1. It helps advertise the brewery
When fans of a local business drinks a beer brewed with the business they know, it exposes them to a new brewery.
Warped Wing brews Esther’s Lil Secret, a holiday collaboration that uses a different Esther Price ingredient every year. Warped Wing co-founder Nick Bowman said the beer gets the brewery’s name and product in front of Esther Price fans, a different demographic than the brewery might typically reach.
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“Esther Price is a heritage brand that’s been around forever, so obviously it’s been great to get in with their fan group,” Bowman said.
Other collaborations involve fan groups with more crossover – Warped Wing has a collaboration with Wood Burl Coffee, a roastery run by the owners of Press Coffee. Bowman said the local craft coffee and beer scenes tend to overlap.
2. It benefits local businesses
By working with a brewery, local businesses can benefit in several ways. The first is that fans of the brewery are exposed to a new business.
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Esther Price makes a small profit off Esther’s Lil Secret when Warped Wing buys the ingredients, but the greatest benefit to the company is the marketing, said Esther Price Accountant Peggy Weaver.
“They really are the ones that approached us and came up with the formula and all that, and their marketing team did the design of the cans,” Weaver said.
Businesses that serve beer can benefit by having an exclusive beer customers can’t get anywhere else. Birra DiSalvo, an Italian-style beer Crooked Handle brews for DiSalvo’s deli, is only available at the deli and brewery. DiSalvo’s Deli owner Ronnie DiSalvo said the beer is popular with customers.
“It’s got a really good flavor to it,” DiSalvo said.
3. It’s a way for brewers to express pride in their community
Though businesses and breweries benefit from collaborations by introducing their products to new customers, they say that’s only part of the motivation. Collaboration allows them to create something with their friends and meet new people.
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Gaining new customers from collaborations is a “fringe benefit” because the main goal is strengthening community ties, Bowman said.
“Dayton’s already a really proud city,” Bowman said. “For us, that’s what gets us the most excited – not, you know, picking up a few new fans … The reason we do it is our town.”
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