Bottle Shops: The Tucson Model
I get to travel to Tucson AZ once a year. I love the desert and there is so many interesting things to do and learn there. And being a beer geek often puts me in interesting places on its own.
People that know me, know I love great bottle shops. I’ve even considered opening my own someday. I’ve been asked if I’d like to open a brewery and while the creative act of making beer fascinates me, I think it would be too limiting.
Saguaro National Park at sunset.
So what kind of bottle shop do I like and would I want to open?
There are two in Tucson that I really like.
Arizona Beer House
We usually stay on the east side of town, and a family member who enjoys good beer introduced me to Arizona Beer House (150 S. Kolb Tucson, AZ) a few years ago. ABH has over 30 beers on tap, featuring local and high-end national breweries. They also have a few non-beer drinks on tap, such as wines and ciders.
Arizon Beer House draft list
Around the walls are probably 20 cooler doors with beers from around the world. Local, national, and global beers. Picks for regular patrons that may want a favorite from Pueblo Vida, Dragoon or Barrio, Belgians, or rare stouts. I’ve found some vintage Dogfish Head beers from before their Boston thing and a selection of Maryland RaR (Cambridge MD) beers.
Arizona Beer House Maryland selections
You can grab a bottle or can to enjoy while at ABH or take one to enjoy later. Drinking these beers onsite do come at a slightly higher price.
ABH doesn’t have a kitchen but often has a food truck just outside the doors. They sometimes have live music which can be a bit too loud for my delicate ears. Trucks and music schedules are available on their website.
Deep Beer Journal / Atlas / Events Calendar / Treks / Shop
Tucson Hop Shop
The second shop that I just discovered after many trips to Tucsan was the Tucson Hop Shop. The Hop Shop was recognized as one of the best beer bars in the country according to CraftBeer.com. Big 7 Travel Guide listed both the Tucson Hop Shop and Arizona Beer House amoung the best beer bars in Tucson.
Like ABH, the Hop Shop offers about a dozen taps from various styles plus singles for onsite imbibing or takeout.
Tucson Hop Shop cooler
There is an Italian restaurant next door, which makes dining easy. Place your order, and they will bring it to your table. It could not be easier and the pizzas were very good.
Tucson Hop Shop interior
They have some indoor seating and a nice Biergarten, too. And on a temperate autumn evening in Tucson, it doesn’t get much better.
Bottle Shop / Taproom Hybrid
I like these bottle shop and taproom hybrid models. These are more than a bottle shop where you can choose your packaged goods, or purhaps a crowler of draft beer, and take them home to enjoy later. Here, you can have immediate gratification, sit at an indoor table or in the biergarten, enjoy your beer with friends or even work from your laptop — forget Starbucks. We brought pizza into Arizona Beer House to have with their beer selections, while we took advantage of the pizza shop next door to Tucson Hop Shop to enjoy in their biergarten on a beautiful Tucson evening.
I did bring back three barrel-aged imperial stouts from Alesong Brewing and Blending (Eugene OR), Weldworks Brewing (Greeley CO), and Timber Ales (North Haven CT).
Arizon Beer House
At taprooms, you have the options created by the brewery or maybe some guest taps. But you don't often have the option to choose from 100+ bottles or cans from breweries around the world.
Drafts, packaged, local, eclectic, fresh, or vintage. Drink there or later. All at a single stop. And these days you must have excellent food options nearby via food trucks or better, an adjacent eatery.
There may be similar establishments in Maryland, but I don't know about them. Would Maryland law allow such a hybrid model?
Now, where do I set up my shop?