Monday, August 30, 2010

Another refill option for NYC: Beer Growlers


I visited a couple of Whole Foods stores over the weekend, to purchase a new Klean Kanteen * and a couple of Lunchbot containers. There will be more on the Lunchbots in a future post.

At the Union Square Whole Foods, I saw something new. Beer in refillable growler jugs! They just started offering it a month ago. You pay a bit more for the jug on your first visit, but then you return that jug and get a new one filled with local beer, and don't pay the extra fee.

Beer growlers aren't a new thing in NYC, but they aren't common either. I'm glad to see it spreading to more locations. And Whole Foods isn't the only place you can find them. Here is an article with a list of locations for refillable beer in NYC:

Growlers, the New Old Beer Conveyance - NY Times

*The bummer about Klean Kanteens, Siggs, and other re-usable bottles, the reason many people cite for not getting them, is the cost of replacing them when they get lost. I had my old Kanteen for almost two years. Compared to the cost of bottled water, the replacement price is negligable. I could buy a new Klean Kanteen every month and still save money in comparison to purchasing a bottle of water every day.

1 comment:

Daniel said...

I'm a big fan of craft beer, and you are right that growlers are a more eco-friendly option for beer drinkers. Drinking draft beer when out at bars is also a better option, and for the same reasons: you've got one reusable keg instead of hundreds of glass bottles.

Here in NC, we can only get growlers filled where the beers is made. Breweries can fill growlers, but not beer stores or grocery stores. I hope we can change this in the future.