Holla Spirits, LLC, a Pennsylvania-based distilled spirits producer, has joined the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association as an associate member in support of the state’s bars, taverns, and lounges.

“We are very pleased to have this rising star of the vodka industry as a Member,” said Chuck Moran, executive director of the PLBTA. “Holla Spirits is an award-winning company producing quality products that customers seek. With an outstanding management team, Holla is a true winner in the industry.”

Patrick Shorb and Matt Glaser started HOLLA Spirits. According to Bar Business Magazine, Holla provides an alternative for those interested in a fun, fresh, rebellious, unpretentious, and affordable vodka for a new era. The Tipsy Bartender listed Holla Spirits as one of “11 millennial alcoholic drinks that are the future of booze.”

Shorb and Glaser have received recognition for their Holla products including a gold medal in the 2017 Las Vegas Global Spirits Competition and silver medal in the 2017 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

 

Governor Tom Wolf recently announced the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) has approved grants totaling $791,412 for 12 projects to increase the production of Pennsylvania-made malt and brewed beverages and enhance the Pennsylvania beer industry through promotion, marketing, and research-based programs and projects.

“Increasing the quality, production, and sale of malt and brewed beverages produced in Pennsylvania is vital not only to our growing beer industry, but these improvements also enhance agricultural and tourism opportunities in the Commonwealth,” said Governor Tom Wolf. “These grants will explore how agriculture can better support brewers, give new tools and resources to beer makers, and ultimately help improve the craft beer experience for Pennsylvania consumers.”

Act 39 of 2016 created the Pennsylvania Malt and Brewed Beverages Industry Promotion Board and authorized the PLCB to approve up to $1 million annually for development and marketing of the Pennsylvania beer industry.

To read more about the 12 grant recipients, click here.

The Central Penn Business Journal reported in its December 7 edition that since the state’s first license auction in November 2016 the number of bids per auction along with the highest winning bids have dropped.

The first auction had 134 bids with the highest winning bid at $556,000. Two years later in November 2018, only 51 bids were received with the highest winning bid of $176,001. Overall the average winning bid has decreased from $212,000 to $73,915.

In the last two auctions, a total of 58 licenses were up for sale, but 13 received no bids.

Many of the large retailers dominated the early auctions, particularly in growing areas including suburban Philadelphia and Cumberland County.

The news organization also reported that there are still nearly 1,000 idle liquor licenses across the state. The article stated that state liquor regulators plan to continue holding auctions for expired licenses.

PLBTA member Mick Owens of Mick’s All American Pub and Maize Mexican Cantina was quoted in the story saying “The liquor license is an asset. It shows on your books. It’s a physical, tangible thing.”

He praised the auction process as a way to get dead licenses back into the marketplace, but also shared concerns about the high prices being a barrier to entry for small start ups. “The only people who can afford $500,000 for a license are the big players coming in and opening 300- to 400-seat restaurants,” he said.

The following is republished from the December 2018 edition of the Pennsylvania Observer, the official magazine of the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association.

Foodborne illness affects about 48 million people every year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A large number of these people – roughly 128,000 – will go to the hospital, and 3,000 will die.

Not all of this is caused by cross-contamination, and not all is the result of bad kitchen management in a restaurant or bar. But the CDC says foodborne illness outbreaks are more likely to begin at restaurants than a person’s home.

Alarmingly, industry statistics show a lack of knowledge on how to prevent cross-contamination. A study published in 2017 that was conducted by the Environmental Health Specialists Network of the CDC indicated many restaurants were not following U.S. Food and Drug Administration Food Code guidance regarding chicken cross-contamination prevention. Many managers lacked basic food safety knowledge about chicken.

In fact, 40 percent of managers said that they never, rarely, or only sometimes designate certain cutting boards for raw meat. One-third said they did not wash and rinse surfaces before sanitizing them. And, more than half of the managers surveyed did not know the temperature to which raw chicken needed to be cooked before it would be safe to eat.

Charles L. Lowe, MD, a physician with Geisinger Holy Spirit Primary Care in Mechanicsburg, Pa., says it’s a smart idea for taverns and restaurants to do everything possible to keep their patrons safe.

“We’ve all seen the headlines about people getting sick after eating at a certain restaurant,” Dr. Lowe says. “Serious health issues can develop from foodborne illnesses, which is why it’s paramount for restaurant and tavern owners to do everything possible to keep their patrons from getting sick.”

So, what should a tavern owner do to make sure patrons don’t experience a night of misery ranging from nausea and stomach cramps to vomiting and diarrhea … or even worse hospitalization or death?

Consider the following:

1. Prep and handle each food type with separate pieces of equipment. For example, if you’re using a cutting board to slice raw chicken, don’t use that same board next to slice beef.
2. Keep hands clean. Employees need to wash their hands regularly, especially after using a restroom or handling raw meat, poultry, or seafood. That means lathering all parts of their hands up to their elbows with soap, scrubbing for about 20 seconds, and rinsing with warm running water.
3. Use paper towels or hand dryers, not clothing, to dry off hands. It’s tempting to use a shirt or apron to dry hands, but it’s not a good choice.
4. Have a personal hygiene program in place. In addition to proper handwashing, wearing clean clothing every day, use hair restraints, and prohibit jewelry from being worn.
5. You may recall a past ‘Tavern Age’ article in Pennsylvania Observer that covered flu season. Well, personal health is another area of concern. Don’t let employees report to work sick. And, if they have any cuts or surgical wounds, make sure they cover them with appropriate bandaging.
6. Clean, clean, clean! All work surfaces, equipment, and utensils should be sanitized after each use. That goes beyond just rinsing something off.

 

Based on new information as of the evening of November 26, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention narrowed its warning to consumers. The CDC is now advising that U.S. consumers not eat and retailers and restaurants not serve or sell any romaine lettuce harvested from the Central Coastal growing regions of northern and central California. If you do not know where the romaine is from, do not eat it.

Restaurants and retailers should check the label on bags or boxes of romaine lettuce, or ask their suppliers about the source of their romaine lettuce. Do not sell or serve any romaine lettuce harvested from the Central Coastal growing regions of northern and central California. If you do not know where your romaine lettuce was harvested, do not sell or serve it.

Since the last CDC update on November 20, an additional 11 ill people have been included in this investigation. Forty-three people infected with the outbreak strain of Shiga toxin-producing E. coliO157:H7 have been reported from 12 states.

Restaurants should wash and sanitize drawers and shelves in refrigerators where recalled romaine was stored. The CDC recommends the following steps to clean your refrigerator.

1. Throw out recalled food
2. Empty your refrigerator
3. Wash removable parts
4. Clean and sanitize the inside of your refigerator
5. Wipe food and drink containers with warm, soapy water before returning to the clean refrigerator.

To read the CDC’s latest update, click here.

 

An E.coli outbreak is causing concern and a warning from the Pennsylvania Department of Health to not eat or serve any romaine lettuce.

The state DOH warning came shortly after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health alert indicating they and others are investigating a multistate outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli O157:H7) infections linked to romaine lettuce.

According to the alert, the CDC advised U.S. consumers not eat any romaine lettuce, and retailers and restaurants not serve or sell any, until more is known about the outbreak. This investigation is ongoing and the advice will be updated as more information is available.

This advice includes all types or uses of romaine lettuce, such as whole heads of romaine, hearts of romaine, and bags and boxes of precut lettuce and salad mixes that contain romaine, including baby romaine, spring mix, and Caesar salad.

Restaurants and retailers should not serve or sell any romaine lettuce, including salads and salad mixes containing romaine.

Thirty-two people infected with the outbreak strain of Shiga toxin-producing E. coliO157:H7 have been reported from 11 states.

To read the CDC advisory, click here.

The recently published 2017-2018 Annual Report from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) includes a breakdown of the 76,000 license and permit applications processed and more than 8,200 investigations completed.

One area of note relates to nuisance bars, indicating a level number of investigations, but a decrease in notices of objection.

Under the provisions of the Liquor Code, the PLCB maintains a Nuisance Bar Program to review the operational history of any licensed establishment that, by its actions, may have abused license privileges. The Bureau of Licensing seeks information from the community, law enforcement agencies, and government entities on any adverse activity associated with the licensed establishment. If substantial evidence is received to support non-renewal, a notice of objection is issued.

According to the annual report, the total number of notices of objection dropped in 2017 to 64, down from 160 one year earlier. A total of 212 investigations of nuisance bars were conducted, remaining almost level with 221 during the previous year.

“Nuisance bars have no place in our communities,” said Chuck Moran, executive director of the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association. “The problems they cause give all tavern owners a black eye and do a disservice to those owners doing the right thing by being a good community neighbor.”

Of the 8,214 investigations conducted, manager changes accounted for 1,377. A total of 409 new licenses were also investigated. Other investigation categories included renewals and transfers.

The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) released in late October its Fiscal Year 2017-18 Annual Report, which, for the first time, incorporated retail sales trends in a single, comprehensive publication detailing agency operations, popular products, and financial results.

According to the report, Pennsylvanians like their spirits. For those who follow where the dollars are being spent, check out the report’s sales figures:

• Regular spirits: $1.32 billion
• Regular wine: $847.5 million
• Special orders: $104.6 million
• Luxury wine: $54.1 million
• Luxury spirits: $6.3 million

Not surprising, December followed by November had the highest sales. The most popular spirits throughout the year sells in a range from $5.99 to $39.99.

The top selling spirit in 57 counties was unflavored vodka. American whiskey topped nine counties, while Canadian whisky was favored in one.  The items that exhibited the most growth in unit sales during fiscal year 2017–18 included Tito’s Handmade Vodka (1 L) (40,251.8 percent), Fireball Cinnamon Whisky (50 mL) (104.8 percent), and Tito’s Handmade Vodka (50 mL) (51.4 percent).

In terms of sales by county, Allegheny, Philadelphia, and Montgomery find themselves in the top three, combining for 34.9 percent of statewide sales. Other top counties include Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lehigh, Lancaster, Westmoreland, and York.

The report also breaks out all counties by category of sales.

“This report can be very useful for tavern owners to find out what people from their counties are buying at nearby state stores,” said Chuck Moran, executive director at the Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association. “From a marketing perspective, it could give our members hints of what types of liquor and wine people in their communities prefer.”

Within the past several years, Philadelphia City Council enacted an ordinance detailing certification requirements for bouncers.

The ordinance requires “that bouncers employed at covered establishments be registered and receive proper training, to prohibit employers from employing unregistered or untrained bouncers and to permit employers to refuse to hire bouncers with certain past criminal convictions; all under certain terms and conditions.” To read the full ordinance, click here.

Essentially, this prohibits bars and other places from employing security who have not completed an appropriate bouncer training course.

To become a registered bouncer, an individual must complete 16 hours of training from an approved
third-party training provider. A list of approved training providers is available at www.phila.gov/mdo.
Upon completion, the training provider must provide the individual with a certificate demonstrating that
the individual met the training requirements. The individual shall then submit a copy of the certificate to
the Managing Director’s Office by emailing it to bouncer.certificates@phila.gov. Once certified,
bouncers are required to complete an 8-hour refresher course every two years.

The Pennsylvania Licensed Beverage and Tavern Association encourages its members in Philadelphia to make sure their bouncers are certified and registered. All security personnel at restaurants, clubs, bars, and similar establishments must be certified and all establishments should have certificates on-site.

To learn more about Philadelphia’s bouncer certification program, click here. The City of Philadelphia also provides a frequently asked questions document, which can be found by clicking here.

 

The Pennsylvania legislature has passed a bill that makes things tougher on those arrested for driving while under the influence.

Senate Bill 961 was presented to Governor Wolf on October 18 after concurrence in the Senate by a 45-4 vote a day earlier. In addition, the bill passed in the House 184-1 just prior to the Senate’s final action.