Your favorite bar may be tapped out of your favorite drink.
More than 80 San Francisco bar owners signed a letter asking for changes from prominent distributor Golden Brands after many have experienced beer shortages due to infrequent deliveries, according to a report from KPIX.
The company used to deliver once, if not multiple times, a week to various bars in the city. However, as the coronavirus pandemic has drawn on, those shipments have grown rarer.
Less frequent distribution has led to larger quantities per delivery.
For example, the bar Elixir, located at 16th and Guerrero in the Mission District, used to receive weekly dispatches from Golden Brands.
"That two weeks recently went to…every month," Shea Shawnson, general manager of the bar, told the station. "So that’s four weeks of beer that I have to store."
Shawnson said that beers ideally need to stay cold and shouldn’t flip-flop between warm and cool temperatures. As a result, with too much beer for a limited storage space, some bars have had to drop important selections that are exclusive to Golden Brands, such as Miller, PBR, Modelo, Corona and San Francisco’s own Anchor Brewing and its famed Anchor Steam.
"It’s important that I have that Anchor Steam for (bar regular) Victor or the Old Speckled Hen for Keith," Shawnson said.
Now, those beers are disappearing from bar taps across the city.
Bar owners hope that crafting a letter to Golden Brands will lead to a new agreement with the company so that their businesses and regulars can return to normal. They are hopeful there will be a resolution.
Golden Brands was asked for comment multiple times, but did not reply.
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