So this week we go back to a post from March of 2013.
One key element of the modern brewery to me is a sense of place. I mean that the brewery itself is in a sense the social object. A center where people can travel to, gather with others, and enjoy this shared bond of liking this brewery’s beer. I see it regularly here in North Carolina with Big Boss having close to 500 people on their monthly tour, Fullsteam has a number of community events weekly, or Mystery brewing having movie nights.
Let’s consider back to the first generation of craft brewers in the 1980, two companies I can think of started out both contract brewing their product. They both grew to national attention and grew as a good pace, eventually one established a permanent home, with a smaller test batch system and place for the public to visit and tour, Boston Beer Company. While the other Pete’s Wicked Ale did well initially, never established a ‘home’ and eventually was spun off from Pete Slosberg to be killed off by Gambrinus years later. And yes there were more factors going on but this sense of place to put a face on the company is a factor among them.
Have you driven past a InBev or MillerCoors plant? Is there anything compelling or could it be any other industrial plant along the highway? Even Guinness, for how much it has grown and been acquired it still has the old brewery for tours and a shrine where many of my friends have gone and taken the tour and enjoyed a few pints.
From Magic Hat’s quirky taproom to visiting the iconic Anchor brewery, it’s a sense of place that helps people find a connection to the beers they love. With all the debate of Craft vs ‘Crafty’ the last few months, this remains in my mind at least a touchstone that helps define what a brewery is.
I still believe this post, but with the break down of in person meeting during COVID that many people are still dealing with and the need for more diverse drink options are important parts of it. A couple of breweries I was at considered coffee and day time mixed space hours, but neither location was well suited to it. Having some food in the mix helps to, but most breweries aren’t restaurant folk. The solution on that front is having a sublease space for a food truck, a commissary kitchen that people can order at the food trucks window, meanwhile staff works on the food trucks off-site events prep. A few places have been successful at this Dirtbag Brewing as example and I think it’s positive way to get permanent food in the space. Back to diverse drink options, a full mixed beverage cocktail program has been a great update to NC ABC, every brewery should jump on board.
Next problem is rental rates, they have to be steady and locked in agreement for long term success or better yet, own the building. Lock it into a separate LLC of the same owners, it includes tax right offs and limits legal issues. Fullsteam, Big Boss, many others across the state and likely the nation have faced is being cost out of neighborhoods they helped make successful. It’s important to be mindful.
Lastly special events to attract to the brewery, I love a good brewery tour, but the customer base is just not into it these days. But offering for accounts or VIPs is great. One recent innovative event I have noticed is BMC Brewing is Public Domain movie night, they show a movie weekly that the copyright has expired, no pesky MPAA to hassle you. The challenge with events like these is that if you are in neighborhood with multiple breweries in short distance they start copying each others events so staying ahead becomes a challenge.
Often times breweries have been called Third space I still believe in the concept but breweries must adapt to their local market.
