Is Your Beer Selection on Par With Your Spirits and Wine?

The most successful nightclub and bar owners are not only smart, but they are always open to new ideas, products and trends. They also know their customer demographics and cater to them.
    That said, what is fairly common in many establishments is a very limited selection of beer. This is true even of many high-end pubs, clubs and restaurants. While these businesses have excellent, exciting and diverse food options and great wine and liquor collections, too often, they offer limited and unexciting beer offerings.
    Instead, they should be tapping the wide variety of high quality domestic, imported and craft beers now available. Doing so would not only project a more sophisticated, current image, but also would increase dramatically their beer revenues. Knowing what’s available and how best to leverage a beer selection to accommodate a particular nightclub or bar’s clientele is the key.

Young, Cool and Image-Conscious
    Bars or clubs whose customer demographic lies within the 21- to 35-year-old segment already know that this clientele’s primary goals are to socialize late into the night and meet new people. Their brew of choice must have a cool brand image and be acceptable to their peers. Often, the brands they choose consequently are, in fact, flavorful and good-tasting beers — hence the great image.
    These trendsetting fashionistas want their beer choice to make them appear more sophisticated and more cutting edge. Imports are important to this segment and also generate extra revenue. Italy’s Peroni, Japan’s Sapporo, Germany’s Warsteiner and recently arrived Mahou from Spain are good choices here.
    As for price, it is an important factor with this group. Most still have limited spending power and therefore are price-conscious. The optimum selection, however, should consist of some easy drinking imports and a few discerning domestics like Yuengling lager or the retro-cool Pabst Blue Ribbon.

An Older, Wiser, More Discerning Palate
    For bars and clubs whose clientele skews older, consider serving some more distinctive beers. This clientele drinks less, but likes better quality. They are generally more educated about beer and appreciate good, interesting brews.
    Craft beers sales are growing at a fast pace. The Brewers Association, the trade group for craft brewers, reported that craft beer sales were up again for the second consecutive year. In 2005, the segment boasted an increase of 9 percent, having sold an estimated 7.2 million barrels up from about 6.5 million barrels in 2004. 2006 statistics expect to show another increase.
    Every good bar and pub serving this demographic should have at least a few interesting and exciting beers to offer. Most of these customers are more enlightened and selective in their choice. They want something out of the ordinary with a quality taste.
    Presenting these brews however requires a well-trained staff aided by a creative, well-written beer menu. Another smart strategy for selling craft beers is to offer small samples to customers to encourage them to try these brews. Present both local microbrews and craft beers from elsewhere.
    For example, on the east coast, Dogfish Head Brewery out of Delaware is a popular choice and doing tremendously well. If you’re looking ahead to the summer months, the wheat beers, Pilsners and India Pale Ales (IPAs) are excellent choices to serve.

From Sports Bars to the Local Corner Bar
    As part of the “know your customer” strategy, every sports bar should offer some interesting beers, as well as the common selections. Pubs that cater to well-educated,  more affluent professionals, who are serious about their beer selections, should offer some very good beers, including crafts and imports such as Guinness, Smithwicks, McSorley’s and Sierra Nevada.

Beer and Food
    Just as wine and food pairings are the norm in fine restaurants worldwide, so too are beer and food matches. By helping customers select beers which best compliment their entrées, restaurants are making their customers’ dining experience more pleasurable, while increasing their beer sales.
    Some pubs will have great food, extensive wine lists, super single malt scotches, 20 different vodkas and then offer gas station beers. It’s a missed opportunity to present a more refined image and increase revenues. Another way to market beer and create excitement for your clientele is through beer dinners, which feature menus in which various beers are key ingredients, while other beers are served alongside the dishes.  
    Fuller’s London Pride, Unibroue’s La Fin Du Monde and Vermont’s Longtrail Pale Ale all pair very well with a range of dishes.

Ask for Support
    Bars, nightclubs and restaurants should look to their distributors for advice regarding other promotions to help increase beer sales. Again, the promotion should be simple and reflect the customer base. Furthermore, it should be conducted within the guidelines of the State Liquor Authority (SLA). It is advisable to seek clarification on any promotion well in advance of publicizing it or holding an event in order to avoid violation of any SLA regulations.   
    Probably the best promotional tool for marketing and selling beers within the nightclub, bar and restaurant environment is a well-designed beer menu. Again, beer distributors can be very helpful in advising owners/managers as to what the beer menu should contain in terms of product descriptions and other relevant information.
Along with beer menus, all of the breweries produce great point-of-sale materials, which should be used in promotions and, as appropriate, as merchandising tools, to generate excitement and interest.

Summer Time is Brew Time
    The summer is a great time to stimulate greater beer interest and sales.
With their very refreshing, light-bodied and thirst-quenching taste, wheat beers are the most famous summer beers. Wheat beers use a certain percentage of malted wheat in addition to malted barley. The malted wheat is what gives these beers their interesting fruity flavors and a cloudy haze and pale color.
    First developed in Germany and Belgium where they are called Weissebeir and Witbeir (White Beer), respectively, these beers are great food beers and compement many different dishes. They are a perfect match for salads, seafood and spicy dishes.  Erdinger Hefe-Weisse is a great German wheat beer from the town of Erding in Bavaria.
    India Pale Ales (IPAs) are heavily hopped, giving them a spicy green taste which is very refreshing during the hot summer months. In the last five years, a few adventurous American breweries have been pushing the envelope on hop levels in their beers. Extreme brewer Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head Brewery set the bar for American IPAs with his “60 Minute,” “90 Minute,” and “120 Minute” creations for which he continually adds fresh hops during the brewing process for 60, 90 and 120 minutes, respectively. The beers range in alcohol content from 6, 9 and 20 percent.
    Finally, lagers are the most popular style of beer in the world, accounting for 95 percent of all beer sold. Among the lagers are Pilsners, lagers perfected by the Germans and featuring high quality barley malts, lager yeasts, fresh hops and long cold storage times. The American versions of lager usually use high levels of bland adjuncts like rice or corn to keep their prices low. Pilsner beers are perfect on summer days, light and crisp with a little refreshing fruitiness. They are great paired with summer’s lighter foods.
    Pilsner Urquell from the town of Pilsen in Czech Republic (originally part of the German Hapsburg Empire) is the original of the species (Urquell is the German word for “original”). Brooklyn Brewery (New York), North Coast Brewery (California) and Dogfish Head Brewery also make very good Pilsner lagers. 
No other beer conjures up a more relaxed island fun image than Red Stripe lager from Jamaica, ideal for any summer party.
    Summer, fall, winter or spring can be successful beer seasons for any nightclub, bar or restaurant owner who recognizes that beer, when approached strategically and with knowledge of its many varieties, can accommodate any establishment’s specific clientele.                         NCB

G. Cianciulli is sales administrator with distributor Oak Beverages in Blauvelt, N.Y.