Tabu Terrell, founder of Three Spirits Brewery in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Daniel Hartis)
Curmudgeon Corners
Three Spirits Brewery in Charlotte, North Carolina, takes its name from the trio of ghosts in Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” but it’s Ebenezer Scrooge that haunts the place. The brewery’s top-hatted logo is a nod to the notorious misanthrope, who is especially present in what founder Mwatabu “Tabu” Terrell calls “curmudgeon corners.”
Along one wall of the taproom, opposite the bar, is a row of L-shaped half walls. Tucked inside each is a pair of leather chairs, a small table between them. The inspiration for these curmudgeon corners came when Terrell would visit bars to watch his beloved Chicago Bears play, since he didn’t get the games at home.
“It never failed that somebody sat down next to me and wanted to become my best friend when I just wanted to have a beer and watch TV,” he says. “And I figured that there might be a few people who were kind of like me. Not exactly antisocial, but sometimes you just want to kind of chill and be around a big vibe but not be directly involved in it.”
These alcoves have proved popular with couples, people working on laptops and families with small children. But they’re perhaps best suited to those who want to enjoy a quiet pint without fear of sitting next to strangers blathering about the Bears, the beers, the weather or how their marriage is falling apart. In a world filled with so much noise, these curmudgeon corners provide a charm Scrooge himself couldn’t resist. –Daniel Hartis
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There’s a bar outside of Albany, the Man of Kent. The last time I was there, they had one television, a fairly small one, that I was told was just for major news and sports events. It’s up in the corner of the room. And behind sits the ashes of a former regular — I think his name was Horst? — who hated the television, but loved the Man of Kent, and asked to be “buried” there. They put him in the one place in the room where he wouldn’t have to look at the screen. I like that.
What a great story- stories like this sum up the real community of what a bar creates and breathes life into
Nice one, Lew. I recently saw an article about Anthony Bourdain where he basically bashes a lot of the craft beer environment; he spoke about walking into a craft beer bar and witnessing several people carefully drinking flights and making an “experience” out of it. His words: “”This is not a bar. This is f—ing Invasion of the Body Snatchers. This is wrong. This is not what a bar is about.”
I think the old idea of a “bar” is already well-known: a place where you watch the game as you work on quietly getting drunk, stewing in your thoughts.
While Bourdain may have a point, I would posit many craft beer bars are not these types of “bars.” You don’t go to see how many shots you can handle before browning out as you watch sports, you go to drink exquisite beer and connect with your friends around you.
I do appreciate that the craft beer bars and brewpubs are locally owned and so far I haven’t seen a lot of turnover in staff here in Dayton, O. It kind of makes your day to walk in and they know your name. Also as a local tour guide the owners are always willing to throw a t-shirt or two my way to give to one of my guests.
It’s a fickle thing that you can’t cater to all types. It really reflects on the establishment whether TV’s and disturbances are allowed. Several taprooms in Tulsa offer TV’s mainly for sports but American Solera is very minimalist with a community table and picnic benches outside in essence to bring community together. But knowing the brewers, it’s just their personality and experience they want to give their customers.