Who's responsible for dirty beer lines?

Same here. Dirty lines certainly do not seem pandemic to me, or at least in my area. But most of my drinking is at home, from bottles or (most happily) cans.

To answer the OP's original question, it's ultimately the establishment's (retail location, not "The Man") responsibility even though distros usually handle this. If the proprietor/GM/Bar manager isn't QC'ing the taps and/or making sure they get cleaned on MINIMUM ever two weeks, than they have failed. If they are served by distros that do not clean taps, than either they can learn or they can hire a tap cleaner. If they are not willing to do any of this and as a result have crap beer, than don't go there. That simple.

If distros in your area do not clean taps as a practice, than maybe you have stumbled upon a great business opportunity. Cleaning taps is NOT rocket science, and once you understand the process it is very easy. Hardest thing about draught systems in general is diagnosing flow issues, not cleaning taps.

 

What is the connection between this post above and the post you made here:

And how is it related to this:

Especially when what you are calling craft never fell out of practice except possibly in the US?

 

Jeez, Louise, feels like I'm being grilled by some hegemonic EU Trade Minister. Outta here. I'm gonna medicate myself with a couple of DFH 120s.

 

Let me boil down OP's argument for everybody. Large micro breweries (New Belgium, Sierra Nevada, Boston Beer, etc.) have lots of money and stuff, like unlimited amounts, right? So, because they have enough money, they should assign somebody to clean every tap line their beers are ever on.

OP unfortunately ignores things like reality. My advice to OP, when you're going to suggest something ridiculous, go all out: Have a person assigned to every city (maybe 2 or 3 for big cities!) who drive around all day and not only cleans all tap lines, but personally date checks every bottle, can and keg (make sure to pull every bottle out of every case to be sure!) to ensure they were brewed within the last month and personally throws away and product 32 days old so brand new product can get shipped cross country. Cost, logistics and logic be damned, Jim Koch is loaded, if he really cared about beer, he'd do this! Isn't Ken Grossman a billionaire or something? That selfish bastard should dig deep if he really cares about beer! </sarcasm>

 

Never had this problem in bars, and only encountered it one time in a bottle (Leach Lake Brewing).

 

I credit Avery and Schafly in accepting accountability but overall responsibility should still be assigned to the retailer.

 

Responsibility comes down on the owner of a bar or restaurant. They can either do it themselves or hire a line cleaning company and most distribution companies even have in house techs that do it to.

The bar I work at has the lines cleaned every two weeks. I feel all places should do it every 2 to 4 weeks.

 

I don't think it is really "quite simple," I've heard that the responsibilities vary state by state (different alcohol/distribution laws). For instance, I've heard that in Louisiana it is the responsibility of the distributor to clean tap lines (i.e., It is ILLEGAL for bar owners to touch/maintain tap lines). It isn't always about everyone "doing the right thing" sometimes there are outdated laws and other reasons these things fall by the wayside.

 

I'm only referring to the state we live in. No need to complicate things with hearsay, especially from Louisiana.

 

In what way is the UK system corrupt?
The one I mentioned , Cask Marque, is an independent company which turns up unannounced at the bar , asks for a pint of each cask beer on sale and tests them for temperature, clarity , condition and taste.Each is graded on a 6 point scale and the pub is given a copy of the findings.I've spoken to a few of the inspectors and they give nothing away , particularly where they will be going next!

Back to the OP , a drinker has a contract with the bar when buying beer.Not with the brewer or supplier , he is not making a deal with them.Therefore it is contingent on the bar to ensure the dustomer gets what he is paying for.

I don't think I know of any pub where the lines go over a week without cleaning.It is perhaps a little more important with cask as there is live yeast in the beer.

 

I think BA just found their oldest member:

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Ha!
Unfortunately the mythology of how 'limited ' beer selection was prior to the advent of craft beer, as pushed by the BA, has a life of its own nowadays.

 

I think where I live in NJ must be a beer never/never land. I never seem to run into the problems so many others seem to have to deal with everyday!

 

Tell the bar that the beer tastes bad. As a patron, what more can you do?

 

Most distributors are on a 2 week line cleaning schedule. Every tap in the market is clean once every 2 weeks. This is basically the industry standard. New Belgium requires monthly line cleaning tracker on all their taps by distributors. Distributors can clean a beer line every week, but if the lines are in a hole in the wall that hasn't replaced their lines in 15 years, the distributor's hands are tied. They can't make a customer invest in their business, they can only provide a service.

 

Its required to clean your taps once a week in PA so i have not had this problem.

 

This would be a more interesting thread if the OP had named names.

Why rant like this is an industry wide problem when obviously, a lot of folks disagree. This could just be systematic of the area the OP lives in. I went to 5 different breweries last night in my area, and didn't notice a single issue. >shrugs<

 

Agreed. I don't think the state of affairs of beer in NJ is perfect by any means, but I haven't come across an issue with dirty tap lines in years. It seems that as the number of craft beer drinkers rises, more establishments are now offering craft beer and are, in turn, paying more attention to how it is served (clean lines, proper temps, proper carb, proper glassware, etc.) because more people care now.

 

Slipped in to the Olde Trip to Jerusalem pub earlier, reputedly dating from 1189 AD. Here's a Cask Marque certificate. Some pubs display the full set of documents rating the casks beer by beer,

 

OK Clint. What are you really trying to say? Another American exceptionalism screed? I really just want to know. Businesses need to establish line cleaning regimens on their own, pure and simple.