From guest blogger Jane Moore from FitWellTraveler.com.
Local craft breweries do more than just provide a tasty beverage for beer enthusiasts to enjoy. Breweries are social hot spots with their cool amenities, such as arcades, movie theatres, and entertaining games. They also give back to their communities in a variety of ways by hosting fundraisers and making donations. Local breweries are a welcomed and positive addition to any neighborhood.
Donations and More
Many breweries host a monthly pint night, and often times they donate some of the proceeds to a nonprofit. Breweries also raise money from sales in other ways. For example, Revival Brewing Company in Rhode Island partners with ConserFest on Block Island to raise funds and awareness for local land conservation efforts through proceeds from Night Swim’ah, their Belgian-style Wit. In fact, the image on the can features a girl wearing a Block Island necklace. And Odell Brewing Company in Colorado donates the proceeds from their flight trays (a sample tray that features small servings of four or five beers) each month to a different nonprofit. The monthly donations are usually about $1,200, and the Odell staff is part of the committee that chooses which nonprofit receives the donations.
Local breweries sometimes team up to benefit nonprofits. In North Carolina, over 20 breweries teamed up to create and brew a recipe using ingredients solely from their state to raise money for the North Carolina Brewers Guild. Not only did they raise money for a good cause, they also supported their own local economies in the process.
Other breweries give back in seemingly simple ways. In Minnesota, Summit Brewing Company allows local groups to utilize its community room at no charge. This is helpful for nonprofits, which often have limited office space, but need a large area to host trainings, parties, or fundraisers. Summit Brewing also created a volunteer group to help in the community, and they brew and bottle beer for Finnegans, a brewery nearby that gives 100 percent of their profits to feed the hungry.
Social
First and foremost a brewery obviously functions as, well, a brewery. They create, serve, and distribute craft beer. Most breweries also have a brewpub, which means they have a bar area to serve their beers directly to the public. Many breweries also function as a restaurant, and often have customers who visit solely for their amazing lunch and dinner menus.
Breweries make an excellent social hangout spot, offering beer, food, activities, games, television, and brewery tours. Food and beer bring people together, so family and friends often visit breweries for a night out. Sports fans flock to breweries to cheer on their favorite teams. For entertainment, patrons can play a variety of games, including giant versions of Jenga and Connect 4, as well as cornhole, horseshoe, and more. Revival Brewing hosts a wide array of monthly food pairing events, cornhole tournaments, and fundraisers for local charities in their tasting room. In Atlanta, Monday Night Brewing features movies shown by projector and offers vintage video games. Asheville Brewing Company has an in-house arcade and high-tech movie theater, which only cost $3 a ticket.
Some breweries host events. On Saturdays, Golden Road Brewing in Los Angeles leads a two-mile jog and a 90-minute yoga class for just $10, and participants can enjoy a free pint of craft beer after their workout. Other breweries host activities such as whitewater rafting, snowmobiling, hiking, fishing, hunting, and more. The Great Lakes Brewery in Cleveland loves to serve its community by spreading their beer knowledge. They offer public and private brewery tours, beer school classes, and beer tastings and talks.
Local breweries offer a platform for local artists to share their talents. Some breweries function as a music hall for local musicians to perform, such as Taos Mesa Brewing in New Mexico, which features one indoor stage and two outdoor stages. Wynkoop Brewing Company in Denver has an improv comedy theater in its basement so local actors can shine. Other breweries use paintings and photographs from local artists to line their walls, offering some of them for purchase.
Beer enthusiasts love local breweries for craft beer, but members of the community and beer enthusiasts alike head to the breweries to enjoy the food, atmosphere, and fun activities. Breweries have something to offer almost anyone. Local breweries love their communities back just as much, giving back in big ways and promoting local talents.