Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.
Are taster trays the unsung hero or corrupting plague of today’s breweries?
Despite being frustrating for bartenders to pour, they’re a wonderful value proposition for customers and offer outstanding margins for owners – according to Secret Hopper, when staff suggests a flight, customers spend an average of 25% more on their bill!
Even if you’re in the camp of hating taster trays, it’s hard to ignore what they can bring to your establishment – as such, I want to discuss three improvements to make a good thing even better:
1) Offer curated flights
We’ve all seen (or been) this person – they order a flight containing an IPA, Pilsner, Barleywine, Imperial Stout, and Sour.
On one hand, they’ve successfully covered the gamut of what the brewery has to offer, but on the other hand, their palate will be completely wrecked after that experience. Even worse, the beer won’t taste as it’s meant to due to a palate that’s out of wack. Just like drinking orange juice after brushing your teeth, not all beer is meant to be paired together.
Unfortunately, given that most taster trays are created on a pick-your-own basis, this issue is rampant.
An alternative to the madness is to curate specific trays for customers to order. Just like how wineries offer a lineup of pre-created trays, you can craft flights that will gently guide the drinker’s palate from one sample to the next. Even better, with an expert hand, you can make an elevated experience that only those flights will provide.
Want a place to start? Look for commonalities between beers on your taplist – flights can be built around similar styles, flavor profiles, aromatics, or a combination of all three!
2) Use full-size glassware
Although mini tulips are a joy to look at, they’re not ideal for taster trays.
As I mentioned in my post about glassware, the shape of a glass can significantly impact the drinking experience and shouldn’t be taken lightly.
Instead of using the typical 5oz tulip for taster flights, I’d recommend using something like the Teku glass or Belgian tulip. By using those, the aromatics will have more room to congregate and breathe, which in turn will elevate the experience of drinking your beer.
It’s also a lot easier to swirl a beer (and thus agitate the aromatics out of the drink) in a stemmed, full-size glass as opposed to a tiny taster glass.
Again, if we look to the wine industry as an example, you rarely (if ever) see tasting flights put in miniature glasses. They’re in full-size wine glasses because they offer the best experience.
3) Educate the consumer
The final (and arguably the best) way to elevate your taster tray experience is to educate the consumer:
- Should they drink one beer at a time or drink in the round?
- What’s the best way to experience the full aroma of each beer?
- Why is that flight curated the way it is?
- Should they swirl the glass to release more aromatics?
- What flavor profiles should they expect from those samples?
Of course, this isn’t a twenty-minute conversation aimed at making the customer feel dumb – it’s a value-adding discourse to help them get the most out of their visit.
This means bartenders will need to be educated so they can correctly and efficiently relay information to customers.
In addition to providing education, it’s the bartender’s job to guide customers toward curated flights and away from building their own trays. Although it’s still wise to sell small (5oz) pours of all your beer, guests will have the best experience if they engage with well-thought-through lineups instead of hopeful pairings.
Final thoughts
By elevating your taster trays, you can further improve customer experience and engagement as well as capitalize on a lucrative menu offering.
Who knows, maybe you can even grow to like flights if you implement the improvements above. Cheers and happy tasting!