Contemplating Craft Beer in Plastic Cups

This guy walks in to a bar. He heard about this uber-rare batch 1 barrel-aged sour imperial fruit beer that was being offered on tap for a super-limited time. “I’ll take one of the uber-rare batch 1 barrel-aged sour imperial fruit beers!” says the dude. “That will be eight dollars.” And just as the crumpled ones are slapped on to the makeshift bar, a plastic cup full of priceless elixir is placed haphazardly on to that same plastic card table. “Plastic? Really?” Glasses were available and allowed, but that would be an additional seven dollar charge, bringing the total for a proper eight ounce beersperience to $15. Many people around this guy were just settling for the plastic cups. Looking around, the dude could only justify this behavior when drinking on an airplane or in a stadium where there are no other feasible choices. Does this joke have a punchline? No, cause it’s not a joke. This happened to me at the Cascade Barrel House last month. Bourbonic Plague in a motherfucking plastic cocktail cup.

I could continue this rant for pages. I could talk about how the product deserves more respect. I could talk about how the craft beer consumer expects more. I could talk about how this policy is ‘changed’ when the pourer knows the pouree. And I could talk about how they’ve got racks upon racks of empty glasses just waiting to be used. But I won’t. Instead, I’ve decided to go to industry people and get their opinions of drinking craft beer out of plastic cups. Keep in mind that none of these people knew of my bad experience before I took these quotes.

Dave Fleming, brewer at Lompoc:
What do you think of drinking craft beer out of plastic cups: “It’s like going to a Red Sox game and sitting behind a pole. You can hear everything but so many of the nuances are gone.”
When is drinking out of plastic cups OK: “Maybe at Burning Man?”
What if someone told you Lompoc would start serving out of plastic at the pubs: “No we’re not!”

Ben Flerchinger, brewer at Lucky Lab:
Why glass over plastic: “Glass holds temperature better. It’s easier to recycle and gives off less toxins in a landfill. I prefer glass. It’s aesthetically pleasing.. [it’s about] the whole experience, not just the flavor. I’ve never seen good lacing in plastic cups.”

Irena Bierzynski, brewer at Lompoc:
On seeing someone drinking craft beer out of plastic cups: “I think it’s great. It means you have a full keg and are probably sharing it with your friends.”

Zach Beckwith, brewer at Lompoc:
On glass vs. plastic: “In some circumstances, glass may not be feasible from a pub standpoint, like you don’t have enough glasses. This is why canning has become so popular. You’re not going to hurt yourself breaking plastic [ed note: I disagree here]. For overall enjoyment, glass is the way to go… and it has to be the right glass.”

Dave Tohtz, brewer at Goose Island Brewery:
“It’s not really my preference to drink even the most common of beers out of plastic cups. It cheapens the experience, especially when drinking something special. Glass is much more preferable and I’ll go out of my way to use glass.”

Jason McAdam, brewer at Burnside Brewing:
“I think it’s wrong to serve craft beer in plastic cups. Whether it be a keg party or a beer fest.”

James Walton, brewer at Storm Brewing (Vancouver, BC):
“Plastic cups are the least of [America’s] problems. Feel happy that you can have lots of brilliant beers (compared to the neo-Prohibitionist movement in Canada)”

Shaun Hill, brewer at Hill Farmstead:
“I have mixed feelings. It all, to me, depends upon the location. If you are at an outdoor music venue, glassware seems absurd, right? But drinking Cantillon out of a plastic cup seems hedonistic and wrong. But drinking Budweiser out of stemware at a music venue, that seems over the top. Aesthetic. Intuition. It's all a puzzle. Would I mind if someone drank Hill Farmstead out of a plastic cup at a music venue? Yes.”

Tom Bleigh, brewer at Pyramid/MacTarnahan’s:
“I'm generally opposed to them, but they have their place, especially if they're biodegradable. We often times use them if glassware is presenting chemical or storage off aromas for sensory taste panel. They obviously make a lot of sense for special events, but I'll stick to my guns and say in general, it ain't right."

Glad to hear I’m not alone (FTMP). Still, I encourage you to draw your own conclusions on this one. I’m sure not everyone who reads this will be a beer geek or elitist glassware nerd. At least I’m pretty sure.

Here’s one final anecdote in closing: A guy walks in to a bar. The bartender tries to serve him a rare craft beer in a plastic cup even though glassware is available. After going through the whole conversation above, the guy turns around and walks right the fuck out. The bar makes no money and the guy gets no beer. No one is happy. This is also a true story, and the conclusion of the one above. It happened to me at the Cascade Barrel House last month.

Photo Credits: Angelo DeIeso took the photos of Dave Fleming, Ben Flerchinger, and Tom Bleigh. I got the photo of Irena Bierzynski from here. And the rest are either from me (Jim Bonomo) or uncredited via Facebook. The photo of the Bourbonic was taken by Brent Wilson. As I said, last thing I'm doing is paying that much for a fucking plastic cup.