The Syracuse Mets (Class AAA; International League) have turned NBT Bank Stadium into something of a haven for craft beer lovers, offering numerous options and several beer-centric promotions.
Craft beer continues to be a popular beverage offering at professional ballparks, with many minor league and major league teams embracing the trend in their own ways. For the Mets, this has involved several initiatives at NBT Bank Stadium, including The Hops Spot–a dedicated room on the first-base concourse that features 72 unique canned beers, plus four taps. Parent New York Mets have embraced craft-beer culture as well, so it’s no surprise the Syracuse Mets, in the first year as the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate, are extended that marketing angle.
While the range of selections is one way that the Syracuse Mets appeal to craft beer enthusiasts, general manager Jason Smorol and the team’s front office have worked up other ways to emphasize craft beer. That includes the weekly Craft Beer Friday offering–$20 for a ticket and two craft beers–and other promotions, as well as a partnership with Mikkeller NYC, an affiliate of Mikkeller brewery of Denmark based at the New York Mets’ Citi Field. More from Syracuse.com:
On one Friday per month, the four taps in The Hops Spot room will be dedicated to one brewery (a tap takeover). For the next home Friday, May 4, that will be Full Boar Brewing of North Syracuse, [Mets’ assistant general manager Clint “Tonka] Cure said.
Another special promotion involves Mikkeller NYC, a Queens brewery affiliated with the Mikkeller brewery of Denmark. Mikkeller is sponsoring the Hank Sauer Room, the enclosed dining-and-drinks spot overlooking right field. Mikkeller beers will be available on tap there.
Along with the change to the Mets, who bought the Syracuse team before last season, the craft beer options should give fans new reasons to come to the stadium.
“There’s a lot here that maybe people who haven’t come in a few years, or maybe haven’t come at all in the past, will be surprised about,” Smorol said. “Of course the Met are new. The craft beer is also something new that can be a selling point.”
While several major league teams carry craft beer in higher numbers, the volume of craft beer selections available at NBT Bank Stadium is certainly strong by Minor League Baseball standards. The Mets are building beyond that with their promotional and event schedule, which includes the aforementioned offerings and an annual craft beer festival that is traditionally held in the offseason but will move up to June 21 this year.
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