Drinking Ales

New Draft Beer Technology

This is some awesome new beer technology.  Thought I’d share.

If you have some awesome beer technology to share, join us at the Pub for Beer Enthusiasts, Beertaps.com Pub.

Beer and Brewing Recipes, Questions and Answers

Running beertaps.com has been an interesting ride that was more involved than I thought it would be.  But, it has been fun.  Each new challenge has presented an interesting and useful solution.

For instance, when I was asked about the kegerator a customer just purchased, I realized that there probably are more people out there who have the same questions.  So, I wrote a report and published it on the site.  Then, I wrote an article to let everyone know that I wrote the report.

That’s about the time the second question came in about keeping beer lines clean.  Then, about home brew recipes.  So, I kept writing reports to help people and I kept writing articles to make people more aware.

It started out as a big gaggle of reports that I finally organized into a Learning Center that is now populated with great stuff.  From Home Brew Tips and Tricks to DIY Home Bar Projects, I keep adding to the learning center.  But, I’m always willing to hear what you want to know.  I have a form for questions at http://www.beertaps.com/contact.html

But, the recent interactive is the forum I created.  It’s easier than a report to write a simple answer.  Some answers aren’t as involved as putting an entire article together with pictures and everything.  So, I populated the forum with a few items.  But, it’s new.

I’d love to see some people on there soon.  Start some topics and get some feedback.  How else do you expect a forum to get started?

http://brewdrinker.com/thepub/

Hope to see you there!

DIY – Beer Taps Anywhere You Can Imagine

Wall Tap Ideas

Break In The New Bar With Some Home Bar Events

Let’s say that you have just finished putting the final pieces together and your home bar is ready to entertain. But, you don’t want to just have people over. You want to do it in style. These ideas will work whether you are having a bar warming, or if it has been awhile since you have had friends over and you want to do something special for the occasion.

Beer Tasting

I have thrown some generic beer tastings together where my friends each brought what they thought was the best and everyone there gave each beer an honest try. It’s fun. There’s not too much work involved. But, there is a way better way of throwing a beer tasting.

You can either make your own beer or invite someone who does make beer. Let them put their beer on display and make a big thing of it. Have other beers there. But, the one that gets highlighted is the one that was homemade. That’s something that will really put some excitement into the beer tasting and get your friends over in drogues.

Beer Games

Of course, just being able to drink a nice cold beer with the game on in a bar setting is an awesome time of itself. But, add some beer games and you’ve got some real beer enthusiasm. There are plenty of games you can play. Of course, remember to drink responsibly.

The greatest beer game going today is beer pong. Obviously, you can have a professional beer pong table and really make an official game out of it. But, beer pong is just as fun when your friends are creating impossible shots that only experts on their best day can nail. Make sure you have some great surfaces ready. Tops of bar stools work. But, you’ll want blocks, boards, bowls, pipes, sticks and everything else that can contribute to very imaginative shots.

Kangaroo Court

This is a unique idea that I didn’t come up with, but I did incorporate the idea from my military life to my civilian life when I built my first home bar. Kangaroo Court is a fun court setting with judges, plaintiffs and defendants. A plaintiff will put a defendant on the stand and the rest of the people in the room will act as the judge like how a jury decides a case. What cases will they be solving?

Nothing serious. The plaintiff is allowed to bring up anything. The plaintiff can tell everyone in the room about a very embarrassing moment in the defendant’s life. Of course, the defendant gets a chance to speak. But, it’s almost like a day time talk show at this point. It’s hard to get the crowd on your side once they’ve already been turned. And it’s obvious what happens when the defendant loses or even better, if the defendant actually has the ability to turn the jury around and the plaintiff loses. The loser has to drink.

Your friends will always love your bar. You’ll always have good times there. But once in awhile, you just want to do something different and get everyone out of the habits they start to build. Make it an event.

Getting Your Home Bar Up And Running In No Time

It’s extremely understandable that a beer enthusiast with home bar dreams might get a little out of hand. Of course, it’s a phenomenon that home bars are always quite unique and that should be your ultimate goal. But, you have to start somewhere first and then you have to know when to quit.

Your home bar needs more of you than anything else. But, you need a place to start and then you can start pouring your own personality into it. Let’s begin with the basics, discuss different ideas and then move on to how you can bring a bit of you to your own home bar.

The Bar

Of course, any conversation about a home bar would have to begin with the bar itself. Different types of bars normally begin with a wood décor. But, you can go with stone, marble, or leather as just a few ideas to start.

Of course, your stone or marble bar doesn’t have to be expensive. It can be framed with 2x4s and plywood. Then, cover with stone or marble veneer. Leather can be pasted on and then stylishly fastened with brass snaps. But, the wood look is the best.

Of course, you would still frame with 2x4s and plywood. But then, you want to add the nice looking finish of cedar or pine. Why use the ancient not-so-flattering wood paneling when you can have a great looking bar with the quality natural wood look of grooved paneling? No, I am not a salesperson.

You can panel the top as well. But then, add some style with trim. It’s easy and affordable just adding some trim to touch up the edges of your bar. Once the bar is ready, simply add a kegerator with a beer tap and some beer tap handles. Of course, you know what to do. Go with your favorite beer.

Décor

Starting with shelves to hold a collection of beer glasses is the first place I would go once the bar is in place. You can start collecting sets of beer mugs and glasses that represent different beer choices and different pub locations. People get real excited when they see their beer of choice on your walls or if you have a mug of an exotic bar half way around the world. Those are the types of things that start adding your personality to the bar.

Putting beer signs and mirrors on your walls is the next place for you to go. I once met a friend bartender of mine at his bar because we had plans. I arrived right on time because the beer distributor had just shown up to stock more beer in the bar. That’s the perfect time to get great stuff. I was offered a rare beer mirror that the distributor was told to send around with their drivers on deliveries and offer them as a promotion to different bars they serviced. The driver didn’t care who he was giving mirrors to and I ended up with one.

You may not have that kind of luck. But, everyone can look online for unique beer signs and mirrors that they can purchase to decorate their bar. You can start with a few just to get yourself going and then keep your ears and eyes open for opportunities.

Bar Accessories

Your bar is almost finished. But, it’s not quite ready for company yet. You have to add those types of things no one else has. It’s not as tricky as you might think. But, it does take some “good eye” action and be ready for the moment.

A Jagermeister machine is in just about every bar. But, I have rarely seen one in a home bar. Having a Jagermeister machine steps you up into the professional realm where your friends and family will really be impressed.

But, the hottest trend sweeping the nation right now is beer pong. Having a beer pong table with some great beer pong accessories will make for hours of fun when you have company over to your house. There will always be some people who won’t want to hang out in the bar. They’ll want to sit at the dining room table and talk. Well, let them. Have fun playing beer pong for hours while they talk politics on their stuffy bums.

Home bars aren’t necessarily hard to put together. A little planning and you can have an affordable home bar with very little effort. Then, start adding some of your personality to it so that it’s undeniably yours. Friends who didn’t think of it first will be very envious.