Best Practices for Keeping Your Brewery Clean and Inviting

No matter how great your beer is, it’s only one component of having a successful brewery. Customers want a positive experience from the moment they enter your place to the moment they leave.

A lot of that has to do with the environment.

No, you don’t have to be something you’re not and hang quirky signs all over or try to fit into whatever is trendy at the moment. Instead, focus on keeping your brewery clean and inviting for your patrons.

Failing to meet those expectations can cause your sales to drop, and people might end up telling their friends and family to steer clear — that’s the worst kind of “advertising” imaginable.

So, what can you do to create a clean, inviting space for your customers? Let’s cover a few tips.

Make Sure Your Appliances are Working

Let’s start with a part of the brewery that your customers might not see, but is incredibly important to their health and safety.

It’s essential to make sure everything is working properly in your brewery to prevent the spread of dangerous bacteria. That includes your refrigerators/cooling units. A good rule of thumb is to keep a thermometer in the back of your refrigerator to make sure it’s keeping everything at the proper temperature. This isn’t just important for the safety of your beer, but for any food you might be serving, too!

If your fridge isn’t up to temperature, do some quick troubleshooting. The coils might be dirty, causing the unit to become sluggish. Cleaning them regularly can help to improve the unit’s energy efficiency and ensure it’s running properly.

If you notice that your fridge is leaking, unplug it and work to determine the cause. Some of the most common quick fixes for a leaky fridge include:

• Flushing the defrost drain
• Clearing the water supply line
• Making sure it’s leveled
• Checking the drain pan

Keeping your refrigeration unit(s) clean — inside and out — will help to prevent bacterial growth and cross-contamination if you serve food. It’s a “behind-the-scenes” practice that should be a top priority.

Be Careful With Chemicals

You already know the importance of keeping your tanks, kegs, and other equipment clean and sanitary. However, you might not use the same chemicals to clean and sanitize everything. In fact, using the wrong one(s) could be dangerous.

One of the best ways to keep your brewery clean — both behind the scenes and in the front of the house — is to color-code your cleaning products and make sure they are properly labeled.

All sanitation supplies should have clear labels so there is no confusion. If a customer sees one of your workers spraying down the bar or a few tables with something that could be harmful to breathe in, they’re going to be turned off to your business. More importantly, if the wrong products are used to clean your equipment, they might not effectively get rid of all bacteria, and could potentially make someone sick.

When you have a busy brewery, your staff doesn’t have time to go searching for the “right” cleaning products. Make sure they know exactly what to grab for different cleaning jobs by using a bright color-coding system and large labels.

Perform Regular Audits

One of the best things you can do for your brewery is to create a “cleaning checklist.” Try to look at your establishment the way a home inspector looks at a property. What needs to be in place for your business to get a passing grade?

In addition to determining what needs to be done, inspecting your business every six months or so will alert you to any potential hazards or dangers. For example, it’s not uncommon for bars and breweries to be susceptible to mildew or mold growth. There are a lot of different moist environments, from where the actual brewing is done to the bar where customers are being served.

The last thing you want is for a patron to see mold growth anywhere near their beer. Thankfully, something as simple as distilled vinegar can kill both mildew and mold quickly.

Finally, consider regularly interviewing or surveying your customers as part of your best practices audit. Consider things like:

• What are they saying about the atmosphere?
• What are their opinions about the beer?
• Have you received a lot of positive or negative feedback?
• Do you keep getting the same suggestions?

You might find that your regular cleaning upgrades and constant drive for improvement eventually lead to some remodeling — whether it’s updating equipment to ensure it’s safe to going for a complete overhaul of your business and brand to make it more inviting.

There are so many “little things” to prioritize when it comes to keeping your brewery clean and inviting. By making sure everything is running properly, educating your staff, labeling things correctly, and always trying to improve, you’ll stay one step ahead in keeping your patrons safe, healthy, and happy.

Special thanks to Jori Hamilton for this Great Beer Now guest post!