Matt Brewing in New York has tossed its hat into the low carb beer ring with Accel. Matt president Nicholas Matt said Accel — containing only 2.4 grams of carbohydrates per 12-ounce bottle and 89 calories — has the lowest carb content of any other beer on the market.
Accel is one of several relatively new beers developed to satisfy the roughly 30 million Americans on diets such as the Atkin’s Diet. Anheuser-Busch’s Michelob Ultra, with 2.9 carbs per 12-ounce serving, has been the hottest, while Rolling Rock is offering Rock Green Light, a beer with 2.6 grams of carbs. Meanwhile, Miller Brewing has begun to promote the fact that its veteran Miller Lite has only 3.2 carbs.
“This is a real brewing achievement,” Matt said of Accel. “It has only 89 calories, but taste it and you’ll be very surprised. It’s a great-tasting light beer.”
Several analysts, including a Wall Street research firm, and a beer-industry publication say Coors plans to unveil the low-carbohydrate beer by early next year.
“We are currently investigating the low-carb category. Any speculation of what opportunities this category would hold for Coors is premature,” Coors said in a statement this week.
Analyst Caroline Levy of New York-based brokerage and research firm UBS said the new beer is expected to hit the shelves in February. She said retailers in the southeastern United States are saving shelf space for what may be a fourth-quarter test market for the beer.
Labatt USA President Steve Cahillane, whose company owns Rolling Rock, has said he expects low-carb beers to command as much as 8% of the beer business within five years.