Growlers Are Mainstream in NYC

It appears drinking out of a growler isn't reserved for brewery visiting beer junkies and home brewers anymore.... Check out NYTimes.com: The New Old Way to Tote Your Beer

To put it bluntly: "“In the beginning we tried to figure out, ‘Who’s going to be our market?’ ” said Ben Granger, 32, an owner of Bierkraft, which began filling growlers in spring 2006. “We thought, mullet-heads and beer-bellied dudes. But the first run was ladies with strollers. They will tell you they’re buying them for their husbands. Three weeks later, they’ve got two. One’s his and one’s hers. The next one that caught me by surprise was dads coming in with their kids. Then there’s the beer crowd who’ll rush in to get on this or that before it’s gone. There’s no age limit.”

Also important to note is that our friends at Sixpoints really do know what they're talking about and continue push we drink our beer ASAP: “There’s always the possibility that someone may not fill the growler properly,” said Shane Welch, founder of Sixpoint Craft Ales brewery in Brooklyn, which sells its products in stores in growler form. Most stores and bars run the beer straight from the tap to the bottle. “If you don’t fill it to the top, if you don’t purge the air out of there, when you close the container it will be stale beer,” Mr. Welch said. “You probably have to drink it that night.”"

Thanks to the Times for putting together this excellent list of New York's growler refill stations.

AMERICAN BEER DISTRIBUTING COMPANY 256 Court Street (Kane Street). Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, (718) 875-0226, americanbeerbuzz.com.

BIERKRAFT 191 Fifth Avenue (Berkeley Place), Park Slope, Brooklyn, (718) 230-7600, bierkraft.com.

BROOKLYN BEER & SODA 648 Washington Avenue (Dean Street), Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, (718) 622-8800.

THE BRAZEN HEAD 228 Atlantic Avenue (Court Street), Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, (718) 488-0430, brazenheadbrooklyn.com.

THE GINGER MAN 11 East 36th Street, Midtown, (212) 532-3740, gingerman-ny.com.

RATTLE ‘N’ HUM 14 East 33rd Street, Midtown, (212) 481-1586, rattlenhumbarnyc.com.

WHOLE FOODS 95 East Houston Street (The Bowery), (212) 420-1320, wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/bowery/beerroom.php.