Step into your local beer shop and it’s not uncommon to see shelf after shelf of brews in all kinds of packaging, from the ubiquitous cans and 12-ounce bottles to the more elaborate cage and corks to some with wax seals and even others with swing tops.

Breweries, it seems, have lately been trending not only toward big beers – with a high alcohol or IBU punch – but big bottles as well. Special offerings often come in 22-ounce or 750 ml bottles, and some breweries use them as their primary packaging.

Rogue Ales of Oregon is one such brewery that bottles most of its beer in 22-ounce “bomber bottles” or 750 ml ceramic vessels.

Now, Rogue is in the process of rolling out 7-ounce nip bottles.

Yes. 7 ounces, less than half a pint. But just because the bottles are small doesn’t mean the beers are.  The nips will hold the Rogue XS series, the beers that Rogue brewers have fun with, kick up the alcohol content and experiment with ingredients.

“It’s a kind-of return to our heritage,” said Brett Joyce, president of Rogue.  “When we first released XS, we offered them in 7-ounce bottles before we moved to the ceramic 750 ml bottles.”

Joyce said the move back to the 7-ounce nips was largely economical. “The proportion of cost of beer and cost of bottle got of control.”

So the ceramics will be retired, but they could make an appearance for “specials beers” down the road, Joyce said.

The brewery is also changing up its release schedule for the XS series, noted Joyce. Whereas the beers were available year-round, they will now become seasonal offerings.

The Russian Imperial Stout has been on shelves recently. This month it will be replaced by the Imperial Red. Summer months will bring the YSB English Bitter and I2PA. Late fall will bring a Scotch Ale, and by December the Old Crustacean Barley Wine will go on sale.

7-ounce bottles are nothing new, of course. On the East Coast, beers like Rolling Rock are known for their green 7-ounce bottles, which many know as pony bottles. During the summer, it’s not unusual to see smaller bottles of Corona, known as Coronita, just about anywhere the sun is out and there is water close by.

Joyce said that the bottles will sell for about $3.99 each.

“It’s a third of the price from the larger bottles,” he said. “It’s an affordable way to have access to variety.”

-- John Holl

John Holl writes about craft beer and the culture of drinking. His
work has appeared in The New York Times, The Star-Ledger of Newark, The
Indianapolis Star and other publications. He may be reached at johnholl@gmail.com or facebook.com/john.holl.