Miller Park announced this week that the renovations to their concessions area is now complete and ready to go for opening day, April 3. Miller Park's new food and beverage program includes 24 draft beers, all brewed in Wisconsin, and flowing from Perlick taps. Beer selections include Citrus Happy, Lo-Gii and Outboard from Milwaukee Brewing Co., Happy Place and Upward Spiral from Third Space Brewing, 5th Element from One Barrel Brewing Company, and more.

In today’s digital age, what was “hip” a week ago is likely old news by now. Trends and tastes are changing faster than ever, and nowhere is that more prevalent than with bar and beverage selections. The group with both the influence and the buying power spearheading these changes are Millennials. For restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, it’s important to offer bar and beverage selections that reflect this generation’s tastes. But before you offer the newest craft cocktail, you want to first understand what quenches the thirst of this demographic.

Over the past several weeks, we've looked back at the last century to see how far we've come in the world of bar and beverage. From the 1917 wine vintages in Europe to cocktail trends through the decades, it's been fun reminiscing about what bars were serving 100 years ago. But now we'd like to take a look at why Perlick is here and the reasons we're still in business after all these years. Let's take a look back at 100 years of bar and beverage equipment innovations.

As the entire country gathers around the television on Super Bowl Sunday, we’ll all have our rooting interests. Some will be pulling for their favorite team and others will be rooting for the host to announce, “The wings are ready!” However, a good number of us will have far more interest in the commercials than the football game itself. Ask someone about their favorite play in the Big Game or their favorite commercial and we bet they’ll recite the advertisement first!

The year 1917 began with our nation on the brink of World War I, which would eventually happen a few months later when President Woodrow Wilson declared war on Germany. On a different gridiron, the New Year began with Oregon beating Pennsylvania in the third annual Rose Bowl. And throughout the year and across the country, bars, saloons, and taverns were as popular as ever. But what were bars serving 100 years ago?

Throughout the food and beverage industry, there's no denying a trend toward everything "craft." From beers and cocktails to coffee and chocolate, consumer preferences are trending toward small batch, locally made, sustainably created, and artisanal focused. But how is this trend affecting things that are more traditional, specifically as it relates to bar and beverage? What is happening to all the Irish pubs? Are we losing our love of all things "green"?

The beer industry is always evolving. So are people’s tastes. Customers these days want options when drinking beer, and lots of them. Chalk it up to the craft beer movement. The challenge for a bar or restaurant is to decide how many of those options to provide their patrons. Just as leaving a beer out for too long will make it stale and flat, leaving a tap list unchanged will do the same to your bar.

While some brewers are hesitant to serve sour beers on tap, we're here to tell you it doesn't have to be difficult. As long as you follow a few basic guidelines and maintain your beer lines often you won’t have a problem dispensing your sour beer.

The Guinness Book of World Records claims there is no other place on earth where a beer aficionado can find more beers on tap. It’s been named one of the top 1,000 places in the country to visit before you die. For us, the Great American Beer Festival sounds like paradise. Every fall, craft brewers from around the country, and visitors from around the world, gather to celebrate the best that American beer has to offer. There's a reason the Great American Beer Festival is the “premier U.S. beer festival and competition.”

Baseball and drinking beer. These two American pastimes have gone hand-in-hand over the last 100 years. But the relationship between baseball and beer has had its ups and downs. In the late 1800s, the National League kicked teams out of the league for selling beer. Today, you can’t go one pitch without seeing beer advertisements.

All over America, summer revolves around great weather, captivating entertainment, and of course, delicious food and beverage. Name the food, you can likely find it at an amusement park, state fair, or music festival: deep-fried Twinkies, beer-battered bacon-wrapped brats, ice cold beer. Summer festivals bring in huge crowds over several days or weeks during the season. And if there’s one thing these folks want to do, it’s eat and drink.

With their lower initial cost and ease of maintenance, air-cooled beer systems could be an attractive and cost effective option for many operations. Perlick is excited to announce three new factory engineered, air-cooled beer system options. The one that is perfect for your operation will depend on the proximity of your bar to your walk in cooler, the number of beers you want to serve and your style preference.

It’s been a long day, and your customers are heading into your bar for a nice cold beer. But when the bartender pulls the pint, what's supposed to be a refreshing beverage pours as a glass filled with foam. The reason is because the beer line is running too warm, and the negative effects are numerous. As we get into the heart of summer, warmer temperatures can impact not only your customers’ experience, but also your bottom line. While most 16 ounce beers should have about 2.25 ounces of head, any more than that will leave your customers feeling cheated.

Many holidays have an iconic character associated with them. Christmas has Santa Claus. Valentine’s Day has Cupid. Cinco de Mayo has the bartender. Much like St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo is both a cultural celebration and sales enhancer for bars and restaurants. We know what we do on Cinco de Mayo, but why exactly are we celebrating?

Ever walk into a bar or restaurant, glance upon the massive beer tap list covering hundreds of ales and lagers, and after an hour of studying, decide on that same Irish Stout you always order? There’s an inexact science to curating a beer menu that not only meets the demands of your customers, but maximizes the profitability of your bar. But can there be such a thing as too many beer taps in your bar?

If you were in Washington D.C. for the annual Craft Brewers Conference, you probably left encouraged by the enthusiasm, innovation, and dedicated talent we have in the beer industry. This was certainly made evident in the Craft Brewers Conference 2017 State of the Industry Address. Delivered by the Brewers Associations director, Paul Gatza, and chief economist, Bart Watson, the address highlighted both the good news and the bad news throughout the beer industry, and it was summarized in a recent article from Brewbound.