A cold blast of air whooshes through the door as it swings shut — a little slice of winter trying to expand its territory but it’s stonewalled by a wall of warmth and the steely gaze of a wall of 43 beer and wine taps, and as of Dec. 28, 43 new soldiers in the beer growler revolution.
The revolution is centered on large reusable containers that can be filled with your beverage of choice and taken home. Inside the welcoming confines of the newly opened Growler University sit rows of growlers waiting for their appointment with the wide array of craft beer and wine waiting behind the 43 taps.
“Growlers are the next generation of beer and wine distribution,” Mark Bilton-Smith, founder of Growler University, said. “And the campus community offers an opportunity to expand that growing culture.”
Growler University is the latest in a wave of growler stations opened in Eugene in the last year. Unlike its competitors, however, it practically sits right on the back porch of the University of Oregon campus, just on the other side of Villard Street from Matthew Knight Arena and right next to Market of Choice.
“I think University of Oregon students are more educated about beer than most college kids, but there’s always room to learn,” Growler University’s Joy Welker said. “And growlers present that opportunity.”
That’s why the folks at Growler University think they’ve found the perfect location to continue the revolution.
“College is about exploration, doing things differently, and that applies to alcohol too,” Bilton-Smith said. “It’s not just about pouring beer down your throat. There are other ways to enjoy alcohol, and growlers can help people find quality, not just the quantity, in beer.”
Beer growlers are reusable containers ranging from 32 to 64 ounces that can be filled up with your beverage of choice, sealed and taken home. Once filled, the shelf life varies depending on which fill station you visit, but according to Welker, theirs will stay fresh unopened for a week.
That may not sound that much different than a six-pack, but according to Kiefer Versteegh, Growler University employee and a UO student, growlers transcend the six-pack and grocery store beer buying experience.
“Growlers offer you the chance to be adventurous with your beer selection,” Versteegh said. “When you buy a six pack you’re stuck with it, but at a fill station you can taste four or five beers and find what you like.”
And according to Versteegh, growlers are an environmentally-friendly way to enjoy beer and wine.
“The carbon footprint of growlers is considerably less,” Versteegh said. “There’s only one bottle that can be used hundreds of times, and no labels and cardboard cases.”
The revolution may not reach everyone, but Growler University and other fill stations in Eugene are trying to.
“I think every campus in the nation should have a fill station,” Bilton-Smith said. “It’s an atmosphere. It’s a culture.”