As beer sales continue to drop, many local and national brewers and restaurateurs are opting to scale back on the number of different brews they are offering, writes Joshua M. Bernstein for The New York Times.

Americans are buying less beer, many instead opting for spirits and canned cocktails or refraining from alcohol entirely.

According to market research firm NIQ, beer sales at bars and restaurants declined nearly 4.7% from a year earlier.

Colin McFadden worked at Tired Hands Brewing in Ardmore for a decade. During that time, he became head brewer and made hundreds of limited-edition beers.

When it was time to open his own place, he thought that it would be nice to go deep with the beer selection instead of wide.

He partnered with Keith Shore, a former Mikkeller Beer art director, on Meetinghouse. The popular bar and restaurant opened its doors in Kensington in August.

The establishment offers five cocktails, four wines, and five beers. The beers include pale, dark, and hoppy ales that are brewed by McFadden nearby.

“Some choice felt necessary, but too much choice felt problematic,” he said. “I’ve had very few people be like, ‘Why are there so few beers?’”

Read more about how brewers are adjusting to the post-craft beer boom at The New York Times.

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