As much of a fan of Erlang and Riak as I am, you did make the right call. If you only have one or two people on the team who want to know that technology, then

As much of a fan of Erlang and Riak as I am, you did make the right call. If you only have one or two people on the team who want to know that technology, then it isn't a smart move to base a core piece of technology on it (Erlang) just because it might be the best answer. Sometimes an okay answer that everyone is familiar with is much better.