Category Archives: Bars

Covid-19 and the return of the Speakeasy

Hear the word “speakeasy” and you probably think of Prohibition; that 13 year period (1920-1933) when the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages were prohibited. The term speakeasy, however, predates Prohibition. Defined as  “a place where alcoholic beverages are illegally sold”, the origin of the term has been traced to early 19th century England, where the term “speak softly shop” denoted a place where smugglers could offload goods and avoid taxes. The term “speak easy shop” was used in Selsea, England in 1844 in reference to an unlicensed tavern. It was first used in the United States in 1889, when Kate Hester, a saloonkeeper in McKeesport, PA told some boisterous patrons to “speak easy, boys!” McKee was selling alcohol without a license.

Thankfully, America’s failed experiment with Prohibition ended with the ratification of the 21st Amendment on December 5, 1933. Saloon owners could now open their doors without the fear of a visit from law enforcement officers in pursuit of those selling illegal alcohol. Alas, as the Book of Ecclesiastes tells us “ What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” And so, here we are, in 2021. The world is in the grip of the Covid-19 pandemic and local and state authorities are circumscribing the gathering of people in bars and craft breweries. The objective is straightforward – to slow down the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Strategies employed by authorities vary from place to place and evolve with the passage of time in response to changing circumstances. When cases of Covid-19 spiked in the spring and summer of 2020, authorities ordered bars and craft breweries  to close. When this occurred, curbside pick-up or home delivery were the only ways that impacted establishments could get their product into the hands of consumers. As restrictions eased bars and breweries were able to invite patrons back into their establishments. However, as Covid-19 infections spiked again, some jurisdictions introduced curfews.  In my state of Ohio, for example, Governor DeWine introduced a 10pm-5am curfew on November 19, 2020. As Covid-19 numbers improved, Ohio’s curfew was extended to 11pm on January 28, 2021 and then revoked on February 11, 2021. The underlying logic was that by closing bars and breweries during their busiest hours the spread of Covid-19 could be mitigated. Breaking curfew in Ohio was a second-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $750 fine. During times that bars and breweries were legally open, social distancing rules had to be observed.

The illegal consumption of alcohol has seen an uptick in the use of the term speakeasy among the nation’s media. “Cops Raid 2 Illegal Clubs, Say Speakeasies Cropping up after State Enacted 10 p.m. Curfew” stated one headline on NJ.com. And my favorite – “Lap Dances, Karaoke, Late Hours: The Speakeasies of the Covid Era” read a headline in the New York Times.

So, what should we make of the emergence of 21st century speakeasies? We certainly should not be surprised that curfew and social distancing laws and guidelines are being flouted. I say “not surprisingly” because if Prohibition taught us one thing it was that any legislation designed to dictate to Americans when and where they can consume alcohol is bound to be met with opposition and disregarded (at least by some members of the population). And so, it has been. Newspapers across the country are filled with stories about bars being visited by law enforcement officers and cited for curfew violations. I should note that breaking curfew to enjoy a beer at the neighborhood bar is not unique to the United States, as this story from South Africa illustrates. South Africa had one of the strictest (if not the strictest) Covid-19-related alcohol legislation – banning its sale and distribution completely. While some of us were content (or at least tolerated) virtual Happy Hours, others clearly wanted the real thing.

Another factor to consider in trying to understand the breaking of alcohol curfews is that visiting a bar or brewery is a key activity in the social life of many individuals. Back in the 1980s, urban sociologist, Ray Oldenburg, introduced us to the concept of the Third Place. Third Places exist in contrast to First Places (home) and Second Places (work) and are those places (bars, coffee shops, bowling alleys, etc.) where we go to gather with friends to unwind. As a result of Covid-19, many Americans have been confined to their First Place (home), with access to Second Places (Work) and Third Places (Social Gathering Places) restricted and denied. Social isolation, forced upon us by Covid-19, has exacerbated loneliness. In an article in the Wall Street Journal, Janet Adamy and Paul Overberg cite research which finds that “loneliness takes a physical toll, and is as closely linked to early mortality as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day or consuming more than six alcoholic drinks a day. Loneliness is even worse for longevity than being obese or physically inactive.” In 2018, The Economist called loneliness a serious public health problem. Today, single person households comprise 28% of all American households.

In his book, The Great Good Place the Urban Sociologist, Ray Oldenburg, wrote about the importance of Third Places in the social life of communities

The highly respected British Anthropologist, Robin Dunbar, has studied the social and mental health benefits of going to a pub. Numerous studies conducted by Dunbar has led him to conclude that “there are social and well being benefits to be derived directly from drinking alcohol, especially in relaxed social environments”. According to Dunbar, hanging out with friends in a bar, drinking beer, telling jokes, exchanging gossip, etc. releases endorphins in the brain. These endorphins “generate a positive feeling in a person, similar to that of morphine. So we feel good. And crucially, alcohol also activates the endorphin system, which in itself will enhance social bonds among those who indulge together.” Dunbar also cites research that shows that the probability of still being alive twelve months after a heart attacks was higher for people with vibrant social networks. To quote Dunbar, “our social networks play a central role in our ability to survive the worst traumas that life can throw at us. And those networks are very clearly enhanced by the use of alcohol”.

Robin Dunbar, the respected British Anthropologist, writes eloquently and convincingly about the social and health benefits of drinking alcohol

For many of us, Covid-19 is the worst trauma that life has thrown at us. Social isolation has taken a huge toll on human society. Within that context it is perhaps understandable why curfews (and even social distancing) laws have been flouted, and why the speakeasy has reappeared, albeit temporarily, as part of the American vernacular.

Further Reading:

Dunbar, Robin I. M., Jacques Launay, Rafael Wlodarski, Cole Robertson, Eiluned Pearce, James Carney, and Pádraig MacCarron. 2017. Functional benefits of (modest) alcohol consumptionAdaptive Human Behavior and Physiology, Volume 3, pp. 118–133.

Oldenburg, Ray. 1989. The Great Good Place. De Capo Press: Cambridge, MA.

Craft Breweries – A Neighborhood Amenity?


Along with my colleague, Isabelle Nilsson of the University of North Carolina in Charlotte, I recently published a study that examined the impact of craft breweries on property values in the city of Charlotte, NC. In the study we looked a properties sold between 2002 and 2017 . To summarize our findings, we discovered that the opening of a craft brewery in Charlotte resulted in a 9.8 percent increase in the value of single-family homes and a 3.2 percent increase in the value of condominiums. Interestingly, the opening of a craft brewery had no impact on the value of commercial properties. Charlotte is a fast growing city with a vibrant craft brewing scene – twenty-one craft breweries opened in the city between March 2009 and October 2016.

Our study in the journal Growth and Change analyzed the relationship between craft breweries and property vales in Charlotte, NC

Our explanation for our findings is relatively straightforward. A craft brewery is, for many people, a neighborhood amenity. Imagine it is a warm June evening, and you decide that you would like to pop out for a couple of pints of craft beer. What could be better than being able to walk to the neighborhood craft brewery and doing just that. In a previous blog entry, I suggested that many craft breweries are emerging as a new type of Third Place on the American landscape – community gathering spots where people can go and enjoy a beer and relax, while engaging in conversation with other patrons. Being within walking distance of such places is clearly desirable. Indeed, this is a topic that I am going to talk about next month at the annual meeting of the Altoona Blair County Development Corporation.

I will be talking about craft breweries as Third Places at the 2019 Annual Meeting of the Altoona Blair County Development Corporation

But it’s not just proximity to a craft brewery that raises property values. Previous studies have shown that being near a Whole Foods, a Trader Joe’s, or a Starbucks also results in higher home’s values. It seems clear that people appreciate being able to walk to a nearby craft brewery, coffee shop, or grocery store. Indeed, a recent study by the American Planning Association found that fifty-six percent of Millennials prefer to live in walkable communities. And, as market research has clearly demonstrated, Millennials are the demographic cohort primarily responsible for the growth of craft beer. Walkability seems to valued by large swathes of American society. The same study found that forty-six percent of active Baby Boomers also prefer to live in walkable neighborhoods.

Heist Brewery, one of the breweries contributing to increased property values in Charlotte, NC

This semester I am teaching a graduate course in The Geography of Beer and Brewing at the University of Toledo. Students enrolled in the class have to write a term paper. One of the students is writing her paper on the topic of craft breweries and walkability. Walkability is a simple concept really – how friendly is a neighborhood to those who wish to walk to bars, restaurants, grocery stores etc? The walkability score of my neighborhood is 56 (that’s out of a maximum of 100). This makes it “somewhat walkable”, meaning that some of my errands can be accomplished on foot. You can calculate the walkability of your neighborhood by typing in your home address here. The website Walkscore.com identifies a number of factors that determines a neighborhood’s walkability. These include schools and places of employment being within walking distance for most residents, streets being designed with bicyclists, pedestrians, and public transportation in mind, and the provision of plentiful of public spaces where residents can gather and relax. Bekka, my student is focusing on craft breweries in San Diego, CA and is examining the extent to which they are located in walkable neighborhoods. As I write this, she is still in the middle of analyzing the data that she has gathered. I am curious as to what her findings will show.

Just as living near a craft brewery (or a Whole Foods or a Starbucks) may enhance the value of your home, so does living in a walkable neighborhood more generally. The real estate brokerage company Redfin analyzed the impact of walkability on home prices across fourteen major metropolitan areas in the United States. They found that, on average, increasing the Walk Score by just a single point results in a 0.9% increase in home prices.

A potential concern of living near an establishment where alcohol is served is that it could potentially result in more crime in the neighborhood. And there are some studies that have shown higher crime rates in the immediate neighborhoods surrounding bars. This may not be the case when it comes to craft breweries, however. In a previous post guest-blogger Julie Wartell provided data from Portland, OR which suggested that crime rates are lower in the immediate environs (within fifty feet) of a craft brewery than in the immediate environs of a regular bar. The explanation as to why this might be the case are unclear. However, it may have something to do with both the attitude of both the craft beer drinker and the craft breweries that sell their beer in their on-site taprooms. According to Kris Spaulding of Brewery Vivant in Grand Rapids, MI, craft beer is “more about enjoying the craft than getting drunk”. As Fritz Hahn, a writer for the Washington Post, stated, “I’d rather drink beer longer, not get drunk faster”. Brewery Vivant also has a four-drink maximum for its patrons. I am not aware of any scientific studies comparing the drinking preferences and habits of craft beer versus non-craft beer drinkers, but my gut feeling is that the observation of Kris Spaulding is not far off the mark.

Later this year, Isabelle and I (in collaboration with another colleague) hope to expand our analysis of craft breweries and property values to include more cities. At the moment we do not know how many cities we will include in our expanded analysis, or what those cities will be. But I expect that we will include cities in different parts of the country, cities of different sizes, and cities on different socio-economic trajectories (e.g., shrinking versus growing cities). By doing so, we will be able to draw conclusions that are more generalizable. Watch this space!

Further Reading:

Nilsson, Isabelle and Neil Reid. 2019. The value of a craft brewery: On the relationship between craft breweries and property values. Growth and Change, https://doi.org/10.1111/grow.12292

2018 Year in Review

So another year is about to draw to a close. And with that, it is time to look back on my brewery visits for the year. This year, I visited a record sixty-six breweries. At the start of the year, I set myself a goal of fifty-two breweries, an average of one per week. So I more than met my target.

Of the breweries that I visited, twenty were in my home state of Ohio, forty-one were in states other than Ohio, and five were outside of the United States. In addition to Ohio, I had the opportunity to visit breweries in five other states – Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, and Texas. Outside of the United States, I visited breweries in Italy, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.

Of the sixty-six breweries that I visited, I had been to thirteen of them at least once before (indicated in italics in the lists below), which means there were fifty-three breweries that I visited for the first time.

This year, I also kept track of the craft beer bars that I visited. Throughout the year, I visited nine craft beer bars – three in Austin, TX, and one each in  Toledo, OH and Ann Arbor, MI. I also visited craft beer bars in Rome (Italy), Lisbon (Portugal), Zurich (Switzerland), and Innsbruck (Austria).

Creating a list of craft beer bars visited did raise some interesting definitional questions. To qualify as a craft beer bar, does that mean that all beer that it sells must be craft beer? If not, what proportion of the beer must be craft beer? Does a bar that sells predominantly macro-beer, but has a couple of craft beers on tap, qualify as a craft beer bar? I did give this some thought as I set out to create this list. Here is where I ended up, from a definition perspective. To qualify as a craft beer bar, the beers available must be predominantly craft beers. It is ok to have one or two macro-beers, but no more than that. Also, it must have craft beers from more than one brewery. For example, while most of the beers available at the Brewdog bar in Rome are brewed by Brewdog, the bar does have a nice, albeit, small selection of other craft beers. While you may debate the criteria I used to define a craft beer bar, it worked for me.

Below you will find a list of all the craft breweries and craft beer bars that I visited during 2018. Following this list, you will find one photograph from each of the places that I visited. I hope that you enjoy these. They are intended to capture the beauty and diversity of craft beer.

For 2019, I will once again set a target of fifty-two craft breweries. While I am tempted to try to beat my 2018 total of sixty-six breweries, I want to keep this a fun, non-stressful, venture – fifty-two seems a reasonable target.

Ohio Breweries (20)

US Non-Ohio Breweries (41)

Non-US Breweries (5)

Craft Beer Bars (9)

Collision Bend Brewing Company, Cleveland, OH
Torn Label Brewing Company. Kansas City, MO
Grizzly Peak Brewing Company, Ann Arbor, MI
Boulevard Brewing Company, Kansas City, MO
Basecamp Brewing, Portland, OR
Ethereal Brewing, Lexington, KY
Casual Animal Brewing, Kansas City, MO
Draught House Pub & Brewery, Austin, TX
Hair of the Dog Brewery, Portland, OR
Grapevine Brewing Company, Grapevine, TX
Border Brewing Company, Kansas City, MO
McMenamins John Barleycorns, Tigard, OR
Earnest Brew Works, Toledo, OH
Elbow Lane Brew and Smokehouse, Cork, Ireland
Nano Brew, Cleveland, OH
Great Black Swamp Brewing Co., Perrysburg, OHBlue Tractor BBQ & Brewery, Ann Arbor, MI
Maumee Bay Brewing Company, Toledo, OH
Black Fire Winery & Brewery, Tecumseh, MI
Flatrock Brewing Company, Napoleon, OH
Rising Sons Brewery, Cork, IrelandCatawba Island Brewing Company, Port Clinton, OHBlack Frog Brewery, Holland, OH
Patron Saints Brewery, Toledo, OH
Twin Oast Brewing Company, Catawba, Island, OH
Vanguard Brewing Company, Wilsonville, OR
Anbra Brewery, L’Aquila, Italy
Blueskies Brewery, Onsted, MI
Armadillo Ale Works, Denton, TX
Market Garden Brewing Company, Cleveland, OH
Franciscan Well Brewery, Cork, IrelandDeception Brewing, Dundee, OR
Brink Brewing Company, Cincinnati, OH
Blue Owl Brewing, Austin, TX
Great Lakes Brewing Company, Cleveland, OH
Austin Beerworks, Austin, TX
Mirror Twin Brewing Company, Lexington, KY
Wayfinder Beer, Portland, OR
Butcher and The Brewer, Cleveland, OH
B. Nektar, Ferndale, MI
Blue Stallion Brewing Company, Lexington, KY
Brewer’s Table, Austin, TX
Wild Side Brewing Company, Grand Rapids, OH
Brewery Emperial, Kansas City, MO
Little Beast Brewing, Beaverton, OR
Deep Ellum Brewing Company, Dallas, TX
Windermere Brewery, Ings, United Kingdom
Arbor Brewing Company, Ann Arbor, MI
Denton County Brewing Company, Denton, TX
Urban Artifact, Cincinnati, OH
10 Barrel Brewing, Portland, OR
Ill Mannered Brewing Company, Powell, OH
Country Boy Brewing, Lexington, KY
Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery, Ann Arbor, MI
Rock House Brewing, Lexington, KY
Cotton Brewing Company, Adrian, MI
Atwater Brewery, Detroit, MI
Black Cloister Brewing Company, Toledo, OH
Barley & Board, Denton, TX
Inside The Five Brewing Company, Sylvania, OH
Adelbert’s Brewery, Austin, TX
Double Shift Brewing Company, Kansas City, MO
Max’s Fanno Creek Brew Pub, Tigard OR
Brewdog Craft Beer Bar, Rome, Italy
Cerveteca Craft Beer Bar, Lisbon, Portugal
Banger’s, Austin, TX
The International Beer Bar, Zurich, Switzerland
The Casual Pint, Toledo, OH
Beer Plant, Austin, TX
Hop Cat, Ann Arbor, MI
Tribaun, Innsbruck, Austria
Growler USA, Austin, TX

HAPPY NEW YEAR

The Magic Cup

Since 2013, I have served as Executive Director of the North American Regional Science Council (NARSC). NARSC is one of four supranational organizations operating under the umbrella of the Regional Science Association International (RSAI). One of my primary duties as Executive Director of NARSC is to organize the North American Meetings of RSAI. These meetings are held every November, and bring together between 450 and 600 regional scientists from around the world. This year’s meeting was held at the Hyatt Regency Riverwalk Hotel in San Antonio, TX.

The Magic Cup

While organizing the conference takes quite a bit of effort, it is not without its rewards. The host hotel takes good care of me. For example, I get to stay in the hotel’s Presidential Suite, which is a great space for holding meetings and hosting cocktail parties. The day before the conference begins, myself other volunteers who have assisted with the conference’s organization, meet with the hotel staff to review final arrangements for the conference. It was at this meeting in San Antonio, that I was presented with The Magic Cup. At first sight The Magic Cup is not that impressive. It is simply a sixteen-ounce travel cup; the sort that can be found in millions of homes across America, and which are filled with coffee each morning. So what was so magic about The Magic Cup? Its magic lay in the fact that it entitled me to unlimited amounts of complimentary alcohol at the hotel bar for the duration of my stay. And it was not just beer and wine; spirits and cocktails were part of the deal.

I knew that Magic Cups existed. I had seen one before; in 2016 in Charlotte, NC. That year, the Mid-Continent Regional Science Association (MCRSA) had held its annual conference in Charlotte’s Sheraton Hotel. The organizer of that conference, John Leatherman, had been given one. I had eyed it with some envy.

But now, I had my own Magic Cup, with five days to avail myself of its pleasures. The hotel bar had a nice selection of sevenTexas craft beer on draft. These included Amber Ale from Saint Arnold Brewing Company in Houston, Mission Trail Pale Ale from Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling in San Antonio, and El Robison Porter from Busted Sandal Brewing Company in San Antonio. It did not take me long to sample each of the seven brews on draft.

The line-up of Texas craft beers at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in San Antonio, TX

For the duration of my stay, I have no idea how many beers I consumed and, by extension, how much money I saved. I did not gorge myself. I drank no more beer that I would normally have done during a trip of that type and duration. It did mean, however, that in the evening, I rarely wandered beyond the confines of the hotel bar. As a result, I am sure that I missed out on many great drinking spots in San Antonio. But that’s life – there is a price to pay for everything.

It’s A Bird, It’s A Plane, It’s Super Bock

I just returned from five days in Portugal. While there I gave two talks about beer. The first titled ‘Drinking Beer in the Digital Age” was presented to a meeting of The Regional Science Academy, while the second titled ‘Changes in the Global Brewing Industry’ was Continue reading It’s A Bird, It’s A Plane, It’s Super Bock

Il Locale

I was in Copenhagen, Denmark a few weeks ago. I was there attending the fifth biennial conference of the Beeronomics Society. It was my first visit to Copenhagen; my first visit to Denmark, in fact. So I was keen to explore the Danish beer scene. I was there for six days and did indeed get to visit a couple of Danish craft breweries while there, as well as sample a good number of Danish craft beers. What I did not anticipate, however, was drinking a goodly amount of Italian Continue reading Il Locale

Milk, Bread, and Beer

My wife and I met some friends for dinner a few weeks ago. We went to a Mexican restaurant, Cocina de Carlos, that neither my wife or I had tried before. It was an excellent choice – the food was freshly-made, helpings were generous,  and the service was both Continue reading Milk, Bread, and Beer

Loos American Bar

I travel quite a bit in my line of work. And every now and then I come across a bar to which I know I will return should I visit that particular town or city again. Loos American Bar in Vienna, Austria is one such bar. I first visited Loos in August of 2012. A few weeks ago I was back in Vienna and found myself at Loos once again. Loos has everything – Continue reading Loos American Bar