Thursday, July 14, 2016

Diary: Does a bar serving good beer need draft lines to succeed?

For diary entries, I sling it without thinking too much about minor annoyances like spelling and syntax. 

Must a bar specializing in better beer offer draft beer? Or can it be interesting with bottles and cans alone?

It's a question for reflection, but at one time my knee-jerk response would have been that without draft beer, a good beer bar could not truly be great. I may be in the process of changing my mind. It depends, doesn't it?

If one decided to go with Belgians and Belgian-style ales, wouldn't bottles and a semblance of appropriate glassware be enough?

Not all dive bars have draft. Even if the emphasis were not on Belgians -- say, American "craft" beers only -- would it be enough to have popular craft styles in cans or bottles, with glasses (of course) for pouring?

If engaging in such an operation locally (on Indiana soil) there'd be an added incentive to forego draft, because the regional ATC office interprets state law as allowing beer in "original containers" (bottles and cans) to be carried out the door, onto the sidewalk, while draft does not qualify, unless you carry the keg outside.

Instead of investing in draft equipment, one might purchase simpler straight refrigeration, and be absent cleaning obligations. Have a standard dishwasher for glassware ... and good to go.

Is no draft, no deal? If you have thoughts, please share them with me.

1 Diary: Does a bar serving good beer need draft lines to succeed?
2 Diary: You have three draft spouts. What do you pour?
3 Diary: Can there be a singer-songwriter version of the "good beer" bar?

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2 comments:

David Kahl said...

I for one almost always prefer draft to bottles, and find it a bit annoying when no draft options are available. I can't pinpoint why, exactly, but one hopes the beer purveyor treats his taps, and thus the beer, well, and serves it accordingly. Bottles seems to take out the artistry of service, which, to me, becomes a shame.

The New Albanian said...

I don't disagree when it comes to the artistry of draft, BUT suggest that the same is true about bottles, as in the wonderful institution of the Belgian specialty beer cafe.

On an unrelated note, there is less waste with draft; just cleaning glassware, as opposed to disposing of bottles and cans (locally, commercial recycling is a euphemism).