Taprooms Vs. Everybody, Pt. 1

This episode is a two-parter devoted to the intersection of taprooms and
retailers as they increasingly find themselves in competition with each
other for the limited number of customers and dollars available in their
markets for craft beer.

There are a number of factors that have made taprooms a newly competitive
aspect of the three-tier system—or what’s left of it in some cases. Laws
have been changing, the consumer experience is shifting, OG beer bars are
feeling the squeeze from every bar and restaurant seemingly carrying craft
beer now, and larger trends like at-home consumption, bottle shares,
trading circuits, and beer tourism. It’s hard out there for a retailer
right now, and it’s kind of becoming taprooms versus everybody.

The purpose of this two-part series was to dig into that tension and
determine if there’s a concrete principle at play, or if, like most things
in craft beer, it’s more of a loose relationship-based thing where some
competition is welcome, and some isn’t. Most of all: how are we going to be
thinking about all this in the future? Because I think we can all agree
that competition that works in the drinker’s favor is generally a good
thing, but if we start losing great bars in the process, then maybe we’re
not all getting what we want in the end.

Solemn Oath Brewery in Naperville, Illinois is the catalyst behind these
episodes. As a small production brewery making right about 8,000 barrels,
with an expanded taproom and a new one opening in the city of Chicago’s
Logan Square neighborhood, they were starting to feel the pushback from
some key retail accounts who see them as competition. So they took the bold
step of reaching out, inviting those accounts to brew a beer called Taproom
Exclusive, and serving it anywhere but.

They asked us to come along and lead a discussion around how we can maybe
sort all this out productively and gain some perspective. Bavarian Lodge
and Hopleaf joined in—both accounts that have carried Solemn Oath over the
years, but who have been vocal about how they don’t like where things are
heading.

Kudos to everyone for being willing to come the the table—both figuratively
and quite literally—over a beer and dig into the issue.

This episode is recorded at the Hopleaf, and I’m joined by:

Michael Roper, proprietor of Hopleaf

Peter Rock-Tiernes of Middlebrow, who just owned a taproom in Logan Square

Jay Jankowski of Maproom, just down the street from Middlebrow and Solmenn
Oath’s future second taproom

Eric Hobbs, sales director at Solemn Oath

This is Taprooms Vs. Everybody, Pt. 1. Listen in.