Beer Chick | School is back in session at Atlas Tap House - Beer School, that is
Are you always trying to find that next new and exciting craft beer to try? Do you like talking with other like-minded beer drinking people and scoring cool brewery swag? Want to get better acquainted with that brewery you’ve been hearing about lately and hang out with their rep?
If you said yes to any of these, then you should be going back to school — Beer School that is. In January, Atlas Tap house tried something really cool, but not too cool for school. They chose a brewery to feature all month, put one of their favorite beers from the brewery on special, and picked a day to host a “final exam.”
The goal in Beer School is to be present for five finals throughout the year, which will typically take place once a month, and once you complete five finals you will be rewarded with an Atlas Beer School Diploma T-shirt as well as the ability to brag to your friends that you know a lot more about craft beer than they do!
Atlas started with Stone Brewing and has featured some of their best brews, such as Stone Enjoy By 2.14.16 Black IPA and Bourbon Barrel Bastard Ale. This month’s featured brewery is New Belgium Brewing Company (Fort Collins, Colo. / Asheville, N.C.) with their wonderful Citradelic Tangerine IPA being on tap all month for $5!
Finals for February will be taking place on Thursday, Feb. 18, and will be hosted by Luke from the New Belgium, in addition to featuring some more of the brewery’s offerings, including: BlackBerry Barleywine, Transatlantique Kriek, La Folie, Side Trip, and Fat Tire.
What I really like about the concept is that just the name “Beer School” itself invites you to be inquisitive. When something is presented as an opportunity to learn, the situation becomes less intimidating and you are more likely to try something new. What Atlas is really trying to do, and definitely succeeding at, is taking the tried-and-true concept of a Tap Takeover and elevate it to the next level by painting it with a fresh feel and a cool payoff in the form of a loyalty program.
It’s especially awesome that Atlas is focusing a lot of their educational efforts on local breweries, because in the Carolinas we have plenty to be proud of. The more local beer we drink and share throughout the Grand Strand, the louder our voices will be heard that we want more access to all of the great stuff the distributors are keeping locked up in Charleston, Columbia, Spartanburg, Asheville, and even Wilmington!
Here’s a sneak peak of the Atlas Beer School Spring Syllabus for those of you overachievers who want to look ahead: March will be featuring Oskar Blues Brewery (Brevard, N.C.), April will focus on Highland Brewing Company (Asheville, N.C.), and after Spring Break you have breweries like Palmetto, Lagunitas, River Dog, and many, many more.
So go ahead and get ready to go back to school — the classwork is fun, there’s no homework (unless you want there to be!), and you don’t have to worry about the late bell — just don’t forget your lunch money
This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 11:40 PM with the headline "Beer Chick | School is back in session at Atlas Tap House - Beer School, that is."