BACK ON THE BEER BEAT
How and Why to Drink Locally
We hear a lot about local support, but in some places, it's only skin deep. Help me change this.
By Bill Schneider, 7-16-09
I’m back on the Beer Beat today and wondering why so many eateries with a license to sell beer don’t support their local brewery.
If you’ve been following my Microbrew Montana series, you probably noticed a common thread running through the articles. Probably every brewer I interviewed boasted about the sense of community that made their businesses tick. They all talked about getting support from local businesses and how they went to great lengths to return that local support.
But surprise, go next door or across the street to have dinner and ask for one of the local brewery’s products, and you’ll far-too-often hear a different story. Many owners of restaurants in Montana with craft breweries nearby often offer microbrews from Colorado or Oregon on tap, but nothing or almost nothing from their local brewer.
It doesn’t happen everywhere, of course, and some local eateries prioritize local brews, but it happens way too often. I have to ask why?
When I noticed this little problem last year, I started asking around. It’s obviously a touchy subject that people don’t like to discuss. I’ve talked to brewers and restaurant owners about it, and basically, they dance around anything that might be an answer.
I can understand the brewer’s reluctance to discuss it. They’re hoping the wind changes and can eventually get the restaurant next door to carry their beer--and probably won’t if they let their concern show up in articles like this.
Ditto for the restaurant owners. They don’t want their names in articles like this and possibly lose customers who support the growing “buy local” trend and have an allegiance to the local brewery.
I don’t want to put any brewer or restaurant owner on the spot, but hopefully, some of them can send in comments, anonymous if necessary, to help me understand the reluctance of non-competitive local businesses to support each other. In some cases, I’m sure it’s a personal or business relationship gone south. That happens, of course, and if that’s all it was, I wouldn’t write this. It’s more widespread.
I’ve done some not-so-scientific research. Over the past year, whenever I go to a restaurant in a Montana city with breweries, I always ask my server what they have on tap from the local brewery. I’ve found a few restaurants with a good selection of local brews, but most do not. In some communities, most don’t offer any local microbrews, even eateries within a stone’s throw of a local brewery.
Brewery owners don’t have to buy an expensive liquor or beer/wine license, but the Montana law allows them to sell beer in taprooms, albeit with restricted hours and in limited quantities. If I owned a tavern next door to a brewery, I might have mixed feelings about my friendly neighborhood brewer. On one hand, I’d be happy to have some great, locally brewed beer on tap, which should attract more business, but on the other hand, I might worry about each pint sold in the taproom next door meaning one less pint sold in my tavern.
To that, I say, it is what it is.
But if I owned a fine dining establishment in close proximity to one of Montana’s fine brewing establishments, a place where people come to enjoy a relaxing dinner, I’d sure want to feature locally brewed craft beer, especially since Montana brewers produce some of the finest microbrew available from any state. In fact, in my somewhat educated opinion, it’s better than most out-of-state beers.
Now to the reason of this column. Please join my little, friendly Buy Local initiative. Last October I wrote a column about supporting your local brewery when the industry was faced with a restrictive regulation from the Montana Department of Revenue. Several other writers did the same, as did the Montana Brewer’s Association. So many people responded that the Revenue immediately pulled the proposed rule. So, here’s another chance to support your local brewery.
Next time you go out to dinner at a Montana restaurant, courteously ask your server for a list of beers brewed locally or ask for your favorite beer brewed by the local brewery. If they have a good selection of local microbrews, thank them for it. If the restaurant doesn’t have any local microbrews or an embarrassing small selection, ask why. Perhaps even find the owner and ask him or her why, all in a polite, non-threatening manner.
You, like me, probably won’t get an answer, but don’t get mad. Don’t threaten to stop eating there. Instead, enjoy your dinner and let the market work. I have to believe that any restaurant owner who hears from a few dozen customers all concerned about why he or she doesn’t support local businesses, well, it’s remarkably easy for him or her to make a call and change it.
[End of article]Bill, I have worked in the brewing industry here in Montana for 10 years and I can say that the problem exists with the way liquor licenses are valued. Currently, an all beverage with gaming license in Missoula goes for around one million. That is someone's retirement right there and until someone figures out a way to give the old timers equal value for their licenses (tax discounts? tax rebates?) the system will stay the way it is. Brewers have the option to purchase a beer and wine license and I know a couple that have, but right now, the tavern owners have put the kibosh down on any kind of law rewrite which would hurt the value of their license. Here in Missoula most local pubs and restaurants do support both local and state breweries: the Iron Horse, Charlies, Old Post and Mackenzie River Pizza to name a few. But yeah, there a few out there that refuse to have anything to do with the local brew scene and when I point out to them that the craft brews they do have on tap engage in the same sort of "localism" that our breweries do, but in their own states, the reply has been "yeah, but it ain't here." So, yeah, that situation can get very frustrating! Thanks for the article!
Comment By Harry, 7-16-09Drinking as a statement of community solidarity? Really!
Comment By chris, 7-16-09Bill, Great pull my hair out kind of article! I have no expertise in your little corner of the world, but here in Pittsburgh, I think my journey could give you some insights.
I think there are a variety of problems that are the fault of so many different players. It does take time for the stars to align.
Here in 'da 'Burgh, I have been drinking Penn Brewery beers for 20 years, Church Brew Works and East End Brewing products for approximately 4 years, and many other locals brews that have actually come and gone. There are other great local breweries that do not distribute at all, but have brew pubs that we can give our local dollars to.
The players and their problems.
1) Brewery: Barriers to entry...too small to buy kegs, to pay license fees, to have time to get labels approved, to be represented by a distributor, and on and on.
2)Restaurants/Bars: Uneducated staff that wrinkles their nose at anything new and different. This mentality: Why change our formula, Mr. So and So would never come back if we took his 'Schlitz' bleh off tap. The determination and love you have to carry as an owner to keep on the project of local anything, food, beer, wine, services. It is hard! The owners are already attacked from every direction for their time and attention, and it is easier to do nothing.
3)Distribution: Wholesalers in our state control certain brands across many counties, and with small batch local breweries, they find it hard to keep enough stock and even harder to put their salesforce out there to 'pimp' the locals because there is no monetary incentive...also no national ad campaign to support placements, in walk the big boys promising trips to Belgium, cruises and $$$ if you place their product! Everyone wants to support local but they have no supporting marketing to keep it in the forefront of the consumer's minds
4)Consumers: They are fickle and fearful of change too. If they are the only one in a place with a non-see-thru beer in front of them, they are outcast. People don't usually swim against the current. A neat stat from http://www.beerwarsmovie.com: 62% of market share is owned by A/B... a foreign owned corporation, and .0004% is owned by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. Wow, and they have the marketing, the public's attention (see current issue of Inc.), and incredible products. They are still fighting the battle for placement. So the point here being that only a tiny fraction of the alcohol consuming public is even aware of 'craft' beers!
5) Franchise restaurants: No chance for local cooperation. Decisions aren't made at the individual store for the most part. They have high level corporate arrangements (read co-op dollars) that prohibit them from releasing a tap from the big three. Also if they do agree to a craft beer, they usually require national availability of the brand, for consistency, advertising, ease of product delivery. So you will see Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada at least blazing a trail for the craftbeer drinker!
This reply is longer than your article! Sorry. I am so passionate about this subject because in Pittsburgh, I have worked as a bartender, beer representative, bar manager, general manager of a restaurant, and now, owner of my own little 'better beer' bar in suburban Pittsburgh. I try my hardest to scream from the rooftops for everyone to buy local and fresh, and support non-franchise business. It can be done; we are doing it! It takes patience, lots of time, and the beer gods nod of approval! There is nowhere to go, but up!
Visit us sometime or drop me a line: http://www.bocktown.com or
Whew. done, Chris
Key words in a number of towns are "non-competitive".
A number of breweries are "brew-pubs/restaurants". The local restaurant across the street does not have their microbrewery draw and loses dining dollars to them as well, perhaps therefore not wishing to contribute further to their friendly neighbor competitor's success.
I get that Chaos, but the more the merrier! Don't you always see the restaurants grouped together? Over 14 years ago, I was bartending and a new spot opened across the road, and we thought it would have negative impact. It brought new, different people to the area, and they tried us, too! The more the merrier... from the eternal optimist.
Comment By Mickey Garcia, 7-16-09Don't be just a half assed locavore! Get pukeing drunk on local beer!
Comment By John Molloy, 7-16-09I've been so supportive of our local breweries that after a few years of constant consumption of Moose Drool, my droppings changed shape and texture considerably.
I was initially concerned about this circumstance, but noted a positive, money-saving, and healthy side-effect. In between hangovers, if I could even tell if they were hangovers anymore, I would spend my time trekking into Bill's other area of heartfelt passion, "Proposed Wilderness Areas".
Unfortunately, I was always dehydrated due to the incredible diuretic effects of that fine ale. On these hikes, I would never leave the lush riparian zones on these forays due to my constant need for water. Had I, deaths unforgiving and final grip would have been upon me...
I would stagger into creeks, pond, and bog, fall to my knees in genuflective thanks, then slurp in that life saving elixir, caring not a whit what had just died and fallen in upstream. Giardia? It mattered not. I left my Pocket Katadyn at home, as I was now one with the waters...
I then discovered an abundance of wilderness watercress. Watercress was everywhere. I drank of the waters and grazed upon the watercress, sometimes actually sharing the bounty with vagabond Moose in the same pond.
We bonded, finding we had so much more in common than not. From a "Good Food Store" perspective, I was in literal heaven. It was organic watercress. I had become a literal localvore and locaholic, grazing and drinking with the ungulates and all the while lowering my food costs. I was drinking and eating the healthiest diet of my entire life, and best of all, had found new friends. Lifelong friends. And changing my stools.
Moose Drool. Support your local brewery. Enjoy. Then go take a hike.
Is that how you got liver fluke disease?, by eating local "wilderness watercress"? Or maybe liver flukes are some of your new friends.
Comment By John Molloy, 7-16-09Regarding Garcia -
It appears Mickey watched "Animal Planet" last night, and now he's "Smarter than a Fifth Grader". Yes Mickey, the lunatic is in your head. Like the Bot Fly larvae earlier in the show, Mickey. Those larvae have burrowed in a little deep this time, haven't they? They found your brain cell, even though the hunt was hard, being that there's but one. Come now, you can remember longer than 18 hours, can't you Mickey? It was the undercooked crayfish that caused the liver flukes, Mickey. Remember? Crayfish, not watercress, you drooling moron.
Anything remotely intelligent that flows off your keyboard is a fluke, and your latest effort, as usual with your comments, are invective rather than constructive. Do you have something against grazing on watercress Mickey, or is it that what you see on "Animal Planet" is as close as you get to visiting wilderness? Are you sort of an "Armchair Hiker", Mickey?
I live in the forest, Mickey. Surrounded on all four sides by the National Forest, Mickey. There are Moose here, Mickey, and I drink Moose Drool from Montana Brewery. I see wolves in real life all the time, Mickey. I see lions and bears and coyotes and elk and deer all the time, Mickey. It's not an abstract here Mickey, it's wonderful and it is everyday life, and you are but a pavement bound pedestrian, and quite pedestrian at that.
Sometimes we are blessed with the sight of otters along the creek, and the occasional mink as well. The herons come in for their take on the little creeks when the rivers flow high, and then simply disappear when the more larger and more clear waters call them back. Sometimes too, we even see a weasel. Unfortunately, I often read words penned by weasels. There are good weasels and then there are those that are not, Mickey.
For going on two decades we have eaten watercress from the creek here on the place, Mickey. Our children swim and fish in the ponds right here in our meadow, Mickey. I don't need to get in my little self-righteous S.U.V. and go to the nearest campground, Mickey. I live here in my own campground, Mickey, hand-built by us, 365 days a year. I don't have to share it with particular types of weasels, and for that I am eternally grateful.
It's not a fluke, Mickey. It's hard work living off-the-grid in the forest, living on your own and bearing responsibility for more than just yourself. Work, Mickey. You should try it sometime. You might even make something of yourself, someday...
Your hostility, attempted ridicule, and air of superority are amusing. You have no idea if I live and work in the woods or not. A lot of animals including livestock, wild animals & humans get liver fluke by eating wild watercress. Better bone up on the life cycle of the liver fluke.
Comment By John Molloy, 7-16-09Mickey -
You are what you are, nothing but "pedestrian", and quite so at that. Your voluminous prior posts on virtually all topics exude that "air of superiority" of which you now accuse me of. And God help anyone who finds themselves in disagreement with you. Vitriol pours forth from your cup upon the heads of those who put to question your supposed wisdom. A blessing to all mankind, is Mickey Garcia. Just ask him.
Once, we were talking about supporting local breweries. That was the subject of the article. And last I looked, there is nothing wrong with humor being part of the discussion. Mickey Garcia though, rather than address the subject of the article, instead and as is his habit and wont, found it necessary to ridicule me as he does darn near everyone, and argue that liver flukes are my "new friends", rather than my true friend, the Moose. Humorous, Mr. Garcia? Go back and re-read your first post, Mr. Garcia?
You are certainly a class act. Funny, you aren't.
What is it Mickey? Are you one of those who loves to dish it out but can't take it? Have you penned even a line about supporting the local breweries? Anything whatsoever in relationship to the subject at hand? No. Why is that? Too complicated? Or perhaps you simply have a fascination with parasites. A close relationship, perhaps?
As you preen yourself and your ego in front of your well-lit mirror, you no doubt envision yourself as some sort of "Renaissance Man", a man for all seasons and all topics. In the world according to Mickey Garcia, there is no subject, regardless of its level of abstraction or complexity that you cannot resist shedding new light upon, however dim. Where, oh where? would we be without you? Your months-long, never-ending litany of erudite commentary keeps us all breathless, waiting and waiting for more, even if your comments generally are barely suitable for bumper stickers.
You don't live in the woods. You don't work in the woods, and you never have or will. It is quite easy to tell, as you are devoid of any humility or real understanding. Regular time spent and decades of experience deep in the forest doesn't create people like you, rather, it repels them. The forest doesn't want you. That's why you watch Animal Planet instead of doing the real thing.
You are an arrogant and superficial graduate of the urban jungle who aimlessly migrated to some western suburbia, and now deluded with your own grandiosity, believe you are free. Your writing "talent", such as it is, focuses on personal attacks. "It's your thing", Mickey. Your occasional foray out of that predictable style is barely more than the positing of an occasional superficial argument whose contents are always self-serving, beyond self-righteous, and your polemics are vacuous of meaning. It's sad. Really sad.
More often than not, clearly illustrated by your first comment on local breweries that we're still waiting for, your efforts are nothing but a series of insults hurled at those who dare to question your supposed wisdom or your world view. "There is no there, there", with you Mickey. Your life is apparently barren, an embarrassment of emptiness. Your thought process is barely the work of a "C" student from a non-descript discipline, whose personally recognized but somehow still denied deficiencies cause you to lash out as does a rapid dog. What minimal writing talent that you do have is always focused on attacking people, and sadly, almost never engaging in the intellectual debate of ideas.
Were you abused as a child? As a teen? Were you an altar boy who had a series of bad experiences? Constantly rejected by women? Men too?
All I know is that we should stick to the subject at hand, and that is the support of our local breweries. If Mr. Garcia wants to focus on parasites and insulting people, so be it. He's good at it. Obviously, he was a problem child and that circumstance has unfortunately continued to manifest itself in his adult life as well. I'm certain his story is long, tragic, and tearful. I'm just sure. I'll pray for him.
Most importantly though is that I support my local brewery. Hell, I support all local breweries, wherever they are! Anybody but the "Big Guys", and the closer the better. So off to the fridge and then over to the drawer with the bottle opener in it.
But Moose Drool it is! My very favorite from my favorite local brewery!
More amusing still. I'll drink to that!
Comment By Alan Gregory, 7-17-09Let's not forget that there are many, many fine microbrews here in the Northeast, especially Vermont (home of Long Trail, Magic Hat, Rock Art, Harpoon, and several others). I agree wholeheartedly with the buy local philosophy and can't understand why more licensed eateries in Pa. don't offer the best microbrews rather than the corporatized stuff that might as well be sugar water.
Comment By Ben Wickham, 7-17-09It would be nice if more restaurants carried local beers, for sure. Along those lines, why can't we purchase local beers at the grocery store? I live in Boise and would love to purchase Sockeye beer rather than Sierra Nevada or New Belgium or whatever else they carry at Albertsons. I could drive up to Sockeye, but I prefer riding my bike and the grocery store is ten times more convenient and efficient for a bike rider.
Comment By Tim Newhart, 7-17-09Can't tell you the number of times I've gone into a local Montana pub or restaurant and asked for a "Cold Smoke" and gotten a blank stare. I'll give our local Missoula breweries the benefit of my business at every opportunity, and make a special point of asking for a local brew especially if I see a rack of tap handles without our local brews represented. And by the way, don't forget to buy the canned versions of our Missoula brews and continue to recycle! Thanks for the great article, Bill -- and I'd jump in and join an email campaign if somebody decided to publish a list of local pubs who are dragging their feet.
Comment By timbertiger, 7-17-09Ben, I'm not a huge beer drinker, but I did recently discover Dragon's Breath by Bayern Brewery from Missoula and I buy it at Albertson's all the time. I don't know really what else they carry, but there are some local brews in there! Maybe it's just a Missoula thing though as I just realized you are from Boise...
Comment By Beersmith, 7-21-09Bill,
Thanks for interesting article. As a Montana Brewer I have devoted a lot of thought to answering the same questions. I once wrote a guest editorial in the Montana Tavern Times (the newsletter of the Montana Tavern Assoc.) about why bars & restaurants would benefit by selling locally-brewed Montana beers at their establishments. As an economist before becoming a brewer, I focused on the economic benefits, something I thought any business owner would appreciate. That was the last editorial I wrote for the Tavern Times. It turns out, a rep from one of the "Big 3" beer companies complained about the "buy local" slant to my editorial and threatened to pull their monthly advertising from the publication.
First of all, there are many fine establishments who support local craft brewers, before we criticize the establishments who don't sell local beers, we need to applaud those who do!
I don't think the bulk of the "problem" lies with the perceived competition/licensing issues between brewers and tavern owners. There are some direct competition based issues that do arise, just not enough to explain the lack of local beer in many bars & restaurants.
Contrary to what one person posted above, a Montana brewery does not have the option to purchase a retail license. We are only allowed to serve 3 pints per person per day on-premise and cannot serve past 8pm. Montana law prohibits a brewer from having ownership interest in a wholesaler or a retailer. Some brewers have the appearance of having a retail license, but in reality there are two separate business involved, supposedly without any monetary connection.
In my opinion, the biggest hurdle is that wholesalers and retailers (distributors and taverns) sell what is easiest. Nationally-marketed beer brands (ie. Bud, Miller, Coors, PBR, Sam Adams, New Belgium, Deschutes, Redhook, Widmer, etc) have lots of marketing power behind them. Point-of-sale materials, advertising, wholesaler incentives, product in both package (can/bottle) and draft all make the product easier to sell. Many locally-made craft beers are available only in draft, offer little POS support (ie. free neons, bicycle/snowboard giveaways, free signage, etc), and don't usually pay sales people cash incentives for product placement.
Furthermore, small local breweries tend to produce more beer styles in much smaller batches which makes product availability more difficult.
Things change! Craft beer is gaining market share every year, yet we are only up to about 6-7% of total beer sales. In Montana, most of our breweries are doing well. Since our brewery first opened 11 years ago, I think there are more establishments now than ever offering local beer. I believe those taverns and restaurants that are looking to better serve their customers are realizing that offering locally-made beer is good for their bottom line and their business. Those that aren't offering local beer are just selling what's easiest.
Take the author's advice to heart, ask for local beer wherever you go, it doesn't always get you want you want, but it certainly doesn't hurt!