Crisis Averted: Ale Yeah! Gets Caps

The growler business is booming, despite a brief setback caused by a shortage of caps.

“There was some miscommunication about the protocol,” said Eddie Holley, proprietor of Ale Yeah!, after the craft beer shop ran out of growler caps and was forced to temporarily halt sales of new growlers on Monday night.

Growlers are 64 ounce containers that can be filled with fresh draft beer for home consumption. 

The cap shortage occurred when customers threw away or forgot to bring back the container’s tops before coming in for refills.  The cap drought lasted from around 6:30 p.m., or beer rush hour, on Monday until Tuesday morning, when a fresh stock of caps could be procured.

These “growing pains,” as the store’s Twitter page called the situation, were only slight hiccups in an otherwise incredible first two weeks of growler sales, Holley said.

According to Ale Yeah!, more than 500 growlers were sold since they debuted on May 26th.  With eight rotating in-store taps, Ale Yeah! offers a variety of beers - from local favorite Wild Heaven Invocation to Flemish sour ale Rodenbach Grand Cru.  Growler bottles can be purchased for $4.99 each, and fill-up prices vary depending on the beer, usually hovering in the $9-$12 range.

While he acknowledges that novelty probably has something to do with the early success, Holley thinks the convenience of to-go draft beer will keep growlers in demand.

“It’s the ability to get draft beer fresh on your couch,” said Holley. 

Just make sure to keep your cap.