The pub, short for ‘public house’, is an integral part of British life, there are a number of pub essentials that allow any public house to function as expected: from wall brackets, to spirit measures, cask ale taps and ashtrays, pubs are more than just a comfortable place to have a drink.
In many parts of the world, most bars are little more than functional drinking holes. In Britain, though, a pub is typically much more than this: it can be a meeting place, an entertainment centre, the focal point of a community. As a visitor, popping into one or two pubs will help you to understand what the country and its people are like, beyond the usual tourist images of castles, royals and Shakespeare.
The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) estimates that 80 per cent of adults consider themselves ‘pub goers’, and over 15 million — nearly a third of the adult population — drink in a pub at least once a week.
In celebration of our great public houses we have put together this handy article that explores the essential barware and back of house items that all pubs should have to hand:
Spirit Measures (Optics)
For over 30 years Beaumont™ has been recognised as the favoured choice by Publicans for Spirit Measures. With the collaborations of our distributors and Point of Sale representatives Beaumont™ has become the number one manufacturer in the world.
Sometimes referred to as optics, spirit measures are the mainstay in many a pub up and down the country. Typically found in pubs – although there is a growing trend for restaurants, bars and hotels also adopting the wall bracket and spirit measure system – you can always recognise a Beaumont TM spirit measure by our logo on the front. Perhaps our most successful product, the spirit measure is available in a variety of different designs (2 of which you can see below):
Also available in a wide range of measurements deepening on your specification. To discover the full range of Beaumont spirit measures including the Vogue, Solo and Metrix SL here: https://beaumonttm.co.uk/bar-products-and-accessories/spirit-measures-accessories/spirit-measures/
Wall Brackets
It is no good investing in a number of different spirit measures to help keep your wastage under control or improve speed of service if you do not also invest in the wall brackets. Although not sold together, the spirit measure is lost without the wall bracket as the wall bracket is lost without the spirit measure. Available in a number of variants including the shelf bracket, self standing brackets, wall bracket, round bracket and square bracket – this device will ensure your bottle of liquid revenue stays safe and well secured.
Adjustable to ensure that different sized bottles can be used in the wall and shelf bracket system we even have a Euro adaptor available which essentially makes the Beaumont optics European friendly, ensuring they can be used with non-refillable bottles, which are widely sold in Europe.
Cask Ale Tap
Essential to any Pub that stocks real ale is the Beaumont TM cask ale tap otherwise known as the Abbot tap. There are a few subtle design elements to the Abbot cask ale tap. The ridges along the whole length of the shaft will ensure that when tapped in to the barrel via the keystone (wooden or plastic), the tap will both go in and come out of the keystone very easily compared to other cask ale taps. Furthermore, you will also see a number of small holes towards the end of the shaft of the tap, this allows the tap to source ale from the depths of the barrel when the level of the ale is getting low, therefore ensuring you get every drop of ale out of the barrel that you have paid for!
There is also a little nut at the end of the tap that can be easily screwed off, this allows a tap brush to be fed up the inside of the tap so you can keep your cask ale taps clean with ease. Although we love all these features when we asked for some feedback on our taps, it turns out that the hot favourite is in fact the tap opening and closing mechanism? Who knew!? It operates very smoothly and shouldn’t get stuck in place (which again has often been a criticism of cask ale taps in the past). Also available in a double version the Abbot cask ale tap may very well be the best in the business.
Weights & Measures Signage
Did you know that if you run an establishment that sells wine or spirits, in particular gin, rum, vodka, or whisky, then according to the Weights & Measures Act (1985) you also have to display bar & restaurant signage stipulating the measurements you supply. For example, if you offer any of these spirits (gin, rum, whisky or vodka) then you have to make it clear the quantities in which it will be served.
All of our Beaumont TM bar & restaurant signage comes equipped with double sided tape, making the job of putting your sign up on the wall in your establishment an easy one. Furthermore the size of all Weights & Measures Act signs are 170mm x 110mm. For more information on the Weight & Measures Act signs, which by law have to be displayed if you serve spirits or wine, please follow this link: https://beaumonttm.co.uk/bar-products-and-accessories/display/signage/
Ashtrays
An ashbin is a great way of providing a central point or a few central points for smokers to congregate around and put their stubs out in. However, aesthetically they aren’t right for every establishment and for some places the ashtray approach could be more suitable. For example, if you are a pub with a number of benches or picnic tables in a garden then the ashtray approach would probably be more suitable – ensuring that every table or every other table has a receptacle for disposing of ugly and smelly cigarette butts.
Introducing the five & three quarter inch black Melamine windproof ashtray. That’s right, this ashtray is windproof. Unlike our other ashtrays this ashtray comes with a curved lid, leaving a space in the middle to dispose of ash and cigarette butts. When we say windproof however, we do not mean that when the next hurricane strikes you can leave your ashtrays out; we mean that the wind will not blow the ash that is in the ashtray, back out and over anyone sitting nearby. A great feature. Contrary to popular belief smokers do not like to be covered in their own ash, or anyone else’s for that matter – regardless if you think they deserve it.
