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Twins Pils to be First Summit Beer in Sleeved Cans

Much like our Minnesota Twins, Summit Twins Pils may have a few different looks this season. One look in particular will be a first for Summit Brewing Co.

Batting Next, Summit Twins Pils!

In case you haven’t heard, Summit Brewing Co. has announced the release of Summit Twins Pils – an exciting rebrand of our year-round, award-winning pilsner Summit Keller Pils. The rebrand was conceptualized as an embodiment of the partnership between the two Minnesota institutions, blending the best of both businesses by combining our traditional pilsner with the Twins’ classic baby blues to truly embody the idea of “One Team. One Territory.”

Yet, while the season has barely started for Twins Pils it’s already faced a few tough pitches.

Wild Pitch

Many industries, including us here in beer, continue to weather significant challenges due to supply chain issues. Shortages in materials, like paper, decreases in facilities and staffing and reduction in can allocation from suppliers cause production timelines and prices to inflate.

While we are able to effectively plan and navigate around some of these issues, others remain a challenge. This is particularly true with can allocation.

As suppliers work on their end to mitigate materials shortages, increased orders and rising prices, one of the solutions is to alter the ordering process for customers like us. Given the ever-changing nature of the current market, orders may need to be smaller than the new requirements or placed with less lead time.

This was seen last winter when a large supplier in the brewing industry announced a major change to their can allocation plans.

“The rules of game, so to say, have changed dramatically in the past six months. Our primary can manufacturer, Ball, has turned the industry on its head by requiring minimum orders that are larger than all but a small number of Summit’s brands,” Director of Planning, Fulfillment and Systems Stuart Johnson said.

At the end of 2021, breweries were told the new minimum order would be five truck loads. For many, this left them needing to find new suppliers. At Summit, while a few of our brands may meet this minimum the issue became creating space in an already packed warehouse to hold the cans.

Therefore, the time it would take to move through cans being warehoused was not fast enough to when we’d need to receive cans for new brands, such as Twins Pils.

Sacrifice Bunt

So, when looking to get our can quota for Twins Pils we had to be creative.

This meant finding several suppliers who could help us get the number of cans we needed in the time we needed. And, thus, contributed to the slight alterations in look.

“One of the keys to the current environment is having multiple sources. With so little time to plan for 2022 and trying to fit our needs into whatever is available, not to mention the fact that there’s many, many other breweries doing the same thing, we mitigate the situation by having options,” Johnson said. “Sleeved cans are a solution to that since they take less than half the time to bring in house.”

The first Twins Pils cans to get a new uniform will be former Keller Pils cans dressed in Twins Pils artwork.

These sleeves were placed on by a local company as a way to utilize extra Keller Pils cans we had in our warehouse. This not only made space in storage and decreased waste, it also helps connect Keller Pils to its new identity as Twins Pils. We want fans to recognize the taste of Keller Pils beer as Twins Pils. If they get one of these sleeved cans, they are able to see their old favorite transform into their new favorite brand.

The second uniform change will be Twins Pils sleeves over plain cans.

While we had some extra Keller Pils 12oz cans, we didn’t have nearly enough to satisfy all the thirsty drinkers in our five-state territory. We also didn’t have nearly enough space in our warehouse by clearing out said Keller Pils cans and needed an option that would come in and out quick. Our 16oz cans will also be dressed in Twins Pils sleeves as well.

Summit Twins Pils 12oz sleeved cans
(credit: Summit Brewing Co.)

Given our dedication to recycling our materials, as noted on all of our packaging, it’s important we call out one nuance to these sleeved cans! The aluminum cannot be recycled while the sleeves is still on. Thus, there’s an easy tear-away strip along the sides of the can that helps remove the sleeve so we can continue to reduce & reuse.

The final uniform change will be to our traditionally printed cans. These will look just as you’ve come to know our brands. These cans will ultimately be what is out in market, as the removable labels are temporary.

So, while Twins Pils may slightly change up its uniform this first season, it’s here to stay for the long haul. And, no matter what it looks like on the outside, you can always be certain the liquid on the inside is award-winning deliciousness.

Summit Twins Pils will be available year-round in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota and South Dakota in 12-packs of 12oz cans and on draught at selection locations. It will also be available in 16oz cans and on draught in Target Field and at other select venues in the five state area. Find it at a location nearest you. 

Summit Twins Pils 12oz cans with 12pk can wrap
(credit: Summit Brewing Co.)
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