If you had asked me yesterday what the chances are of seeing one of the cranky old men at a spa, I would have said the chances are slim to none, and Slim just left town. But today I saw an article about a Beer Spa. A Beer Spa, what the hell is that? The punch line of an unfunny joke that our Editor would tell?* But this is no joke, we have an official “Beer SPA” in Ontario – the Muskoka Beer Spa. It is also home to the Clear Lake Brewing company, supplying the “beer” part of the spa experience. So apparently it is a legitimate enterprise which prompted my next question, why?
This is where the old light bulb above the noggin started to flicker then go on. I mean think about the marketing on the home front (so named because the front is where the battle is usually most intense). “Honey, happy belated anniversary, I’ve booked us into a SPA” is going to be a crowd pleaser at my place. Let’s not split hairs over which SPA it is or why I missed our anniversary. I could book us in for the week and be able to sit in their hot tub and drink beer. This is sounding like a SPA I can get behind. In fact, it might just be a bit of marketing genius, the best thing since sliced bread!**
Not just any old beer SPA either – but apparently the largest Beer SPA in the world. Now we have another reason to check it out and this is sounding a lot more interesting than anything Clark Griswold dragged his family to in that vacation movie.*** Faced with a choice between the second largest ball of twine in the world and the largest Beer SPA, I think we can guess where we are headed.
According to my old buddy RS, he says it’s not a new idea. Before he retired, every year he used to go with the missus down to New Brunswick to a conference and she would check into the spa for the day and he would do some “East Coast Conferencing” which included hoisting a few. She, being the designated driver, would drive them back to the hotel, both glowing and happy. I think he called it a symbiotic relationship. Not exactly what Clear Lake is proposing, but their approach isn’t a brand new idea either. There are beer spas in Japan and Europe as well – but they don’t all run the same way. As long as they all serve beer, who cares how they fold their towels! You’ve got your spa experience for one half of the household and your beer experience for the other half. Happy spouse, happy house I always say. I think our marketing guru Farmer Steve**** needs to knead into this one, and come up with some bread. As he is prone to say, “it could be a profit making deal.”
*Editor’s Comment: A hockey player, a lawyer and a used car salesman walk into a Beer Spa. The bartender says “what is this, some kind of joke?” That’s damn funny and you know it.
**Editor’s Comment: That saying is so old it may well be older than sliced bread.
***Editor’s Comment: The movie National Lampoon’s Vacation with Chevy Chase.
****Editor’s Comment: Although Farmer Steve is a savvy investor, he did chip a tooth when he heard there was money to be made with Bitcoin.
Visited Clear Lake yesterday and got a tour of the beer spa. Very impressive. It was quite busy and was very well setup, looks like a good time. Had a nice outdoor lunch at the restaurant and tried their amber ale.
https://comdb.ca/reviews/clear-lake-amber-ale/