# Do you use the term "beer dock"? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Tags:** beer\ **Created:** [October 21, 2026, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036 "2026-10-21T16:31:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2026, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/21 "2026-10-21T21:56:42Z")
Touching on another recent thread, I may know where you buy a boon… ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2026, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/22 "2026-10-21T23:04:27Z")
WT everlovin’ F is wrong with Ohio people? They have docks in lakes that sell beer to boaters and they nickname those things “dry docks”? I’m just gobsmacked. ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2026, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/23 "2026-10-21T23:39:38Z")
Closest I got is from my time as a youth in the Cincinnati area as a child - say early-ish 70s to late 80s, I always heard the term _pony keg_ for a beer store. Most specifically a kind of drive-through beer store where you pulled up, told the attendants what you wanted, and they loaded it into your trunk. The one I frequented most with my grandfather was loading dock-like as I picture it these many years down the road. > **[Pony Kegs We Know And Love](https://www.cincinnatimagazine.com/forkopolisblog/pony-kegs-know-love/)** > > They share a common denominator: a wall of cold beer, plenty of beef jerky, and stacks upon stacks of cigarettes and lottery tickets behind the register. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2026, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/24 "2026-10-21T23:48:15Z")
Lifelong Midwesterner (Wisconsin and Illinois), who has visited Ohio, including Columbus, many times over the last 20 years, mostly for gaming conventions, and who has a number of Ohioan friends. I’d never heard the term before this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/25 "2026-10-22T00:03:33Z")
> [@Pork\_Rind](#): > > Closest I got is from my time as a youth in the Cincinnati area as a child - say early-ish 70s to late 80s, I always heard the term _pony keg_ for a beer store. Weird. I’m not a drinker but I thought that a pony keg was just a small beer keg. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/26 "2026-10-22T00:05:36Z")
> [@mixdenny](#): > > They were also called “dry docks” I thought a dry dock was where you pulled a boat or ship entirely out of the water for repairs or long term storage. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/27 "2026-10-22T00:07:09Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I’m not a drinker but I thought that a pony keg was just a small beer keg. It is; it’s equivalent to a quarter-barrel of beer. I’d guess that the term, in reference to a beer store, is another localized term, probably not unlike “beer dock.” It wouldn’t surprise me if both terms were originally names of particular local liquor stores, and then became locally genericized. ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/28 "2026-10-22T01:19:27Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I’m not a drinker but I thought that a pony keg was just a small beer keg. Most _reasonable_ places, sure. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/29 "2026-10-22T01:44:14Z")
Not only am I not familiar with the term “beer dock”, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a beverage store, by any name, in Ohio. Any old ordinary grocery store is allowed to sell alcohol, here. ---
**Author:** ![Clawdio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d07c76/32.png) [@Clawdio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clawdio)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/30 "2026-10-22T08:24:26Z")
I grew up in Western Pennsylvania where we had: **Beer Distributor** - This was a store that basically only sold beer, nothing else, except MAYBE soda and chips/snacks, and they were the only place you could buy a case of beer. They had no liquor/hard alcohol because that was sold at **State Store** - As i understand it, they were called this because they were technically run by the state government. And this store only had hard liquor/wine, nothing else, not even beer. I moved away over 25 years ago, and when i’ve been back to visit it seems like some of these laws have since been relaxed. ---
**Author:** ![Ancient\_Nerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed655f/32.png) [@Ancient\_Nerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ancient_Nerd)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/31 "2026-10-22T08:54:00Z")
There is a store by that name in Toledo Ohio at 932 N. Huron St, about a quarter mile from the Maumee River. 41.658674° -83.527714° [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/D7tkWEx.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/D7tkWEx) From Google Earth ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/32 "2026-10-22T11:29:12Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I don’t think I’ve ever seen a beverage store, by any name, in Ohio. Any old ordinary grocery store is allowed to sell alcohol, here. Wait, are you saying Ohio doesn’t have liquor stores? I know my state (Wisconsin) is known for drinking a lot, but I was under the impression that liquor stores were common everywhere, even when pretty much any store is allowed to sell alcohol. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/33 "2026-10-22T11:39:21Z")
You know, Saturday night in Toledo, Ohio, is like being nowhere at all. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/34 "2026-10-22T15:07:54Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Wait, are you saying Ohio doesn’t have liquor stores? They do for the proper 80 proof stuff. But you can get the crappy 40 proof stuff in the grocery store. At least that was the case when I lived there last century. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/35 "2026-10-22T15:12:02Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Wait, are you saying Ohio doesn’t have liquor stores? A bit of Googling indicates to me that Ohio _does_ have standalone, private liquor stores. However, it appears that they operate under partnership with the state’s Division of Liquor Control, and at least for high-alcohol liquor (i.e., not beer and wine), the state itself buys the liquor and sets prices. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/36 "2026-10-22T15:13:23Z")
[ABC stores](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoholic_beverage_control_state). As a resident of another drinking state a liquor store is just a store that specializes in one product same as you. But we all have goofy neighbors like Michigan and Oregon who say stuff about only being allowed to buy liquor at certain places. 17 in the US, all of Canada besides Alberta, and all of Scandinavia/Nordics besides Denmark. No ABC but also Minnesota has some quirks. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/38 "2026-10-22T15:44:27Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Not only am I not familiar with the term “beer dock”, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a beverage store, by any name, in Ohio. Any old ordinary grocery store is allowed to sell alcohol, here. I dunno if beverage stores went out of fashion due to laws changing or something (more places could sell alcohol?) but we definitely went to the beverage store to buy dad’s beer in the 80s, in Ohio. We had one in my city, there was one in the next city over that lasted into the 2000s, and there is still one in the city next to that. Bedford Beverage, and it’s not a part of the [Ohio Division of Liquor](https://www.ohlq.com/locations) - it’s just a beverage store. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/39 "2026-10-22T16:21:32Z")
Plenty of Beverage/Liquor stores in Ohio independent of grocery stores. I can think of 10 within a few miles of my house, and I’m not a drinker. They have various names/signage, from plain old “State Liquor Agency” to “XXXX Beverage” or “XXXX Beverage & Liquor”. They are all State Liquor Agency stores regardless of signage. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/40 "2026-10-22T16:39:02Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > WT everlovin’ F is wrong with Ohio people? They have docks in lakes that sell beer to boaters and they nickname those things “dry docks”? I didn’t phrase that very well. The “dry dock” name was a nickname for the standard beverage store. I have no idea what stores for boaters were called. The big beverage store in Lorain back in the 1960s was Gallo’s Beer Dock. There was also Ronnie’s Beer Dock. It does no good to search the newspaper archives for “dry dock” since Lorain was a ship building town with numerous real dry docks. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2026, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036/41 "2026-10-22T16:45:17Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > ot only am I not familiar with the term “beer dock”, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a beverage store, by any name, in Ohio. Any old ordinary grocery store is allowed to sell alcohol, here. You are near Lakewood as I recall. Lakewood has Simone’s Beverage, Ross Beverage, Cap & Corks, and The beverage Square at least. Grocery stores can only sell full strength liquor in a bonded state store in the premises. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-use-the-term-beer-dock/1034036.md?page=3)