BLB – ‘Buy local beer’ – says new campaign
BLB is the buzz in the Montana beer industry these days.
A new “Buy Local Beer” campaign is seeing partnership among the Montana Brewers Association, Montana Restaurant Association and Montana Tavern Association.
And, they hope fans of craft beer will get involved, too.
The campaign includes “BLB” oval stickers and hashtags #BuyLocalBeer and #MTbeer to use on social media when posting photos. Stickers are at participating restaurants, bars and breweries. Look for “buy local beer” posters in their windows.
The newer Buffalo Wild Wings in Montana, among them in Great Falls, have incorporated local beers from the start, said owner Brad Anderson, who is part of the campaign.
“Usually a third of the taps are local,” he said. “We’ve always been on board,” he said. “We will do whatever is relevant to stay competitive in the marketplace. Young people drive that category.”
“This is our way of recognizing the local breweries are an important industry in Montana."
The mix of beers on tap includes local and from elsewhere in the state, Anderson said.
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“Local or statewide, it’s based on the right mix of handles,” he said. “We change about once a year, and we probably sell more draft beer in the state than anyone.”
Choosing what beers to carry has gotten challenging with the explosion of microbreweries, Anderson said.
“Everybody has different favorites. I like the darker beers, but we try to have a mix of all of them,” he said. “We track usage and try to keep everything balanced.”
The partnership behind the promotion is a long time coming, said Jeff Grant, owner of Draught Works Brewery in Missoula.
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“All parties involved are really excited we’re coming together on a project that’s fun and unites us and supports and promotes something we all do together,” Grant said. “We’ve got 100 similarities and very few differences. It’s nice to focus on the similarities for awhile.”
Breweries and taverns have been at odds sometimes over regulations meant to keep tap rooms from drawing away bar patrons, such as limits to hours and consumption allowed.
“There are a great deal of Montana bar and restaurant owners who do support the brewing industry and don’t focus on the negative competition side,” Grant said. “There’s bar owners who full get behind the craft brewing scene and enjoy it themselves. Our tap room has never been just about being a tap room. It’s a billboard and test lab for our distribution side of the business.”
Matt Leow, director of the Montana Brewers Association, said the campaign already needs more stickers.
“There’s been a lot of interest in them,” he said. “You’ll see some posts using the hashtags already. It’s creating buzz.”
The market demands restaurants and bars serve local beers, especially if they want to please younger patrons, Leow said.
“Montanans love their craft beer. They want to support things that are from Montana,” he said. “Bars and restaurants are taking note of that and getting on board.”
The campaign’s ultimate goal “is to let the public know where they can get craft beer, to publicize those locations and encourage people to support those businesses supporting Montana craft brewers.”
Many people think of tap rooms when they think of craft breweries.
“We’ve seen tremendous growth in the industry, more than 60 breweries approaching 70,” Leow said. “We love to see the public in tap rooms, but a big part of the growth we’re seeing is thanks to all those bars and restaurants putting local beer on tap. That’s fueling growth in the industry.”
Reach Tribune Staff Writer Kristen Inbody at kinbody@greatfallstribune.com. Follow her on Twitter at @GFTrib_KInbody.
