Ask any beer lover where the nearest good beer store is and chances are he or she can give you specific directions, hours of operations and drive time from anywhere in the region. You'll also learn what beers they carry, what beers they don't carry but should and a bit about the owners.
These are the kinds of things that good beer lovers know.
After the breweries, good beer stores are one of the most important elements of the craft beer renaissance. They decide which beers to stock, which brands should get the choice shelf space - although sometimes this is done in partnership with distributors - and how the beer will be stored and sold. The best beer stores sell a wide variety, keep their stock cool and make it available by the bottle.
So it's nice to see a good beer store celebrated. A friend sent me a link to a news story about a beer store in Washington. By the sound of it Craig and Tiffany Adamowski's beer store 99 Bottles is an excellent operation. Check out the article and then, if you live in the area, stop in and spend a few dollars.
Looking for a good beer store in your area? Check out The Beer Mapping Project.
These are the kinds of things that good beer lovers know.
After the breweries, good beer stores are one of the most important elements of the craft beer renaissance. They decide which beers to stock, which brands should get the choice shelf space - although sometimes this is done in partnership with distributors - and how the beer will be stored and sold. The best beer stores sell a wide variety, keep their stock cool and make it available by the bottle.
So it's nice to see a good beer store celebrated. A friend sent me a link to a news story about a beer store in Washington. By the sound of it Craig and Tiffany Adamowski's beer store 99 Bottles is an excellent operation. Check out the article and then, if you live in the area, stop in and spend a few dollars.
Looking for a good beer store in your area? Check out The Beer Mapping Project.
Comments
Nice piece, Bryce. I couldn’t agree more. Fortunately, my many years in beer purgatory are quite possibly over with the opening of Kindling Spirits, Food & Florals in nearby Crainville, IL. I’m working closely with the store to get beers heretofore only dreamed about in So. IL. Diane and Larry, along with their business partners, are also working with the famed Joe Billhartz (of Corral Liquor fame) to stock many “top shelf” craft beers. They’ve already got brands like Dogfish Head, Lagunitas, Hoppin’ Frog, Bear Republic and more. Larry tells me they’ll soon obtain The Lost Abbey and a host of specialty imports (read = Belgians!)I’m all of a sudden in beer heaven!
I’ll never underestimate the importance of a good beer store, operaterd by good people!
That’s good to hear, Shawn. I’ll have to check them out next time I’m on the wrong side of the river.
Did you add them to the beer mapping project?
Hi Bryce, Thanks for the note about 99 Bottles! We do our best to bring in a good variety of beers, in limited quantities to assure freshness, for our customers. This year I’ll be venturing into new programs as well…starting with sessions on “Entertaining with Beer”. These should be fun as the economy is rough, so a main focus will be how to pair beer with food, and we’ll be drinking beer with hors d’ouvres that folks can prepare at home. Cheers!
Tiffany, 99 Bottles