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Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/504798
www.cheersonline.com 35 May 2015 • Left Hand Brewing Co. in Longmont, CO] on nitro and [Chicago's] Metropolitan Brewing Lager on our list as a way to bridge that knowledge/taste gap." 5) CARVE OUT AND MAINTAIN A CONCEPT With so many choices in beer styles and brands, it's easy to get out of control with your selection. Try to stay somewhat focused to organize the beer program. "If you remain true to your concept, everything else falls into place," Quinlan says. Links Taproom, for example, focuses on domestic beers vs. imports, which limits the brands it chooses to feature. "When it comes to building our tap list, we are local first, Midwestern second and American third," Quinlan notes. Food pairings are also a consideration. If a bar or restaurant already emphasizes a certain style of cuisine, the beer program should provide offerings that complement menu choices. It's an important factor for Republic, "since we're a restaurant and sell as much food as we do beer, I look at flavor profiles a lot and how different beers pair with different foods," O'Reilly says. 6) PURSUE BEST-IN-STYLE BEERS Levy enhances the Eastern Standard beer program with strong style representations. "It's important to highlight not only some unique offerings, but also to find a mix of one-offs and solid expressions of some of the most called for styles," she says. The Eastern Standard bottle list is organized by style with carefully appointed versatility. If you look under "Saisons," for instance, you can choose from a classic like Saison Dupont, imported from Brasserie Dupont in Belgium, or a local such as Saison Renaud from Mystic Brewery in Chelsea, MA—two different but valuable stylistic interpretations. "Be sure to give different brands and styles a reasonable amount of time each to expose plenty of your guests to it before rotating out," Levy adds. 7) ROTATE FOR VARIETY Bringing in new beer styles and brands is a reliable way to invigorate a beer program; it is attractive to new customers and offers variety to regular guests. At City Tavern, Hughes considers tap rotation a critical component of the selection. "Sometimes it is hard for me not to keep reordering a favorite," she says. "But unless it is something I cannot get again easily, everything has its time and place here." City Tavern's regular customers appreciate the bar mixing up the beer offering. "There are bestsellers that make their way back into the rotation much more than others, but as long as I can find something comparable in style and price, I like to keep things fresh," Hughes says. 8) GAIN ADVANTAGE WITH EXCLUSIVES City Tavern is situated between competitive restaurants and bars, so a selective beer program is essential. That's why Hughes keeps her tap list edgy: "Make sure there are at least a few rare beers that you won't find at all the other bars around the block—sours, barrel-aged beers, and funky, one- off infusions." Exclusivity is not something you can just demand from beer distributors, however. You have to build relationships with beer representatives and distributors to access special brews. "Sometimes it is a numbers game that I have to play," Hughes notes. "I keep a steady amount of the core beers in rotation, and then when the special stuff comes I am at the top of the allocation list." 9) CELEBRATE LOCAL—QUALITY LOCAL Many breweries promote the idea of "drinking locally." As beer ingredients are rarely sourced locally, these slogans are meant to engender community support. There are some advantages to offering locally made beer. For example, buying local will increase your chances of getting the freshest product—especially beneficial to hoppy beers—and the financial and environmental cost of shipping is minimized. Forming relationships with local breweries can also build support that benefits both bar and brewery. That said, just because a beer is made locally does not mean it is good by default. Quality should trump geography, and if a beer is inconsistent or compromised by infection, you should immediately rotate it out and notify the brewery of the issue. At Republic, "we get praised on our commitment to small and emerging breweries, with a focus on quality," O'Reilly says. Looking for what's local is another way to anticipate market changes. "We spend a lot of energy meeting new breweries before they launch and enter in to the Minnesota market," he adds. While local is good, "it's always quality for me," O'Reilly says. "If it's quality and local, that's a win-win." Assessing the quality of a beer is not a subjective evaluation of its features. Simply put, when beer leaves the brewery, it should be consistent within the brand and free from off- flavors—including infection and oxidation. The only way to ensure you are getting a quality product is to familiarize yourself with the beer and know what to expect. That means tasting. A lot. Erika Bolden is a freelance writer and Certified Beer Server. She is a frequent contributor to L.A. Weekly, West Coaster SoCal and All About Beer magazine. Eastern Standard in Boston seeks out strong style representations for its beer program, such as Evil Twin Hipster Ale. I I I I I I I