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Cultured Tastes
America’s Affinity for Imports Grows
By Andy Ashby
 America has a taste for imported things.
Whether it’s a German car or Swiss chocolate, we enjoy products from
around the world. And beer? Well, beer is no different.
There are certain beers that have planted themselves in this country’s
psyche. Through marketing, advertising and just plain quality, they
have made quit a home for themselves in bars throughout the United
States.
Introducing Imports
The Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis (triplerocksocialclub.com)
is a good example of the proliferation of imports. Of their six taps,
half are imports and half are domestics. Like many bars across the
country, Guinness and Newcastle are their hot sellers. Of course, they
sell a lot of imports in bottles, too.
But, why are these beers often at the top of the sales chart?
“I think many people are brand loyal,” Manager Joe Sanducci says. “Once they pick a beer they like, they kind of stay with it.”
Still, The Triple Rock Social Club operators occasionally bring in new
beer for their patrons to try. However, the standards usually maintain
their positions on the shelves.
“The average drinker isn’t all that adventurous. You order a new beer
so everyone can try it out. Usually, the guy who ordered it and the
bartender might like it, but ordering enough for everyone is another
story,” Sanducci says.
Happy Hour prices definitely help move the imports, though, he says.
Triple Rock has Happy Hour from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., featuring $2 draft
beer.
They also occasionally do promotions when distributors help them out.
Whenever the distributors cut them a deal, the Triple Rock Social Club
passes it on to the customers.
Naja’s International Beer Parlor in Redondo Beach, Calif., is a little
more adventurous. That’s because they feature 76 beers on tap and a few
hundred bottles.
They sell a lot of Stella Artois and Guinness, says Manager Jan-Maree
Radice. Guinness is well-known across the country. Stella Artois, a
light lager from Belgium, doesn’t have the national name, but it is
very popular in bars across Europe. It’s also starting to gain steam in
American markets.
Some of their other traditionally strong-selling beers include Bass,
Harp, Pilsner Urquel, Heineken and Amstel Light. Warsteiner, a German
pilsner, is another good mover.
“They are definitely good sellers,” Radice says. “We go through quite a
lot of that — they’re very consistent. They have a name, they have a
reputation, and they’ve been around a long time. Guinness has been
around for a couple of hundred years. They have a certain taste to
them. Sometimes people want something they are familiar with.”
America
has a taste for imported things. Whether it’s a German car
or Swiss chocolate, we enjoy products from around the world. And
beer? Well, beer is no different |
The Belgian Brews
Although Naja’s International Beer Parlor carries the basics that
patrons can find in a lot of different bars, they also carry some other
beers that are gaining more ground, and they’re not alone.
“We have a lot of Belgian beers in bottles, that would be our
specialty,” Radice says. “We also feature eight Belgian beers on tap.”
Belgian beers also are very popular at Beveridge Place Pub in Seattle.
Delirium Tremens, a high-alcohol beer, sells well. Naja’s also moves a
lot of high-alcohol Chimay, which comes from one of seven Trappist
breweries in the world. Hoegaarden, a Belgian white beer, is a
lower-alcohol beer. As a light, smooth beer, it also sells well.
Beveridge Place rotates a lot of its Belgian bottles, and they even
have some that are aged. They always have at least one Belgian beer on
draft. Currently, they have a Lambic style, which is a fruit-flavored
beer. They also have Maredsous 8, an 8 percent alcohol-by-volume beer
from Belgium.
These beers help draw people to Beveridge Place Pub, says Manager Ian Watson.
“We’re definitely a destination for those. People come just for the
selection,” Watson says. “We get a lot of beer geeks in here, and
that’s who we sell to.”
Specialties Sell
Similarly, Naja’s International Beer Parlor uses their 25 years in the Los Angeles area to get beer drinkers in the bar.
“People come here because we have a wonderful selection of beer,”
Radice said. “People, I think, are getting more educated in different
styles of beer. It’s like wine. The more educated they get, the more
they seek those beers out.”
Naja’s International Beer Parlor also has a hand pump for one
cask-conditioned ale. It draws the beer out of the keg instead of using
carbon dioxide or nitrogen. They currently have Young’s Special London
Ale.
“We change them out regularly,” Radice says. “We occasionally have different beer companies make kegs for us.”
Naja’s, too, has Happy Hour from 4-7 p.m., with $2 off 25-ounce mugs and $1 off 16-ounce beers. NCB
| Import Momentum |
Years ago,
there was only a handful of beers imported to America. Now, hundreds of
beers — from Beck’s to Bass, St. Pauli Girl to Samuel Adams, Molson to
Moosehead — have made the jump into our bar scene.
The Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis has started carrying Strong
Bow Cider. It’s selling well for a new product, Manager Joe Sanducci
says.
According to Manager Ian Watson at Beveridge Place Pub Seattle, his
venue was the first to carry Bombardier beer. It’s an English bitter
from the town of Bedford, and Watson says he is damned glad to have it
in the cooler.
Hoegaarden also is a fairly new beer that sells well. It’s a Belgium
white beer. It’s light and cloudy, and it’s also sweet and very easy to
drink. Some bars serve it with an orange or lemon slice, which can be
squeezed into the beer for a different flavor .
Unibroue, a brewery in Quebec, Canada, has several good-selling beers,
such as Trois Pistoles, La Fin Du Monde, Blanche de Chamblis and
Maudite. |
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