We should have a 1bbl system by the middle of next month. Now the question comes up do we just brew less often, or do we go out and try to get another couple accounts.
Can you buy some barrels and start making aged beers you can charge a premium for?
I like the way you think. There is a small organic distillery close to me. He’s gonna be dumping some barrels next month. And I’m on the list…
The trick is to make sure you have enough beer to keep your current accounts happy. You want to have a small stockpile. If your stockpile starts to add up, then start adding accounts. One thing you don’t want to happen is for a tap to blow and sit empty on a Friday or Saturday.
Keith is right. You should probably have one keg ready to be delivered for emergencies, and another keg ready to replace the emergency keg. I think that’s how Hess does their accounts, IIRC. At that time he was naturally carbonating in the kegs, so it wasn’t feasible to ‘rush’ a beer.
That’s basically the rule of thumb I’ve used (or at least tried to use) with good results. One-third of the keg float on tap, one-third filled and ready for delivery, and one-third somewhere else - waiting empty at a retailer, waiting to be cleaned, scheduled for filling, etc. Realistically, you’ll never actually have to exchange every keg in the same week, but it gives you a buffer for adding new accounts.
Actually trying to maintain that ratio for multiple brands while simultaneously managing the brewing and packaging schedules and trying not to go bankrupt ordering kegs is the hardest part of brewing, IMO.