Asheville’s honest pint project

So you just bought a draft beer at a bar or restaurant. If you’re in Asheville, you’re typically paying anywhere from $3.75 to $5 for a pint, especially for craft beer.

But wait. Did you get a full pint for your cash? A standard American pint equals 16 fluid ounces. But not all “pint” glasses are equal. Some may look like they’re the same size as a true pint, but because the glass on the bottom or the sides are thicker, they only hold 14-ounces. While that’s just a two-ounce difference, if you’re offered the choice of 14-ounces or 16-ounces for the same price, which are you going to choose? Do I even have to answer that question? I don’t think so.

Turns out there’s something called the Honest Pint Project. It’s a Web-based effort to promote the use of true 16-ounce pint glasses for serving beer in this country (if you’re lucky you might even find an U.S. establishment that uses British Imperial-style pint glasses — which hold close to 20 ounces).

When Mountain Xpress learned about this initiative, we thought it’d be fun and educational to set up our own local Honest Pint Project. To start off, I visited, unannounced, several randomly chosen beer purveyors around town with the 16-ounce measuring cup from my kitchen and my camera in hand (see results below). I’ve also included the average price per pint for comparison purposes.

We’ll continue to search out true pints for y’all. Feel free to point us to certain bars or restaurants if you feel they might be misrepresenting their glass size. The goal here isn’t to embarrass anyone — it’s just to see if we can get all the beer purveyors in Beer City, USA, to be transparent, so to speak, about their glassware. We’ll be sending the photos and information on the Asheville spots that serve 16-ounce pints to the Honest Pint Project site so they can be listed as “Certified Purveyors.”

Here are the results so far:

Asheville Pizza & Brewing Company: True 16-ounce pint glasses. All pints priced at $3.75. 675 Merrimon Ave and 77 Coxe Ave.

Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria: True 16-ounce pint glasses. Most beers are priced at $3.75 per pint. High-gravity beers (over 8 percent alcohol per volume) are served in smaller, non-pint shaped glassware. 42 Biltmore Ave.

Bier Garden: True 16-ounce pints. Most draughts are $4. 46 Haywood St.

Burgermeister’s: True 16-ounce pint glasses. Craft draughts typically priced at $4.50 per pint, though PBR on draught is $2. 697 Haywood Rd.

Mellow Mushroom: Oops—14-ounce pint glasses. Most beers are priced at $3.75 per glass. “It’s our decision to use 14-ounce glasses to keep our prices at the lower end of the spectrum,” says co-owner Jerry Mahon. The menu doesn’t use the term “pint” anywhere, and the bartender knew that the glassware measures 14-ounces, so they’re not misrepresenting at the Mellow Shroom. But there are a number of other spots where the same pour is 16 ounces for the same price (see cost analysis chart below).  50 Broadway.

Tingles Café: True 16-ounce pint glasses. All Asheville craft-brewed beers priced at $3.75 per pint. 27 Broadway St.

Usual Suspects: True 16-ounce pint glasses. All draughts are $3.75 per pint. 791 Merrimon Avenue.

Wild Wing Café: True 16-ounce pints. Domestic taps typically are $3.50 per pint, while local and craft beers are priced at $4. 161 Biltmore Ave.

If you try this yourself, I learned that it’s easier to measure glassware using water, because there’s no foamy head on water. It’s also less viscous and easier to pour from the glass to the measuring cup. That’s why some of the measuring cup photos contain H2O.

Also, I didn’t think it wise for me to drink eight pints of beer (even if it wouldn’t have been a full 128 ounces, but 126). Also, remember that different beers have different heads (i.e. Belgians tend to have a thick, creamy head), which can change the pour slightly — another reason to test with water. Know that it’s perfectly acceptable to ask your bartender or server for a top-up if you ever feel a pour is off.

Cost analysis of draught craft beer per ounce (glassware only)

Glass size:    Cost: Cost per ounce: Where:
16-ounce     $3.75 23.4 cents Barley’s, Usual Suspects, Tingles Cafe, Asheville Pizza & Brewing Company
16-ounce     $4.50 28.1 cents Burgermeister’s
16-ounce     $4.00 25 cents Wild Wings
14-ounce     $3.75 26.8 cents Mellow Mushroom

Thus, an ounce of beer at $3.75 per glass at Mellow Mushroom is 14 percent more expensive than a beer of the same cost at Barley’s or anywhere else that uses the same pricing for a 16-ounce pour. However, the cost per ounce for craft beer is 20 percent more at Burgermeister’s, just because of the higher price per pint. That’s the place to drink PBR, which comes in at a mere 12.5 cents per ounce.

This analysis, of course, is all pennies and ounces, both of which are small units of measurements. But, if you’ve ever counted a mason jar of pennies or cleaned up two ounces of baby barf, you know that these small measures can seem like pretty big.

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11 thoughts on “Asheville’s honest pint project

  1. Jeff

    Interesting project, Anne.

    I wonder how many ounces are in those plastic dixie cups that the Orange Peel serves beer in and how does that compute on cost-chart?

  2. ashevillain7

    Awesome info! As a cost accountant, I approve of this project!

    I realize this is out of the scope of the project but can you run this analysis on a Grande Dos Equis at Papa’s & Beer? I think they advertise 32oz. I bet that would be a landslide win in cost per ounce….but yeah, not local. :(

  3. dpewen

    I go to the OP for the music not the beer. If you want good beer go to Dirty Jacks.

  4. bobaloo

    Soooo one shouldn’t complain about the beer measurement and price at OP because it’s a music venue?

  5. JayMoney

    Whats the breakdown at these places when they serve pitchers. I think it’s like comparing apples to oranges when you compare Bars & Pizza bars to a Live music venue. If you are going to look at Music venues then look at all of them. The Civic Center, Grey Eagle, Stella Blue & The Orange Peel. The OP now has a choice of both 12oz (equal to a bottle of beer) and a 16 oz option, and they have the liquor bar downstairs that serves pints in a glass. Try going to similar size venues in the country and finding a better deal…..it’s not gonna happen. I just went to a venue in Raliegh and paid $6 for a PBR

  6. JayMoney

    Whats the breakdown at these places when they serve pitchers. I think it’s like comparing apples to oranges when you compare Bars & Pizza bars to a Live music venue. If you are going to look at Music venues then look at all of them. The Civic Center, Grey Eagle, Stella Blue & The Orange Peel. The OP now has a choice of both 12oz (equal to a bottle of beer) and a 16 oz option, and they have the liquor bar downstairs that serves pints in a glass. Try going to similar size venues in the country and finding a better deal…..it’s not gonna happen. I just went to a venue in Raliegh and paid $6 for a PBR

  7. Reinkster

    Good article. I’d add Thirsty Monk to the list, they’re pretty particular about their pours, even the American stuff upstairs. Great beer though, can’t complain about that.

  8. John

    The Orange Peel should sell bottled beer or a fair deal on pints in decent cups. The Orange Peel beer is a letdown for Beer City USA.

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