Taps Mooloolaba

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Dan Dan

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Anyone heard about this new bar opening up next week at mooloolaba? Apparently it will have 28 beer taps, set up all around the place and you can pour your own beer. The owner told me they will be having Holgate and Nail Ale on tap the first week, so it's looking good for an area where 150 Lashes is considered the best available beer. I believe it opens on the 21st, and I'm looking forward to it!
 
Pour your own beer? Do I have to clean the toilets as well? :lol:

Is it one of those tag key places that has a limit on how many beers you get to pour?
 
Not sure on how it will work. Was only a short article in the paper about it. Something about a charge card. But hey, I know more about beer and pouring beers than a lot of people who work in pubs and bars around here, so I'm all for it! I wonder if I can take my own beer glasses too.....
 
How would they get around RSA requirements?
 
Good question! The newspaper article said something about the liquor licensing taking a long time to sort out. It seems a bit gimmicky, but maybe they won't have heaps of staff to pay, and the beer will be really cheap.....

I'd prefer a great big bar with 28 different beers on tap, but it's still a strong step up from all the surf clubs and ALH pubs and their mega swill offerings.
 
It's called Taps. At the end of Brisbane road, around the corner from the esplanade, behind Augellos. Opens this weekend.
 
Could be a good reason to visit my paremts a few days early for Christmas...
 
So, in the name of research, I went along today. Not bad at all! Hop hog, Holgate pale and ESB, kooinda golden and moobrew pils and hefeweizen all on tap, for $8-9 a pint. Basically, you buy a little credit thingamajig that you can put credit on, then itS simply a matter of choosing a beer, putting you thingamajig in the slot, and pour your beer. It charges you per millilitre, so it's a good way to try different beers. Didn't get to try the food, but I will definitely be tAking the minister for war and finances for our next date night (they also had brookvale union ginger beer on tap,that's the only selling point I need).
All in all, it's something different, with a nice vibe, good beer and really helpful staff. I'll be going back, and not only coz I have another $8 credit on my thingamajig.
 
I'm always wary of places that have a large number of beers on tap. How often do the lines get cleaned? When was the last one sold? How long has it been sitting in the line? I prefer visiting places that sell their own product unfortunately even then its usually served at freezing temperatures to cater for the megaswill products in the cellar. When I did the cellars in the 1980s we degassed & uncoupled the kegs then flushed the lines with water every night & ran caustic followed by water through them every morning, spears & taps were stripped & cleaned on a rotating basis (all this for megaswill :lol: ). The last pub I did cellar work for over here in Perth they left everything connected & only flushed & cleaned once a week. Maybe we overdid it back then but the beer always tasted in peak condition. Everything is probably fine it's just when I see such big setups I get suspicious of the behind the scenes product control.

edit: Anyway as they reckon the aussie dollar is about to dive drastically this year that's my 1c worth.
 
With mechanisms which calculate the flow rate and would need to be cleaned out regularly I presume
 
Hey guys,

My name is Sian and I work at Taps. Just thought I'd answer some of your questions for you.

Firstly, yes we do have 28 taps, but we do not have 28 different beers. We have at any one time about 9 or 10 different ones. We do not sell mega swill, we have boutique (craft) beer. All of our beers are Australian owned and made. We have pale ales, a lager, golden ale, bitter, alcoholic ginger beer and cider.

To use the taps, you get an I-Button from the bar and put credit on it (there is no limit), then you just simply walk up to a tap, click the button on and pour away. It also charges by the milliliter, so you can pour as much or as little as you like. Perfect for tasting each one. Your button does also measure how much beer you pour, after every 2 pints, it will stop and you will need to get it reset at the bar. That is how we monitor everyone's sobriety throughout the evening so that nobody gets too spastic, we still want everyone to have a good time.

As for food, lunch starts at 12 (we open at 11) and goes all day, then dinner starts at 6 and goes until late. At around 9 - 9.30 we switch to a late night menu. We have a variety of food, something for everybody. We have starters, tasters (similar to tapas), main courses and dessert. Not to mention kick-ass chicken wings.

It does not stop there, on top of that we do have a full bar with beer, wine, spirits and cocktails. You do not have to get a button, you can still order your beer at the bar like normal, however pouring your own is really fun.

We are open until late 7 days a week (usually 12 or 1).

Any other questions feel free to ask, but by all means come in to Taps and see for yourself. We have friendly staff, great food and cold beer.

Taps is located on Brisbane Rd in Mooloolaba, across the road from Montezumas.
 
Awesome, I work down the road, might drop in for lunch tomorrow for a gander.

Also is there a way for us to know what beers are on tap? Weekly update on facebook or something?
 
At the moment we have about 9 different ones. We have a Pilsner, Hefferweizen, ESB (Extra Special Bitter), apple cider, apple and ginger cider, 3 different pale ales and a golden ale. I don't know if they make updates on fb , but if they don't I'll suggest it :) Definitely come in and have pint and a bite to eat.
 
About a week ago, I ventured down to Taps for a bit of a reccy.

I found some good points and some areas where things might be improved.

The good.

Staff are very helpful and courteous ( I didn't check their knowledge of the available beers as I had already some knowledge / experience )

Good venue ( in main area of Mooloolaba )

Good range of craft beers finally available on the Sunshine Coast

Food was OK

The challenges

You pay for every milliliter of beer that comes out of the tap ie. no free taste
I tried an ESB which obviously hadn't been used that day and ended up with mostly foam ( to their credit, they topped the beer up with some from a tap at the bar for free)
Now, I'm no u beaut bar tender when it comes to pouring beer, but, I've had plenty of practice with my own keg set up. I could not pour any beer without getting around 50% foam. I replaced the glass every time I tried a differnt beer but the foam kept on coming.
I didn't check the prices per milliliter as I was concentrating on the pour. It left me wondering if I was paying for the foam.

Before you attach the tag to the dispenser, check to see if the tap is in the OFF position. In one case I didn't, the tap was left on by the previous drinker and as soon as the tag was in place, beer started pouring from the tap before I could get the glass in position. I paid for that beer that was wasted.

Now, compared to drinking a craft beer at a bar where you are served a beer, I'd make the following observations:

You usually get to sample a particular beer for free.
The bar tender pours the beer to an acceptable level before offering you the beer (ie. you don't pay for wastage)
You don't have to get your beer tag "recalibrated" after two beers (I understand that this is an RSA requirement)
The bar tender (mostly in my experience) flushes the tap with a quick squirt to clear it of stale beer before pouring your beer

Would I return to Taps? You bet I would, because I'm hoping that my issues were isolated ones and more to do with teething problems, and besides, anything which brings more craft beer to the Sunshine Coast, is got to be great thing.


Cheers
 
Tbird, you don't have to pour your own beer! Just pay for it At the bar like any other pub. It is a bit gimmicky, but the beers on offer have been awesome the two times I've been and have changed a few times from what I hear. Having said that, I still prefer the beach bar and grill up the road. Awesome beers, and much better view :)
 
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