Brewery doesn't allow mixing beers

[danimalt]

So I'm at a brewery tonight with my buddy and he orders the equivalent of a black and tan with the house brews. The waitress proceeds to tell us that we can't mix beers and that they are sort of beer snobs about mixing. To which I say "you gotta be kidding me right, I'm a brewer and I mix my beers all the time isn't that what craft brewing is all about. Isn't that part of the process of creating better beers." She then proceeds to tell me that her husband has been brewing for seven years and never mixes beers. I find that hard to believe and ask her about her husbands setup to which she can't explain heads or tails and yet knows for an absolute fact that he never mixes beers. Moving on, if I do the logic (that's how I roll) the only people that know we are mixing is 1. the waitress, 2. the bartender, 3. me and my buddy. Seems like a win win to me since we get what we want and they get to milk us for some of our hard earned cash. My question is 1. How many of you mix beers (I do it all the time) and 2. is it wrong to mix beers at a brewery when I am the one paying for my beer?.

 

[yeahfairly]

Meh.... I refuse to be held down by "The Man" and his ridiculous rules and regulations! I would have ordered one of each beer, a third empty glass and mixed them myself. It sounds like the Brewer lacks confidence in the flavor and quality of his brew...... or he is just an anal jackwad!

Black and Tan is lifelong favorite of mine...... and ranks slightly behind the Irixx Car Bomb! Yes, the ICB isn't a mixed beer but after a few of them you don't care!

 

[Chadwick]

I don't usually mix my beers. However, I don't feel opposed to it at all. Heck, if someone wanted to mix Budweiser with Miller light, go for it. Two wrongs won't make a right, but whatever floats your boat.

I can't imagine being a customer in a pub and have someone tell me I can't mix two beer. Heck, I paid for them. I can mix it with Mountain Dew if I want too. lol

 

[Pugnax88]

That just doesn't seem right. You are paying for them, what do they care?

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[Hello]

I don't mix beer and I'm a brewer so that logic that if he's a brewer and doesn't mix beer is deemed as BS, then you're wrong. I don't hate mixing beer, I just never think about it.

As a customer you are right. She shouldn't have forbidden you to mix a beer. Next time buy both and take matters into your hands. She sounds like a tool.

If her husband brews and she cannot make heads or tails out of his equipment, who are you to question her husband's hobby? I bet lots of wives of brewers aren't 100% sure what everything is if they're not directly involved in the process.

To me it sounds like you were denied something silly and for a stupid reason resulting in a slightly immature response. I'd go back there and order what you want even if it means mixing it yourself.

 

[geouy0523]

Probably something about how they want you to taste the beers as the brewer intended. But I'm all for mixing, I like to take my blueberry ale and mix it with my oatmeal stout and have black and blue's.

I don't usually mix my beers. However, I don't feel opposed to it at all. Heck, if someone wanted to mix Budweiser with Miller light, go for it. Two wrongs won't make a right, but whatever floats your boat.

I can't imagine being a customer in a pub and have someone tell me I can't mix two beer. Heck, I paid for them. I can mix it with Mountain Dew if I want too. lol

I used to work with a guy from Germany who would have the waitress mix Pepsi and bud lite. Seemed disgusting to me but he swore they were great.

 

[Teromous]

I really don't want to derail the thread into oblivion, but when you guys say you are brewers are you saying you are homebrewers or commercial brewers? I ask because it sometimes feels like there is a lack of distinction between the two and there are commercial brewers who use this forum. (by commercial I mean you brew for money)

But on to answer your questions:
1. I can't recall mixing any of my beers, but it's a pretty common practice especially if you make gueuze.

2. I'm not sure if it's necessarily wrong, but if it's their policy then I mean...move on? I wouldn't get bent out of shape over house rules. I went to a brewery and their house rules were that women always got served first. I don't have a problem with that rule, but I could have argued about equality, etc. House rules are house rules...maybe they want you to experience the beer a certain way...maybe there's some backwards law they're adhering too...who knows.

 

[brew_ny]

I'd go back there and order what you want even if it means mixing it yourself.

easy solution

 

[Braufessor]

Personally, I don't mix beers and never really understood the desire to do so. I have had some mixed beers - but never came across any that were any better than "drinkable."

That being said - who cares if someone wants to mix a couple beers? I would have just ordered two beers and a glass of water. Dump the water and mix the beers myself.

Sounds like the episode of "Soup Nazi" on Seinfeld...... "No beer for you."

 

[Grannyknot]

Its really hard to get a proper black and tan from taps anyway.
You aren't mixing the 2 beers at all. Just like oil & water, one sits atop the other....for the most part.
To do it with taps, you need to turn the serving pressure of the stout down and probably still pour it over a spoon.

Regardless, to each his own. I probably wouldn't blacklist a brewery for refusing to do so.

 

[brew_ny]

Sounds like the episode of "Soup Nazi" on Seinfeld...... "No beer for you."

first thing that came to mind

 

[dpatrickv]

Personally, I don't mix beers and never really understood the desire to do so. I have had some mixed beers - but never came across any that were any better than "drinkable."

This. I have never understood mixing beers and I have no problem with a brewery telling me that they don't do that. It's kind of going to a big bourbon bar, asking for a Pappy and coke, and then the bartender/owner telling you no. It doesn't matter if you are paying for it, that bourbon isn't going to be wasted and mixed with coke.

 

[dogslapbrewery]

One of my favorite mixing combos are Guinness & cherry wheat.

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[countchunkula]

I only recently tried mixing beers (and I agree that a proper black & tan is not a mix). I currently have a Zombie Dust clone and a Chinook/Simcoe APA on tap. The ZD is running low, so I've been mixing the two in order to satisfy my citrus hop cravings.

 

[BikerBrewer]

I guess they have that right to serve their product the way they want which is probably to showcase their brews. Don't quiet understand it though. There is a small brewpub here, which has fantastic soup too, produces 4 or 5 brews but mixes them to produce about 12 differnt ones and very good. I guess a very common pratice years ago. I guess to each his own.

 

[ArcaneXor]

Their house, their rules is the way I look at it. Many brewers see themselves as artists. I personally very much like a Black n Tan with Guinness and Bombardier, and I frequently blend my homebrews, but I respect brewers that do not wish to serve mixed drinks on their premises.

 

[SimonHucko]

I work at a brewpub and our brewmaster/owner is very picky about how his beers are served - proper glass, no fruit, no mixing. we don't have a nitro faucet, so usually telling people that the beer won't separate is enough. I have poured a customer two half pints and given them a third glass to mix in if they so choose, but most people are ok with drinking the beer as-is. I sometimes mix a little beer out of the taps as a personal experiment, but it never produces anything better than the base beer (and often ends up worse).

running a business is a tough mix of sticking to your vision and giving the customers what they want. I think we can all agree that we want brewmasters who are passionate about their beer and want to present it in the best way possible. on the other hand, if a customer is that adamant about mixing beer, I would probably make an exception to keep them happy.

 

[masonsjax]

Black and tan separates cleanly because Guinness is much lighter gravity than bass and stays on top if poured carefully. Most craft stouts are higher gravity and won't stay separate no matter how carefully it's poured. That said, we have a local brewpub that will blend anything you want after telling you it wont be pretty.

 

[b-boy]

I do love a good Black and Tan. But, if a bar can't make it right, I don't want any part of it. In this case I would've just moved on.

An owner should be able to do whatever he wants in his own establishment, so I can't fault the place for not making the Black and Tan. However, we're not talking about fine art here - it's beer. If I owned the place, I'd rather give the customer what they want than risk losing them over some philosophical difference.

 

[Zuljin]

It's the only solution.

 

[Homercidal]

I can't understand why a bar wouldn't want to give the customer what they want. The brewer might have some kind of snobby attitude about his beer, but that doesn't mean the person who paid for it shouldn't be able to have their OWN opinion on what they like and get served a drink they actually want.

At Mount Pleasant Brewing I've had the bartender not only mix drink, but serve me free samples of different local favorite blends. It was actually really fun and there were some very tasty mixes.

Sounds like the place in question was some snob brewery in the PNW... (Think Portlandia...)

 

[judsonp]

I used to work with a guy from Germany who would have the waitress mix Pepsi and bud lite. Seemed disgusting to me but he swore they were great.

That's Diesel. It's popular in Germany, and it's not tasty.

 

[flars]

The no mixing, by the bartender rule, may be the time involved and the customer who will say, ..you didn't do it right give me a different one' or 'this tastes crappy, you can't brew a decent beer.

 

[rodwha]

I bought a couple of 32 oz mugs as I had made a honey blonde that I used far too much honey malt in. I also had some commercial light wheat beer that came in a variety pack that I didn't care much for so I mixed them and was happy!

But I don't typically mix beer, although I do like a black and tan, though that was before I learned about craft beer and seen the explosion of it.

 

[cmoewes]

I've been to a couple of taprooms, I won't say where, that also wouldn't mix beers. I don't know why, the just "Don't do it".

But, knowing the servers I was able to get them to do it, let just say that a Russian Imperial Stout mixed with the small beer made form the second runnings was awesome!!!!

 

[downtown3641]

So, this particular brewery chooses not to offer half-and-halfs or black-and-tans or whatever. Who cares? That's their choice. The brewer has every right to decide what sort of product he or she wants to present to consumers.

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[mrduna01]

Ill raise another vote for "I've never mixed my beers or any at a brew pub" and I've been brewing five years. This act does not prove a brewers experience or lack thereof. That being said it's been said many times already that you should have ordered two beers and asked for an empty glass. Why was this not the first thought to cross your mind in the first place?

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[iaefebs]

I started out shaking my head at why a brewery wouldn't allow mixed beers. Although I thought the OP was being a little pompous and a bit of a snob when challenging the waitress. Of course you should be allowed to mix beers. That's the fun part. I do it all the time. The bartenders get it, and usually have a few blends to suggest. My favorite name I came up with was a Darth Vader, it was a RIS mixed with Dirty Bastard (Founders) it was an Imperial Bastard.

 

[Black Island Brewer]

Any brewer who puts his ego over a simple order like this one has the right...to go out of f**king business. The request is not unreasonable, and could actually generate more business if it becomes popular. Stupidity like that DESERVES to fail.

 

[myelo]

So I'm at a brewery tonight with my buddy and he orders the equivalent of a black and tan with the house brews. The waitress proceeds to tell us that we can't mix beers and that they are sort of beer snobs about mixing.

If I had a problem with that, I would have said something like "Really? That's an interesting rule and I haven't run into that before. Any way I could talk with the manager/owner about this? I would like to hear their thoughts."

There's really no point in arguing with a server. She's just following the rules of her employer.

Better to have a conversation with the person who makes the rules and see if you can come to some sort of agreement. A nice brewer-to-brewer discussion … usually somebody learns something.

 

[strambo]

I would have done it and if it seems popular, would add a few mixes with catchy names to the menu. Easy way to expand your product line with no cost. If the customers like your beer, why care if they like it mixed or straight?

I've messed around a little with homebrew mixes, but usually don't have things that mix well.



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[Nightshade]

So I'm at a brewery tonight with my buddy and he orders the equivalent of a black and tan with the house brews. The waitress proceeds to tell us that we can't mix beers and that they are sort of beer snobs about mixing. To which I say "you gotta be kidding me right, I'm a brewer and I mix my beers all the time isn't that what craft brewing is all about. Isn't that part of the process of creating better beers." She then proceeds to tell me that her husband has been brewing for seven years and never mixes beers. I find that hard to believe and ask her about her husbands setup to which she can't explain heads or tails and yet knows for an absolute fact that he never mixes beers. Moving on, if I do the logic (that's how I roll) the only people that know we are mixing is 1. the waitress, 2. the bartender, 3. me and my buddy. Seems like a win win to me since we get what we want and they get to milk us for some of our hard earned cash. My question is 1. How many of you mix beers (I do it all the time) and 2. is it wrong to mix beers at a brewery when I am the one paying for my beer?.

We do it all the time at the place I brew for, in fact we will suggest some of our favorite mixes to customers. It's their money and their preference neither of which cost us any more or less to put in front of them.

I also regularly mix beers at a couple of the taphouses I stop in at and have never had them tell me I couldn't do it, in fact most of them suggest mixes that are popular currently.

Sounds like your waitress just wanted a lousy tip, I hope you obliged her.

 

[Rhumbline]

I don't normally mix beers.

As for their policy, it is their place and they can make the rules. No different than a chef who doesn't allow salt and pepper on the tables or steak sauce in the dining room.

If their principles are more important than squeezing every last dollar out of the customer I'm fine with that.

 

[uatuba]

I've been brewing since 2004 and have yet to mix beer with anything, including other beer.

I'm not looking at doing it any time soon, either. If I want a fusion of styles, I'll create that in the mash tun.


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[alane1]

every year for my Halloween party I make a pumpkin ale, I don't like pumpkin ale but the crowd loves it. Sometimes you have to make things people like, not what you think they should like.

 

[Spookgolds]

They have the right as a business to do what they want, and you as a consumer have the right to choose where you patronize. If you don't like something, then just don't go there anymore.

 

[masonsjax]

It's not a choice it's a beer.

 

[Darwin18]

Did they not realize they could charge you more for a black and tan than just a regular draft?

 

[Homercidal]

Maybe they think their beer is just to precious and special to allow a mere drinker to modify it to their own desires. Place like that I'd visit once.

 

[flars]

Remember the hipster video?

"Hey there! umm bartender. Mix me up two of your beers that will really taste YUMMY!" "The last bar I was at, the mixes tasted like crap to Me. I'm going to tell everyone not to go there! Their craft beers are crap beers."