Why Sierra Nevada May Be Launching Their New Pilsner in 8.4oz (250ml) Cans

A new TTB label approval just dropped for Sierra Nevada’s Premium Pils, the beer they introduced on draft this past winter. The label lines up with the branding and tap handles from their on-premise push that kicked off in Q1, with one surprising detail: it's for an 8.4oz can. While Sierra Nevada hasn’t officially announced their plans and declined to comment for now, I’ve been thinking through the move. Here are five reasons why this unexpected format might make a lot of sense for one of the country’s largest and most respected craft breweries.

Small formats have been on my radar for a while. I grew up in Rolling Rock’s backyard, where their pony bottles were a point of pride. I worked for a Molson Coors distribution company for eight years who proudly purchased Miller High Life ponies by the truckload. I live a short bike ride away from Chicago’s Hopewell Brewing, who has been rocking ‘Lil Buddy, a little Helles lager, in 8oz cans since 2019. And Off Color Brewing, who has historically used 250ml bottles to add accessibility to select specialty recipes over the years.

Then I ran the marketing department at Revolution Brewing and may have helped instigate the shift of barrel-aged beer from 22oz bottles into 12oz cans back in 2017 and 19.2oz cans in 2021. For the 8 years that followed, I listened to fans suggesting that we should put the Deep Wood Series into small cans. I didn’t think they were wrong, the market just didn’t quite feel ready for prime time.

That all changed this past Fall when a series of announcements led me to connect the dots that a major movement was beginning to unfold. This viral TikTok from October 2024 put the take into the ether that “tiny formats” were poised to explode in 2025, followed by a Nostradouglas piece to kick off the year titled, How Low Can You Go?

@beeraficionadoEven the heavy drinkers are looking for moderation, I suppose? #beer #cpg #voodooranger #modelo #cocktails

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Still, even with all that soothsaying, not even Nostradouglas expected the most beloved brewer in the country to launch what is their new and only year-round lager into 8.4oz cans.

What’s the angle here? Let’s dig in…