We live in strange but wondrous times.
When Megan and Steve Long tell friends and customers about their newest venture, Good Boy Dog Beer, more often than not, they’re met with the same three questions.
One: Is it really for dogs? (Yes.)
Two: Is it alcoholic? (No.)
Three: Can I drink it? (Um, sure?)
The beer doesn’t exactly dance on a human palate, thanks to a complete lack of sodium. But that was never the intention. The Longs, who own Henderson Heights bar in the Sixth Ward and Reserve 101 downtown, wanted to create a new product that mixed two of their favorite things on the planet — beer and dogs.
They’re not pretending to be the first people with the idea. There’s been a scatterplot of breweries offering pints for pups for more than a decade now. But they do seem to be the first in Houston, a city that has become increasingly dog-friendly in recent years, thanks to a growing number of patio bars willing to let four-legged friends tag along for Sunday funday. And that Fido-forward culture has helped the Longs find immediate success.
Within weeks of their launch, all three flavors of their beer — IPA Lot in the Yard, Mailman Malt Licker and Session…squirrel! — are available in 15 bars throughout the city, including Front Porch Pub and FM Kitchen and Bar, for a recommended price of about $5 a can. And they’re getting requests to ship cans across the country.
So yeah, it’s not beer in the sense that you or I know it. But it comes in cans and it’s served at bars, so close enough. Good for the Longs, finding a niche and filling it.