New business brewing

Florence - You can't help but pause a moment when your eyes reach an area behind the bar at Mug Shots, a downtown Florence pub.

Four sets of 11 beer taps stand out. They're topped with handles of various shapes and sizes representing the wide variety of draft beer Mug Shots will be offering Sept. 1, the day when draft beer becomes legal in Florence.

Mug Shots is among numerous Florence businesses preparing for Sept. 1. Some expect to see a significant boost of customers as a result of being able to sell draft beer.

Mug Shots owner Jason Brinley is among those who are eager for the day to arrive. He has several promotions in mind.

One day last week, he pointed to the lion handle on the Lownbrau tap. He has plans to offer specials on the "lion's brew" on University of North Alabama Lions game days.

Businesses that already have a license to sell alcoholic beverages will be able to sell draft beer.

Many restaurant managers in Florence say the biggest boost will likely come from customers who enjoy a beer with their meal.

Some say the Sept. 1 arrival of draft beer, coupled with Sunday sales in Florence, gives the city an advantage over Colbert County cities that don't have draft beer and prohibit alcohol sales on Sunday.

"It is just one more reason for people to go across the river. It will continue to take business away from Colbert County," said Amber Lamote, owner and operator of Bevinco in Cullman. "People already drive to Tennessee and Huntsville, and now Decatur, just to get draft beer. It will keep people in the Shoals."

The move to bring in draft beer, said Pam Chieppa, director of membership services for the Alabama Restaurant Association, is beneficial for restaurants inside wet cities like Florence.

"It's an opportunity for businesses to offer a new product," she said.

For Florence, Chieppa said the addition could very well increase customer flow throughout the city's restaurants and bars.

"You're going to get some folks, especially those who have never tried draft beer before. They may come over to see what it's about," she said.

Making draft beer legal could attract new restaurants to the city.

Representatives of Hooters have been in negotiations with Florence officials about possibly bringing a restaurant to a site on Florence Boulevard just east of Cox Creek Parkway. They reportedly wanted to see how the draft beer legislation for Florence progressed before taking negotiations to a higher level.

"It opens the market for other restaurants to look at that area," Chieppa said. "It's certainly going to offer some opportunities for microbrew pubs to open in the community."

Bonnie Drake, owner of Sidelines Sports Deli in Florence, said draft beer will help her business and the city.

"We definitely think it will help our community and city grow into a bigger place," Drake said. "Most bigger cities have draft beer."

She previously owned a business in Colbert County but decided to move the operations to Florence because of the alcohol issue.

"They still have to get over that hump of Sunday sales before doing draft beer," Drake said.

Sheffield will hold a referendum Sept. 25 to decide if residents want to legalize Sunday sales.

Shoals Chamber of Commerce President Steve Holt said the market needs to be as balanced as possible.

"Sheffield is looking at it from that situation," he said. "Sunday sales and draft beer are just as important to existing facilities."

Sheffield Mayor Billy Don Anderson said he sees the lack of Sunday sales and draft beer as a disadvantage to his city, especially to restaurants and hotels.

He said Sheffield's proximity to Florence makes the situation even worse.

"It puts us at a greater disadvantage than the other cities," he said.

City leaders also are taking a look at allowing draft beer, too. Anderson said he expects the city's draft beer bill to go before the Legislature during its 2008 regular session.

Decatur, in nearby Morgan County, has had draft beer for just over a year.

Jim Page, vice president for public policy and business development for the Decatur-Morgan County Chamber of Commerce, said draft beer sales have been successful in Decatur, even more so in their second year than their first.

Page said draft beer sales have increased the sale of alcohol, and with it, tax revenue for local governments.

Page said on-premises sales in restaurants and bars have remained about the same overall. One difference, however, is that patrons who want a beer with their meal are choosing draft over bottled or canned beer.

Page said the sale of kegs at package and grocery stores for off-premises consumption has increased.

In the past, Decatur residents had to drive to Huntsville to purchase a keg for a party or social function.

"Those sales are staying at home, just like they will in Florence," Page said.

Florence's draft beer ordinance allows the sale of kegs to individuals for off-premises consumption.

Page, who graduated from the University of North Alabama in 2001, said he expects draft beer to have a bigger impact in Florence because it's a college town.

Draft beer, he said, helps create more of a college-town

atmosphere.

"We have seen a positive impact here from draft beer sales, and I expect Florence to do even better," Page said.

Despite the success of draft beer, Page said Sunday sales is a bigger attraction when trying to lure restaurants to the city.

"We have had several restaurants that said they want to be in Decatur, but they're the kinds of restaurants that need Sunday sales.

"Colbert County, or rather Muscle Shoals and Sheffield, are already hurt by the Sunday sales in Florence," Lamote said.

Neerja Gupta, owner of My Kind of Place in Sheffield, agrees.

"I've been talking to my customers. They don't really care (about draft beer)," Gupta said. "I'd rather push the city of Sheffield into bringing in Sunday sales."

Gupta said she doesn't believe the addition of draft beer will make a big difference to the crowd that is drawn to her business in Colbert County.

Some Florence business owners think differently.

Drake anticipates that Sidelines will have at least four kinds of draft beer.

"It's going to have a huge response, especially it coming in September with football season," Drake said. "We're going to be insanely packed."

For Florence businesses choosing to sell draft beer, the addition can be costly.

Lamote said there is a tremendous initial expense bringing permanent draft fixtures into restaurants.

Restaurants have to make space for the half-barrels in their coolers. Lamote said they must then run sometimes hundreds of feet of draft line per barrel to the tap tower.

Some restaurants and bars will have mobile draft coolers that can hold numerous half-barrels, Lamote said.

Regina Brown, manager at Legends Steakhouse in downtown Florence, said the restaurant was built under the assumption that draft beer was already available in Florence.

Basically, all the restaurant has to do is hook up a keg and start pouring.

But since the bar at Legends is relatively small, there will be limited room for keg storage.

Brown said she expects draft beer will be popular at Legends initially, but she doesn't expect significant changes.

Cotton Johnson, general manager of Shoals Distributors, said he purchased a refrigerated trailer that will hold 80 kegs of beer, which will allow the business to distribute the product to customers. He sent two employees to St. Louis to be trained at Anheuser-Busch headquarters in maintaining draft beer-related equipment.

Johnson said he expects to receive shipments every day and will make local deliveries every two or three days.

Freshness is an issue for draft beer drinkers, Chieppa said. She said the preference for draft beer is based on flavor.

"It's very fresh and there are no preservatives added," she said.

One misconception, Chieppa said, is that draft beer is stronger than bottled or canned beer.

"It has no more alcoholic content," she said. "I think it's extremely important for consumers to know that draft beer is just an added variety of what they're already being offered today."

Russ Corey can be reached at 740-5738 or russ.corey@timesdaily.com.

Kenda Williams can be reached at 740-5720 or kenda.williams@timesdaily.com.