the country.

Green said the company even sent in a new check, which he told the Star Tribune that the state received on June 27. But the company received a letter a few days later saying their brand licenses had expired.

The report also said Anheuser-Busch will face a similar problem if the shutdown extends to October.

Bixler said she’s pretty sure the drawdown of Coors and Miller products won’t hurt business. She said, without a doubt, Michelob Golden Light is her top-seller any way. But Coors Light is probably close to No. 2.

“People will either switch to something else,” she said, “or they’ll stock up now. That’s what we’re seeing so far, is people stocking up.”

The brands affected:

Blue Moon Pale Moon Belgian Style Pale Ale, Coors Banquet, Coors Light, Coors Light 3.2, Foster’s Lager Beer, Foster’s Premium Ale, Grolsch Amber Ale, Grolsch Blonde Lager, Grolsch Light Lager, Grolsch Premium Lager, Hamm’s, Hamm’s Genuine Draft Style, Hamm’s Special Light, Henry Weinhard’s Dark, Henry Weinhard’s Hefeweizen, Henry Weinhard’s Pale Ale, Henry Weinhard’s Private Reserve, Icehouse Beer, Keystone Light Beer 3.2, Killians Irish Red 3.2, MGD Light 64, Mickey’s Ice Ale, Mickey’s Malt Liquor, Miller Genuine Draft, Miller High Life 12/16 oz can, Miller High Life Ice, Miller High Life Light 12 oz can, Miller Lite 3.2%, Miller Lite Beer, Milwaukee’s Best #1 , Milwaukee’s Best Ice, Milwaukee’s Best Light #1 3.2, Molson Canadian, Molson Canadian Light, Molson Golden, Molson Ice, Molson XXX, Olde English 800 Malt Liquor, Sparks Light