Although it gets most of the hype, pizza is only a portion of a successful pizza-ing experience, and almost as integral is pizza’s best buddy: beer.

Jake and Josh Taylor were well aware of this when they hired Nick Chartier as a bar consultant nine months before they opened Fixture Pizza Pub in Walker’s Point.

Chartier, who has managed and bartended at many local establishments including Trocadero, Rumpus Room, Hi-Hat Lounge and Tin Widow (where he still has shifts), decided to stay on board at Fixture and now serves as the full-time bar manager.

"Beer is the main focal point of our bar, for obvious reasons," says Chartier.

Fixture focuses primarily on American craft beers, but features 50-60 bottles of beer and 18 lines that rotate with every barrel. "When one kicks, something completely different goes on," says Chartier.

The selection is slightly less random than it sounds, though. Three of the 18 lines are permanently the same beer: Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier, a German beer brewed by Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan; Prima Pils brewed by Pennsylvania’s Victory Brewing Company and tried-and-true Miller High Life.

"It’s the best adjunct lager out there," says Chartier. "And it goes with pretty much any kind of pizza."

There are always a few IPAs available, as well as at least one line of cider, sour and Belgian. There are also two nitro taps.

Chartier puts a lot of thought behind what he chooses, and makes his decisions based on the season, popular trends and what’s available from the best breweries.

"I also try to pick a couple beers not everyone thinks to carry, like the Pipers Scotch Ale from Sprecher. I’ve never seen it in a single bar in my life and I think it's incredibly underrated," says Chartier. "And, again, it's a beer that goes great with pizza."

Currently, the beer with the highest Alcohol By Volume (ABV) is the Molotov Cocktail – a Triple IPA that’s 13 percent alcohol – from Evil Twin. "It’s incredibly heavy and hoppy," says Chartier. "Definitely a sipper."

Although a healthy proportion of the beers at Fixture were brewed in the Midwest, Chartier – a lifelong Milwaukeean who currently lives in Bay View – did not pick them out of regional loyalty.

"There are just so many really great breweries in the Midwest – Founders, Three Floyds, Bells, Surly," says Chartier. "We’re really lucky."

Fixture also carries Wisconsin-made beers including Lakefront, Ale Asylum, O’so, Central Waters, Milwaukee Brewing Company (which is currently next door) and, soon, Enlightened Brewing Company.

Chartier says the best way to pair the right beer with pizza – or any other Fixture entree that includes sandwiches, salads and signature house meatballs – depends on how light or heavy the meal is.

"You don’t want one flavor to overpower the other one," says Chartier. "If you have something like chicken or a salad, you’re not going to want something rich and heavy like a stout, but if you're having the meatballs or a meat-heavy pizza, you’ll want something that has enough ‘oomph’ to stand up to it like a hoppy IPA or a scotch ale."

Fixture offers deep dish pizza, but the house specialty is a "Milwaukee style" pizza that has a thin, crackery crust and the cheese layered beneath the sauce.

Chartier says he enjoys making beer recommendations to customers and providing samples. "I heavily encourage sampling," he says. "And one of my favorite parts of the job is introducing people to new beer and mixing and blending flavors."

As for fall beers, Chartier has many favorites, including Staghorn Octoberfest by New Glarus, Central Waters’ Octoberfest Lager and Headless Huron, and Pumpking from Southern Tier Brewing Company that, according to the label, is "bewitched and brewed with Pagan spirit."

"Pumpkin beers are hard to do well," says Chartier. "A lot don't taste like pumpkins, rather pumpkin spice, which are two different things."

Chartier says most pumpkin beers are best when first released, which can be as early as July. Unfortunately, with summer still in full swing, few people are in the mood for an autumnal beer at that time.

In the future, Chartier plans to host "adult pizza parties" that showcase a specific brewery and pair beer with pizza. Growlers and bocce ball leagues are also on the horizon for Fixture. For now, he's working to ensure the environment is "casual and never pretentious."

This is very much in line with co-owner Josh Taylor's vision.

"We’re happy to offer the neighborhood a place to come in and have some great pizza or just have a few great beers," says Taylor. "Nick has done a lot to make that happen."