Background:

It is an increasingly known fact that Gen Z drinks less than Millennials and older. The reasons for this are probably more multi-factorial than the popular business press speculates (health consciousness).

In my personal opinion this is as much related to economic stress, the legal consequences for underage drinking, digital immersion and the stunted socialization of the COVID lockdowns all play a factor. Innovation often has odd consequences. The "live music" scene is slowly dying as music became more personal (the rise of the now anachronistic IPOD). And of course, the legalization of cannabinoid products as an alternative euphoric agent.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/claraludmi ... -industry/

Interestingly, this article asks "are kids drinking enough"?

This is having significant social and economic effects. Diageo, PLC (Ticker DEO)-a major liquor distributor-is on a multiyear slide-about half what it was in December 2021.

https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/DEO

Here in Pennsylvania-the Liquor Control Board (once a reliable cash cow generating 4% annual sales growth, and yes despite the name, it is more concerned with sales than anything else) is facing flat sales-even though the COPA liquor laws were changed several years ago to permit wine sales outside the "state store" system and more recently pre-mixed cocktails in cans are now part of the product line.

Question:


I am curious for those heritage/historic lines that have offered beer or wine trains over time-are you noticing flat or diminished ridership, the requirement for greater marketing effort or any other indicator that a once reliable ticket seller isn't quite the easy go to it once was in the past.

I'm actually missing TWO local beer fests as I type this, due to an emergency restructuring my schedule........ and craft beer used to be part of my income.

Nobody has an absolute answer for all of this. The change in both craft beer and boutique wine/distilling is being driven not only by the factors you and the articles mention, but a huge one "bursting the bubble"--commercial real estate prices and taxation are skyrocketing while profit margins in craft booze remain flat AND inflation eats away at that. Most of the brewpub closures we are seeing are driven by seven/ten-year leases coming up for renewal and landlords TRIPLING the rent for a renewal, at a point when they couldn't stay in the black if the rent merely doubled. (In a refrain commonly cited here: All the long-term brewery survivals I am seeing own their own property.)

Another factor driving the problem is a lack of depth in the field. FAR too many brewpubs and craft breweries are offering seven different India Pale Ales (the "hop bombs" of the field), along with four or five "novelty" beers ("pastry stouts," "mango peach wheat beer," etc.), and at best one "normal" beer that you don't have to be a trained connoisseur or "hophead" to appreciate. To put it into excursion terns, imagine EVERY excursion line out there ran only an RS3, three Lackawanna MUs/SP commuter cars, two METRA gallery cars, and a luxury dome car/business car. Everywhere, from Strasburg to Florida to Iowa to Wisconsin to Royal Gorge to Sierra. Even EBT or C&TS running a diesel, four new cars, an open car, and a premium caboose. Seen one, seen 'em all.

But this doesn't have to be OUR problem.
Rail & Ale trains or excursion/museum beer festivals are still going strong in Britain even as cask ale is on a marked decline. This is in part because they have been careful to attract the crossover between the two fields. Those interested in good historic-styled craft ales and cask-conditioned ales are VERY likely to be rail enthusiasts, and vice versa, to the point where it's a bit of a joke in inside circles.
By contrast, too many American beer festivals are fundraisers and/or beer PR events that just happen to be set in a certain museum, park, zoo, or the like. There's seldom any effort to teach the festival patrons about the trains, or the art, or the zoo/animals, or the history of the property--all it becomes is a place to hold a classy "kegger."

As far as excursion operations and museum special events: The way to avoid that syndrome is to work to offer something besides just the beer/wine or whatever. And not just a band no one has heard of or pays attention to. What you do, and how you do it, is up to you and your facility/site/heritage.