Tap Handle #690 - Sterling Pig

May 03, 2018

Tap Handle #690 - Sterling Pig

Tap size: 10"
Rarity: less than 10 seen
Mounting: 3/8" ferrule on 5/16" anchor bolt

I had once seen a photo of the Sterling Pig tap and thought it was very unique, and then I didn't see another...until now. Imagine my surprise when a Museum Collector's Club member talked the brewery into donating one to the Museum! It turns out Sterling Pig was very enthusiastic about getting their tap and brewery profiled, and I was happy to oblige them. The tap itself is absolutely gorgeous, featuring the image of a pig with either polished metal or plated chrome used to create a sterling silver look and feel. The tap has a solid weight to it and reflects light brightly. A chalkboard strip down the front allows the beer name to be written on it, and the brewery's name and logo appear as a sign on the front and back of the the tap near the bottom. As I mentioned above, I have only seen 1 or 2 of these taps on the secondary market, and they commanded a fairly high price. If you do manage to acquire one, make sure you wipe it down very well before displaying it, as the sodium on your hands and fingers will leave prints and tarnish (and possibly corrode) the metal over time.

Click through to read more about Sterling Pig Brewing, their The Snuffler IPA, and to see more photos of this "sterling" tap...

Sterling Pig Brewing was founded in Media, Pennsylvania in 2014 by Loïc Barnieu. When he came to America over two decades ago, Barnieu settled in Philadelphia and eventually opened 3 restaurants. He wanted to open a microbrewery, but due to the expense, it took him 4 years to gather investments and find a location. The first location he tried to obtain fell through when he couldn't come to terms with the owner. As a last resort he looked at a 5500 square foot former municipal laundry building with a post and beam structure and knew it was the perfect setting. The name Sterling Pig was chosen because Barnieu liked pigs and was brainstorming unusual associations, when the word "sterling" popped into his head.

The restaurant and brewery was configured to seat around 100 people in the dining room with another 30 at the bar and bar area, with plans for rooftop dining and outdoor dining in the future. The bar’s garage doors opened to Baltimore Pike. A 15-barrel brewing system was set up to provide enough capacity to supply 8 beers on taps, while the restaurant side was a gastropub, featuring fresh ingredients with barbecue and smoked meats, and also a wood-oven pizza.

By 2017, the brewery had undergone various changes, from expanding their brewhouse, to their distribution. Demand for their beer increased steadily, and to help meet that demand, Sterling Pig asked Sly Fox Brewing Company to brew a few contract batches of The Snuffler IPA. After being pleased with the results of the contract brew, Sterling Pig decided to enlist Sly Fox for canning their first cans of The Snuffler. With Sly Fox’s optimized canning line, which could fill 15,000 cans in an hour, the decision was easy for the brewery to use contract brewing and canning, although Sterling Pig hopes to have its own canning line in the future. Currently they have 10 beers on tap, some of which rotate out for specials or seasonals. Sterling Pig beer is distributed throughout Pennsylvania. The restaurant opens its doors on Thanksgiving to serve meals to people in need, with volunteers, chefs, and wait staff serving buffet style meals.