Date: Aug. 1, 2019

2019 Ozarks Tap and Pour Tour Underway in Southwest Missouri

Springfield, Missouri – On the heels of an outstanding 2018, the Ozarks Tap and Pour Craft Beverage Tour is expected to be even more successful in 2019.

More than 10,000 Tap and Pour booklets were distributed in 2018 and hundreds of people completed the tour in its inaugural year.

This year, the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau printed 20,000 booklets and people have already begun achieving the goal of getting stamps from at least 10 participating businesses in the booklet. Once they get those stamps, they receive a collector T-shirt while supplies last.

Tara and Doyle Stradling, of Troy, Ohio, decided to take the challenge after discovering the booklets at Bear Creek Wine Co. in Walnut Shade. They completed the tour on June 16 and were among the first to submit their booklets for prize redemption.

“We have the trails back home and like to do them,” Tara Stradling said. “As soon as we saw it, we said, woohoo, look what we’re doing!”

In the two days it took to complete the tour, the Stradlings discovered their favorite thing was talking with the vintners, brewers and owners of the shops.

“It was great fun,” Tara Stradling said, explaining they added a jaunt to Springfield to their trip just so they could get their booklet stamped.

The Stradlings’ enjoyment is exactly what the tour is about. The goal is to enhance the visitor experience along with highlighting one of the area’s growing tourism assets.

It’s also been good for business, said Greg Pope, owner of Missouri Ridge Distillery in Branson, who estimates $30,000 in sales last year were directly related to the tour. 

“It’s been tremendously successful,” Pope said. “In fact, it’s been the only aspect of advertising that’s given me a return on my investment.” 

Derek Shimeall, co-owner of 4 By 4 Brewing Co. in Springfield said the tour increased his business last year by introducing craft beverages to people who may not have considered them in the past. 

“It’s been successful,” Shimeall said. “We had a really good turn out the first year. We’re happy to do it a second year.”

He could tell the tour was making a difference because it was easy to track when people came in to get a stamp. The patrons were a mix of tourists and local residents, he said. 

“Almost all those people were first-time guests,” Shimeall added.

The free booklets are available at the Route 66 Springfield Visitor Center, 815 E. St. Louis St. in Springfield, at the 20 participating businesses listed below or request them at https://www.springfieldmo.org/tapandpour. 

• Great Escape Beer Works, 4022 S. Lone Pine Ave.
• 4 By 4 Brewing Co., 2811 E. Galloway St., Suite A
• Show-Me Brewing, 1925 E. Bennett St.
• Tie & Timber Beer Co., 1451 E. Cherry St.
• Missouri Spirits, 507 W. Walnut St.
• Mother’s Brewing Co., 215 S. Grant Ave.
• Springfield Brewing Co., 305 S. Market Ave.
• Lost Signal Brewing Co., 610 W. College St.
• Hold Fast Brewing, 235 N. Kimbrough Ave.
• 7C’s Winery, 502 E. 560th Road, Walnut Grove
• Leaky Roof Meadery, 1306 Azalea St., Buffalo
• Boat Town Brewing, 18146 Campground Road, Phillipsburg
• Back Home Brewing Co., 1502 S. 3rd St., Ozark
• Bear Creek Wine Co., 1320 Keithley Rd., Walnut Shade
• Copper Run Distillery, 1901 Day Road, Walnut Shade
• Crown Valley Distillery, 1420 W. 76 Country Blvd., Suite 100, Branson
• Curling Vine Winery, 601 State Highway 165, Branson
• St. James Winery, 405 State Highway 165, Branson
• Lindwedel Winery, 3158 State Highway 265, Branson
• Missouri Ridge Distillery, 7000 State Highway 248, Branson 

Learn more about the CVB, a nonprofit marketing organization dedicated to improving the local economy through growth in tourism, and Springfield at www.SpringfieldMO.org or call 417-881-5300 or 800-678-8767.