Nanobrewery Primer

Update 11-16-10 – I have added an area at the bottom for links to my other nanobrewing articles.

There has been a lot of talk about nanobreweries lately; more and more seem to be cropping up here in the Northwest. Vertigo has been rocking their single barrel system out in Hillsboro for nearly two years. And while they have yet to open their doors, Mt. Tabor Brewing has received a good deal of press in the last couple months. There is even a festival dedicated to these smallest of microbreweries. Max’s Fanno Creek Brew Pub is holding another Nano Beer festival, February 26-28. This time, the Nano @ Fanno is winter beer themed, featuring several offering from area nanos.

So, what exactly is a nanobrewery?

There is no official definition, but the general consensus is that breweries operating systems no larger than 7 barrels are considered nano. And many are far smaller than that; 1-2 barrel systems, operated on evenings and weekends by people who maintain non-brewing day jobs.

Ok, so we are talking about tiny breweries, what’s the big deal?

The concept of miniscule breweries is nothing new, but is something that has been considered impractical. While a nanobrewery might seem like the first logical step from garage to commercial brewing, it is a rough step to take. At the federal level, the government makes no distinction between nanos and their much larger brethren. If you want to sell beer legally, you have to abide by the same rules and regulations, be it a single bottle or 1,000 barrels.

If you are thinking of running a brewery from your home, good luck to you sir. The TTB doesn’t look too kindly on people trying to license their residence as a brewery. Some have been able to pull it off in rural areas with detached buildings and favorable zoning, but who knows what other state and local red tape is waiting to block you. Most nanos have found it necessary to rent an industrial space in order to sate the various governing agencies.

The other thorn in the side of nanobrewing is time. Be it one barrel or 10, the time invested in producing a batch of beer is nearly identical. This leads to the prevailing argument against nanobrewing; you can’t produce enough beer on a nano-size system to cover the expenses of operating. Still, some brave souls are making it happen.

This post is the primer for a series of articles I will be writing throughout the year about nanobrewing. I will be talking with several regional nanos and covering topics such as purchasing and upgrading equipment, hidden startup costs, the licensing process and dealing with growth and demand. So far Mt. Tabor, Schooner Exact and Naked City have all agreed to help me by provided information from their experiences.

For anyone not familiar with these breweries, here is some information.

Mt. Tabor Brewing

Mt. Tabor Brewing is owned and operated by Brian Maher and Eric Surface. Located in the Portland neighborhood with which it shares a name, Mt. Tabor just received its final approvals and Eric expects everything to be legal in about two weeks.

Naked City Brewery & Taphouse

Don Webb and Don Averill started Seattle’s Naked City as a Taphouse; adding a 3 barrel brewing system last year. While Mt. Tabor is diving straight into production brewing, Naked City will shows us how a nanobrewery can be grown out of an existing business.

Schooner Exact Brewing

Also from Seattle, Schooner Exact has taken off like a rocket; upgrading to a 10 barrel system last year. While no longer a nanobrewery, they should have some interesting information to share on how they managed their quick growth and expansion needs.

If there is a specific topic you would like to see covered or a question you would me to ask, let me know and I will try to work work it in. Also, if you operate a nanobrewery and would like to participate in future articles, shoot me an e-mail, I would be glad to have you.

Cheers!
Kevin

Nanobrewing: Under the Hood