WASHINGTON 鈥� You鈥檙e the bartender at Northern Virginia鈥檚 newest craft brewery, and you decide if you want just a taste or a pint at ., which holds its grand opening Sept. 20 through Sept. 23.
The brewery officially opened Sept. 1.
Owners Scott and Cyndi Hoffman have installed automated taps in their brewery鈥檚 sleek, glass walled tasting room at 4520 Daly Drive in Chantilly, Virginia.
鈥淭he first thing you do is check in and you鈥檒l get an RFID card, you鈥檒l walk over to the beer wall, and then you choose which beer you want to drink,鈥� Scott Hoffman said.
鈥淵ou鈥檒l choose a glass size, either a taster or a pint glass, and then you鈥檒l set your card up on the LCD screen, you鈥檒l open the tap handle quickly and pour yourself an ice-cold beer.鈥�
The automation eliminates a bit of payroll overhead, but Hoffman said that wasn鈥檛 the motivation.
Hoffman, a former engineer who can control much of the brewery鈥檚 brewing process with his phone, said the system gives the company instant feedback on what beers people are most liking.
鈥淎 lot of times you can make a judgment of gut feel, but we wanted to make that judgment off of data,” he said. “With this system, it gives us of that data that we can store and make good, sound decisions with.”
He also figures for customers, the self-serve concept is kind of fun.
Ono means 鈥渄elicious鈥� in Hawaiian. Hoffman and his wife Cindy spent time in Florida and Hawaii and wanted to bring some of that flip-flop tiki bar vibe to their brewery. That includes walls lined with beach pictures and Jimmy Buffet frequently playing on the sound system.
Scott served in the Army and was at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii. Cyndi鈥檚 mother was born and raised in Hawaii.
The 139-person tasting room also includes handcrafted wooden tables and bars made from recycled wood from 120-year-old homes torn down in the D.C. area.
Ono Brewing Co. includes three 30-barrel fermenters. Early offerings include pale ale, IPA and wheat beers, and a brews called Manako, a mango white ale, and Awapuhi, a lemon-ginger ale.
A dark brown ale and a coconut brown ale are coming.
Hoffman said his employees are paid a competitive wage and tips are not expected, largely because of the self-serve concept.
Any gratuity employees get is donated to a charity, currently the CIA Memorial Foundation.
