The craft beer scene in America is legendary at this point, as much a part of Americana as baseball and 7-Eleven slushies. You can find rows and rows of craft brews in tallboy cans with creative labels — featuring everything from pin-up girls to werewolves – at gas stations and liquor stores. Labels aren’t the only creative side to the craft beer industry, either. Since its inception, craft brewers have pushed the envelope with different ingredients, lately to disastrous ends for consumers: A can of craft beer has randomly exploded on a customer more than once thanks to a wily combination of ingredients.
Fruity flavors are taking over the spotlight in craft brewing and it’s those fruit-forward, extra-sugary brews that are more likely to explode: The extra sugar can contribute to faster fermentation and the release of more carbon dioxide gas in the can. If the gas released pushes on the inside of the can too much, the aluminum gives way and the can explodes. Some brewers are taking steps to incorporate legal verbiage and warnings into their packaging and labels, including Magnify Brewing Company’s Trade Proof fruit beers – which have a picture of dynamite on the front of the can.
How to prevent your craft beer can from exploding
Brewers have started using a new technique to create deeper, more vibrant fruity flavor profiles in their craft beer: They add fruit to the beer at the end of the brewing process, making the flavor more bold and intense. The problem is that an avalanche of fresh sugar comes along with the fruit, which can ferment and cause the can to burst (especially in warm temperatures). You could end up with a busted can if you don’t keep these fruit-heavy craft beers cold, so store them in the fridge — not in the pantry — and make sure you put them in the cooler if you’re out and about.
Coloring outside the lines is what sets craft beers apart from commercial beer. Craft brewers take more chances with ingredients, using different varieties of hops and fruit-heavy ingredient combinations to create unique flavors. But some see craft brewing as pretentious (Anthony Bourdain had qualms with “beer snob” culture); with an emphasis on small batches and unique flavors, craft breweries certainly love pushing boundaries. Critics question whether brewers put customers at risk with their high-sugar brewing techniques, and the latest fruity beer trend is certainly an effervescent and potentially explosive example. Not every can bursts, but if you’re grabbing yourself some fruity craft beer, don’t take chances and keep it cold!
