This story has been updated to include the name of Drink Williamsburg co-owner Adam Theis.
Lance Zaal thought Williamsburg needed something different. When the idea of Drink Williamsburg came to him last year, the city didn’t have much of a drinking scene.
“I always thought the city needed something new,” he said.
Zaal saw an opportunity: Enter Drink Williamsburg, a touring company that transports its patrons to local establishments where they can drink and be merry.
The trips initally were simple. “I held some different bar crawls,” he said. “Then I decided we were better off with a bus.”
Zaal and his co-owner Adam Theis secured bought a bus close to two weeks ago, which will help with logistics. The legal obligations are different on a bus: it’s safer than just about anything else.
“There are a lot of things we can do. The bus gives us more freedom and flexibility.”
The Williamsburg alcohol industry is growing some, and as it has, the potential stops for those interested in Drink Williamsburg will increase.
“We went to one brewery and one winery last year,” he said. “This year, there are three breweries, a meadery, and two distilleries.”
All five locations tied to Drink Williamsburg are also on the Williamsburg Tasting Trail, touted by the Tourism Alliance as a chance to spend time with friends with see local brewing places.
“Travelers all over have clearly indicated that a visit to a winery, brewery and distillery is undeniably fun,” said Corrina Ferguson, Director of Destination Campaign Marketing for the Greater Williamsburg Chamber & Tourism Alliance. “As to why we have seen a boom in that industry in the destination of late? We have the population from both a local and a tourism perspective to support the businesses, and that base of interested consumers is key.
Zaal owns the Taste of Williamsburg, a food tour company, and thought it’d be smart to branch off, which is why he started Drink Williamsburg last year. “Drink Williamsburg was really a natural progression for me,” he said.’
The budding beer industry here is part of an already robust area for tourists.
“Why do people come here? That question is hard to specify because based on our research travelers visit here for different reasons over the course of the year,” Ferguson said. “Certainly, CW is one of our major tourism drivers, and so is Busch Gardens, the National Parks, Jamestown Settlement and the soon-to-be American Revolution Museum at Yorktown.”
In his competition with the other activities visitors and residents can do locally, Zaal plans to distinguish himself by ensuring his guests enjoy themselves.
“We really want to be seen as a place where people can go to have a fun time. We want to be seen as a fun company.”
Launching Sept. 16, the bus will run seven days a week, twice a day. It’ll also serve as a party bus on the weekends. Zaal says buses will eventually go to cities like Virginia Beach and Richmond, for people in Williamsburg who may want to see another part of the area.
“This is going to be the first bus of many,” Zaal said.
Reach Wright by phone at 757-345-2343 or on Twitter at @WrightGazette.
