HEINEKEN and the U.S. Bartenders Guild have teamed up to promote the importance of a quality beer pour on-premise by highlighting some folks who do it right and pitting the best-of-the best against each other in Amsterdam later this month.
Too often, bar owners and their staff underestimate the power of the pour. Draught beer is simply pumped up from the basement and spilled into a glass, with little or no thought of the science behind carbonation, the purpose of a foamy head, or even the cleanliness of the glass. But it all matters. And at the end of the day, a well-served draught beer enhances the overall experience for the customer, and thereby stands to improve your business.
So how does one go about getting that message to bartenders across the country and around the world? Perhaps it just takes a little bit of friendly competition.
HEINEKEN USA, the nation’s leading upscale beer importer, in partnership with the U.S. Bartenders’ Guild (USBG), recently named Kelly Pigula of Hudson Grille in White Plains, New York, as the first crowned champion of the U.S. Heineken Bartender Star Serve Championship, a competition that was held in New York City on November 4th. She will head to Amsterdam next week to compete in the global finals. “It was magical,” says Pigula on winning the competition. “I’ve never been to Europe and I’m excited to go and represent the U.S. My experience was amazing and I couldn’t be more thankful.” Pigula is now a part of the master plan—to get bar owners nationwide to recognize the importance of the pour.
The Heineken Star Serve program emphasizes the value in giving consumers the perfect draught beer through the Heineken Star Serve Ritual—a five-step process at the heart of a quality Heineken drinking experience. The Championship brought a collection of the top 16 bartenders from across the greater New York City area to compete in a bracket-style tournament for the coveted winner’s title. As the U.S. champion, Pigula will travel to Amsterdam to compete in Heineken’s Global Star Serve Championship on November 25, courtesy of the USBG. And with her goes the message behind the madness: A better pour means better service, which means a better bottom line for bar owners.
Read the full article about the Heineken Star Serve event in the November 2013 issue of Bar Business Magazine by clicking here.
