Comments on: Dirty beer lines – who you gonna blame?

By: SteveH

SteveH — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 19:05:11 +0000

“And a buddy of mine has refused to order draft there for years because he didn’t think they cleaned their glasses well enough.”

Reminds me of the brew-pub that cleaned their pitchers too well – so well, they couldn’t rinse them clean of iodiphore. Um, yeah…that was a Wisconsin pub too…

By: Rick

Rick — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 16:37:12 +0000

Interesting timing. I was just working on a piece for the Toronado and in interviewing some brewers I learned that one of the big reasons brewers like the Toronado as much as they do is because they clean their own lines. They own their own line cleaning equipment and are diligent in maintaining their lines. I had never really thought too hard on this subject before that, and now I’m wondering just how rare a practice that is in today’s pubs and bars in the US. In our area many bars have their lines maintained by distributors, which I assume is a common practice. I guess I need to figure out how frequently these distributors come out and clean their lines.

By: Eric Trimmer

Eric Trimmer — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 13:52:42 +0000

And while we’re at it, let’s remind bar and tavern managers to do a good job of cleaning their glasses as well.

I got a nasty one the other day. The inside seemed ok, but the outside smelled like garbage juice. (Years ago I had a summer job as a trash collector, so I know what garbage juice smells like…)

And a buddy of mine has refused to order draft there for years because he didn’t think they cleaned their glasses well enough. I thought he was crazy, or just being a sissy, but now I understand.

I’ve noticed dirty lines there, too, but very infrequently.

If I ever go back, I’m ordering a bottle, and no food.

By: Loren

Loren — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 11:20:45 +0000

Line cleaning is a big issue and glad to see it getting a spotlight to help alleviate the issues. I’ve turned in local establishments to the liquor control commission before and sure enough…problem solved. No more butter!

Sidenote: You should take a poll of how many brewpubs do line cleanings daily? Weekly? Monthly? Also yeast cleaning (overall care I guess?)…which is even more important.