by rbladminIn a few words. Don’t.
Lol I’m only half-kidding. I think just about every person who has owned a brewery that I know or talked to before building Brothers Of Ale, asked the same following question…
Are you sure?
While that question was made with a grain of salt, there is a lot of truth to the trials and tribulations that craft brewery owners go through. Let alone building one in a foreign country like Costa Rica.
But sticking to the general sense, starting your own craft brewery is (should be) a very involved process. And everyone’s start is different. Some people take over an existing building or brewery, some people, like me, built the entire thing from dirt- each has its pros and cons. But the very first thing you should be asking yourself is, are you sure? Are you sure you want to dive into this industry? And in my case, and as I would hope in every other person’s, it was a resounding fuck yes!
I say that because this industry is saturated. There are tens of thousands of craft breweries, so along with competing with them, you also have the big boys, and if you’re in a city/state that has certain restrictions on distribution or functionality, your model (dream) might not be legally permitted. Then there are construction woes. Permit woes. Equipment woes. Employment woes. Tax woes. Bank account woes…the woes go on and on, so opening up a craft brewery isn’t for the faint of heart. But for all of us who went for it, we wear our scars proudly.
Now, in reading this far, or for those who are interested in the topic, we’re going to assume you are the “fuck yes” people like me.
So, let’s dive into it.
As I mentioned, this project should be a very involved process, and it should start with a quality product. In my own path, I spent over 5 years home brewing on a 1bbl setup, trying dozens of types of yeast and hops, mixing and mashing, reading books and online articles- whatever I could to truly learn and understand the process of brewing. Like so many other homebrewers I made countless batches and little by little came to understand the alchemic-like fusion of how all the ingredients, temperatures and times interacted to create the final product. How adjusting the pH or mash temp by a few numbers, can radically change a beer. And once you have those brews that you’re proud of, get honest feedback. Join a homebrew club, ask your beer drinking friends to come over for a blind taste test to get REAL feedback. None of this “ya bro, beer’s good” type responses- get critical feedback. Details!
And don’t be afraid to make an experimental beer based on a vision; if it turns out like shit, hey, you know what not to do. And during this process, TAKE NOTES. On EVERYTHING. That was some of the best advice I got. And it pays off, because I can’t tell you how many times I would forget…”how much hops was that dry hop?” or “How long did fermentation take last time?” all these data are so important for replicating and consistency. So do yourself a favor and get your school-nerd game on and pencil that shit down.
So now you’ve got a product and wanna go pro. Cool, bro, you and thousands of other dudes.
What next?
Start visiting other breweries…while there are some egotistic asshole brewers and brewery owners out there, the majority are super chill guys and girls who are happy to spread the knowledge. Get to know them. Ask them questions. Depending on your finances, they might have just done what you want to do and can offer you a pretty decent blueprint. Because this is where it gets a bit tricky in the question of “how to start your own craft brewery”…depending on how big your bank account is or how deep the pockets of your investors are, will determine your next steps. Like I said, you may be limited to buying a going out of business-brewery. Or maybe you’ll be able to purchase new. But whatever your situation is, LEARNING FROM the guys and girls who have done it is so critical.
So, take that advice and begin to form your business plan. Are you a neighborhood brewery? Do you just want to be a production facility? Taproom? Food? Start describing the experience you want to provide. Because that will then help formulate the finer details. Are we kegs only on site? Canning or bottling? How much inventory do we need to store? What do we do with our spent grain? Where are we going to expand into…because please, for the love of all things sacred in craft beer, if possible – naw scratch that – by every means necessary PLAN FOR EXPANSION. Allocate some future space for an expanded cold storage room, or racks to hold pallets of grain, or more fermenters….believe me if you’re going into this and your product is decent, there will come a time you’ll be looking to expand and not have the deconstruct your brewery to install it at another location.
And as all these details come together, you’ll begin to see a picture of a brewery that maybe you hadn’t thought of before. You’ll notice that maybe you need to add another zero onto your budget. But, as it all comes together, you’ll be able to see and eventually manifest your craft brewery. Because that is the most important thing. Believe in your dream. Believe in yourself. And you’ll make it happen.
