Why NA Draft Safety Matters
Non-alcoholic draft looks identical to alcoholic draft at the tower. The difference is in the stakes: a mis-pour or mis-connected line can cause real harm, create liability, and quietly erode trust. DraftVerify exists to remove that ambiguity with a standard for identification, separation, and verification.
- Prevents accidental alcohol service to guests who explicitly ordered non-alcoholic.
- Reduces mis-connections in the cooler when kegs, lines, and taps are rotated.
- Supports better hygiene and handling for NA products with different stability profiles.
- Creates a recordable, auditable process for venues, breweries, and insurers.
The Risks DraftVerify Is Designed to Remove
NA draft risk clusters around three failure points: accidental alcohol service, mis-connections in the cooler, and contamination or mishandling. Each of these can be traced back to unclear identification and a lack of verification.
Accidental Alcohol Service
A guest who orders NA may be driving, pregnant, on medication, or in recovery. Serving alcohol by mistake is not a minor error; it is a high-impact event for the guest and the venue.
- Identical-looking taps create confusion during busy service.
- New staff may not know which handle actually pours NA.
- DIY labels fade, peel, or are removed when towers are rebranded.
Mis-Connections in the Cooler
Coolers are high-change environments. Kegs rotate, couplers move, and lines get reused. Without a clear identification standard, the NA path can be broken without anyone noticing.
- NA kegs connected to alcoholic lines, or vice versa.
- Faucets pouring a different product than the badge implies.
- No simple way to confirm the full path from keg → faucet.
Contamination & Hygiene
NA products often behave differently in draft systems than traditional beer. When NA lines are not clearly separated or properly documented, contamination and handling issues become harder to control.
- Unclear which lines have run NA vs. alcoholic products.
- Cleaning schedules can miss lines used for NA.
- Breweries lose visibility into how their NA product is treated.
Operational, Brand, and Legal Exposure
NA draft safety is not just a technical topic. It touches operations, brand trust, staff training, and legal exposure across venues and breweries.
Simpler Systems, Fewer Mistakes
When the NA path is clearly marked, managers spend less time explaining “which line is which” and more time running the floor.
- Faster onboarding for new staff.
- Clearer cooler maps and checklists.
- Fewer service interruptions caused by mis-connected kegs.
Keeping Promises to NA Guests
Serving a drink as “non-alcoholic” is a promise. If the wrong product comes out of the tap, that promise is broken — and guests may not give a second chance.
- Protects venue reputation with NA guests.
- Protects breweries whose brands appear on tap badges.
- Supports long-term category growth for NA products.
Documentation and Defensibility
When an incident is questioned, venues and breweries need more than “we think the right keg was on.” They need evidence of a process.
- Repeatable verification steps for staff and reps.
- Records showing when taps were checked and by whom.
- A clear standard that can be referenced in policies and contracts.
Why a Standard, Not Just Tape and Stickers
Many venues already use ad-hoc methods — colored tape, markers, or temporary labels. These are a start, but they do not scale, survive time, or create accountability.
Temporary and Inconsistent
Informal markings depend on individual staff, individual venues, and individual days.
- Fall off, fade, or get removed during rebranding.
- Mean different things in different venues.
- Do not tie into any formal log or registry.
Consistent and Traceable
DraftVerify establishes a shared language for NA draft identification that travels with the keg, the venue, and the brand.
- Standardized tags and symbols across all locations.
- Defined path from keg → coupler → line → faucet.
- Backed by the DraftVerify Registry for verification events.