Whether it’s mixed, blended or served straight up, people take pleasure in drinking alcoholic beverages. As a business owner, you know how much your customers love a cold drink after or a hard day. That’s why it’s essential to stay up to date on alcoholic beverages news and trends.

To stay abreast with the alcoholic industry’s news and trends, start by establishing a functional line of communication with your vendors and distributors. For the complete picture, it’s also important to read current news and trends as they occur. When finding sources for news and trends in the alcoholic beverages industry, remember the following:

1. Magazines are a great source for news and trends with alcoholic beverages companies.

2. Alcoholic industry associations are a reliable source for information about alcoholic beverage brands and beverage distributors.

3. Online blogs are often an untapped resource on beer distributors and different brands of alcoholic beverages.

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Gather magazines for information on the alcoholic beverage market

Regardless of the type of business you own, chances are you already have a subscription to a specific publication about the market of alcoholic beverages. Expand your reading list with a few new specialized publications.

I recommend: Bartender Magazine is a publication that targets bar owners and staff members. It’s an ideal resource for any business owner who sells alcoholic beverages. Check out Nightclub & Bar Magazine for current news concerning alcoholic beverages in the bar, tavern and club industries.

Find alcoholic beverages news and trends through industry associations

Alcoholic beverage producers and beverage distributors look to alcoholic beverage associations for current news and trends in the industry. Although membership has its perks, it may require that your business meets certain standards and requirements.

I recommend: The Specialty Wine Retailers Association offers a beverage alcohol resource for information about the industry. For information and news that covers beer distributors and brands, check out the Brewers Association.

Make a list of blogs that focus on alcoholic beverage brands and types

Whether you sell wine, beer or hard liquor, blogs offer news and tidbits of information that you can't find from other sources. Bloggers bring educated opinions to the industries' latest news and trends. While some bloggers are amateurs, the best blogs offer great information and reliable news about alcoholic beverage companies.

I recommend: For information about the wine industry and wine distributors check out Through the Wine Glass. You can also read The Cocktail Chronicles, which is another ideal source for information and news for alcoholic beverage producers and retailers.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Find local associations and groups for news about beverage distributors in your local area.

Increasing overall restaurant profitability from the sale of alcohol depends on the type of alcoholic beverage brands a restaurant decides to serve. Alcoholic beverage distributors and beer distributors sell their products to restaurants at wholesale prices. Once the restaurant owner or general manager decides upon the brands of alcoholic beverages to sell, they begin to figure out pricing. Deciding the prices at which to sell products purchased from local alcoholic beverages companies begins with a bit of research.

Restaurant owners must first assess their local alcoholic beverage market. This assessment need not be a formal production. It can be as simple as looking at gross sales receipts from a busy weekend and noting which types of alcoholic beverages have the highest volume of sales. After that research is complete, the pricing process begins by first determining how many alcoholic drinks you can expect to sell from a single bottle of alcohol:

1. One 750ml bottle of wine pours four six-ounce glasses or five five-ounce glasses. The standard restaurant pour is six ounces.

2. One 750ml bottle of hard liquor pours 25 one-ounce shots for mixed alcoholic beverages.

3. One keg of beer holds 15.5 gallons and serves approximately 160 12-ounce glasses.

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Know the latest trends in alcoholic beverage consumption

You need to know which type of alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, liquor) are seeing a rise or fall in consumption in order to choose the most profitable types for your restaurant.

I recommend: Technomonic Inc., offers an Adult Beverage Category Report that lays out the latest alcoholic beverages trends and V&S Vin & Spirit offers information more specific to spirits or hard liquor.

Consider establishing an alcoholic beverages niche to keep inventory costs down

Establishing a niche has a little bit to do with research and a lot to do with knowing your local market. If you find most people in your local area are beer drinkers, consider stocking a wide variety of beer (domestic, imports, micro brews) and a limited supply of liquors and wine. This not only draws in a diverse beer drinking crowd, but it also keeps costs down because you aren't buying and holding a lot of slow-moving inventory, which eats into profits.

I recommend: Purchase inventory control software from The Bar Cop Network or Restaurant Resource Group to help you track alcoholic beverages inventory sales and costs.

Determine your potential profit from alcoholic beverage sales

Discover your potential profit margins from the sale of beer, wine and liquor to determine which type of alcohol has the potential to make your restaurant the most profit.

I recommend: Use Applied Beverage Technology Inc.'s Drink Profit Calculator to determine the profit margin per keg of beer. Purchase SellTech's Profit Story calculator for more detailed profit information on beer, wine and liquor sales.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Once you've decided upon which alcoholic beverages to sell at your restaurant, teach your servers how to sell the products effectively by conducting beer, wine and liquor training.

Some professions require alcoholic beverages education and training. Additionally, there are just as many jobs that, although may not require specific education or training in alcoholic beverages, that would greatly benefit from the extra knowledge. Whether you are a bartender, manager, or run a convenience store, it's important to further understand the market of alcoholic beverages.

Alcoholic beverages education and training includes more than just lessons about alcoholic beverage brands or how to make specialty drinks. It is also about learning the rules and laws concerning selling and serving alcohol.

Consider the following when contemplating opportunities in alcoholic beverages education and training:

1. In most states, it is up to the employer to decide what further alcohol training and education employees need.

2. There are online certification programs offered by each state's alcohol beverage commission.

3. There are bartending schools around the country that offer both training in the rules and regulations of alcohol as well as how to use different brands of alcoholic beverages in your establishment.

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Determine what to require of your employees in order to work in the alcoholic beverage market

Most states do have an age limit for who can and cannot sell alcoholic beverages, but only a handful mandate certification. However, in order for you to protect yourself, your establishment, and your employees, it may be beneficial for you to require further training and education. And remember, more than just bar and restaurant owners need to be aware of the laws. Beer distributors, gas station owners, and grocery stores need to be abreast of the rules and regulations of buying and selling alcohol as well to avoid possible penalties for mishaps.

I recommend: Abilene's online Reporter News explains why following the rules of serving and selling alcohol is so important. ConventryTelegraph.net details a story of a local supermarket who has had to suffer the consequences of their mistake.

Look into approved online certification programs on alcoholic beverages

Many employers require anyone who will be selling or serving alcoholic beverages to get an Alcohol Server Certification. A common misconception is that only servers and bartenders should get this certification. However, due to the fact that managers, store owners, and possibly even the beverage distributors can be held liable, it is important for anyone in the industry to seek further alcoholic beverages training and education to ensure that they are following the rules.

I recommend: Professional Bartenders Schools of America offers state-specific online certification programs. Professional Server Certification Corporation also offers approved online training and certification programs for the hospitality industry.

Find local bartending schools to become one of the well-versed alcoholic beverages companies

Although bartending schools do teach how to make a mean drink, they also educate establishment employees on the rules and regulations required by law. Consider attending the training along with your employees in order to obtain the certification yourself. The bartending schools offer in-person training for those who might learn better in an active atmosphere.

I recommend: Better Bureau of Bartending Schools explains what different bartending terminology means. Articlebase.com gives some tips on how to choose one bartending school over another.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Since not every establishment requires their employees to get alcoholic beverages education and training, display in your place of business proof that your employees have extensive training. This may be enough to set you apart from the bar or restaurant down the street.

Bar and/or restaurant ownership and operation can prove to be very lucrative business ventures, especially if you and your staff are familiar with a wide range of alcoholic beverages to serve your customers with. To be able to provide excellent customer service, and to ensure that your bartenders and servers are serving the correct drinks, be sure to learn and educate your staff on the key terms ale, stout, draft, icewine, single malt and proof.

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Ale

Be sure to educate your servers and bartenders about beers. A type of beer that is considered an ale is a beer made from fermented yeast. Ales have a distinct fruity flavor due to the byproducts they absorb during the fermentation process.

I recommend: Visit Brew-Monkey.com for the complete definition on ale and how it is made.

Stout

Another type of beer is a stout. Stouts are distinguished by their deep, dark color. Stouts are made with dark roasted barley, which gives them their rich color and strong flavor.

I recommend: A Taste of The Southwest explains what a stout beer is in its beverage glossary.

Draft

A draft beer is usually the cheapest type of beer available. A draft is a way of serving beer. Draft beer is pumped from a keg, using a hand pump or the air pressure from within the keg.

I recommend: Foster’s Group describes what draft is and how draft beer is sealed and pumped.

Icewine

Icewine is a highly prized wine because it is difficult to make. It is made from grapes, but unlike most wines, icewine is made from frozen, late harvested Vidal or Riesling grapes. Harvesting the grapes for icewine is a challenge because they must be harvested at a very specific temperature and because they are the last grapes left on the vine.

I recommend: To learn more about icewine and the grapes used to make it, check out DrinksMixer.com.

Single malt

Single malt is one of the five primary categories of Scotch whisky. It is defined as single because it is distilled at one distillery, using only one malted barley.

I recommend: The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) defines the categories of Scotch whisky, including single malt Scotch whisky.

Proof

The proof of an alcoholic beverage explains the volume of alcohol in each beverage. The drink itself is measured in ounces and the proof is measured in the percent per ounce. For example, an 80 proof beverage contains 40 percent alcohol.

I recommend: BC Liquor Stores provides a definition of the proof of alcoholic beverages.