If you've ever been in a bar with micro-brews on tap, you've no doubt noticed a trend towards the ornamental, baseball-bat-sized tap handles that accompany some beers. A recent AP story charts this trend and includes a little history on tap handles. Apparently they were a product of a post-prohibition regulation requiring bars to identify which beers they were pouring. I still don't know how that kept bars from putting a different keg on the tap. At any rate, the story highlights the niche that ornate tap handles have become, pointing to companies like Tap Handles, Inc., which cranks out about 200,000 handles a year. Their site has a pretty impressive portfolio of their creations. BeerCollections.com also has a pretty nice gallery of tap handles. I've always been fond of this tap for Rogue's Dead Guy Ale. The AP story also gets extra points for using the term "breweriana."What's in a tap?
If you've ever been in a bar with micro-brews on tap, you've no doubt noticed a trend towards the ornamental, baseball-bat-sized tap handles that accompany some beers. A recent AP story charts this trend and includes a little history on tap handles. Apparently they were a product of a post-prohibition regulation requiring bars to identify which beers they were pouring. I still don't know how that kept bars from putting a different keg on the tap. At any rate, the story highlights the niche that ornate tap handles have become, pointing to companies like Tap Handles, Inc., which cranks out about 200,000 handles a year. Their site has a pretty impressive portfolio of their creations. BeerCollections.com also has a pretty nice gallery of tap handles. I've always been fond of this tap for Rogue's Dead Guy Ale. The AP story also gets extra points for using the term "breweriana."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-28-2006 @ 10:26PM
Nobel Shoes said...
Speaking of Rogue, if anybody has a chance to visit their brewery in Newport, Oregon, I would highly recommend it. Not only do you get to enjoy their amazing brews at their peak and tour their brewery, but the food is Northwest cuisine at its finest.
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10-29-2006 @ 10:29AM
Colin said...
I've been drinking the Dead Guy Ale this week as an homage to Halloween. I've always loved it and it's particularly apt this time of year.
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