Home

Project Update

Submitted by josh on Wed, 09/26/2007 - 02:42

This week we secured a 3-month extension on our real estate purchase contract that will enable us to close on the building near the end of 2007. It feels odd to be talking about the inner aspects of our negotiations here, but I'll just chock that up to ways of the world in the 21st Century. Assembling the equity and financing for a project of this scale ($3M+) is no easy feat, especially when you are a brewpub. One bank asked if we would consider opening a franchise and another asked, 'Would you consider another kind of restaurant besides a brewpub?' Hmmmmm.....no?

Restaurants are risky businesses and plenty of people loose their shirts opening them, but at the same time, as I was once quoted in the NT Times: everybody's got to eat. I've found that most banks, especially some of the national banks, have a strong distaste for lending to restaurants. Fortunately, we've connected with the fine folks at SomerCor 504 to qualify for a Small Business Administration loan. And you won't find me complaining about the recent reduction in interest rates.

I wish I could just blog about the beers I was drinking earlier today (Ommegang Hennepin and Spaten Optimator --both very nice), but it's hard to see the forest through the trees at the moment. Hard to get away from the "make brewery before making beer" issue. As you would expect, I've been keenly interested in the initial reviews and press coverage of Half Acre Beer Company, based in Chicago, which is contracting their beer from Wisconsin. They cite the high hurdle of opening their own brewery as the justification for why they are contracting out to start. They're right on about the height of the hurdles, and being careful to look before you leap business-wise. Here's hoping they can make something of their initial foray into Chicago. The more good beer the better, and at least Wisconsin isn't *that* far away.

If you haven't clicked over to some other beer ocmpany's website that I've linked to (got to stop doing that), I'll try to wrap up the update on us. September has been a real busy month for us and we are 60% towards our overall equity raising goal. Best guess for when our beer will flood Logan Square's sidewalks, streets and alleys: end of 2008.

We hope to begin the public approval process for TIF assistance in October. We've asked the city for financial assistance because we believe this development will help spur more commercial development in Logan Square and bring more businesses to the historic Milwaukee Ave. corridor. If you are a meeting-going type, be on the alert for a community meeting to discuss said assistance and debate the merits of the subsidy we are requesting.

People are drinking more good beer

Submitted by josh on Mon, 08/20/2007 - 17:47

The Brewers Association reports that: "the volume of craft beer sold in the first half of 2007 rose 11% compared to this same period in 2006 and dollar growth increased 14%. For the first time ever craft beer has exceeded more than a 5% dollar share of total beer sales."

So one out of every twenty beers drunk in the U.S. are made by craft brewers. In a 'macro' view, that doesn't sound too impressive, but for micro folks like us trying to make a name for ourselves in the massive beer market, this is good news. It's slow revolution in tastes, but clearly good beer has the movement on its side (overall growth in beer sales was only 1%).

The Brewer With the Pink Boots

Submitted by josh on Fri, 07/27/2007 - 16:46

While on the last leg of a 4-day bike trip around the southern half of Lake Michigan last weekend, I stopped in at Three Floyds Brewing with a few friends. Although their brewpub was closed on Mondays, their tattoo-flecked brewer Barnaby greeted us warmly and offered us a few brews, including a samples of Fantabulous Resplendence (strong and hoppy barley-wineish) and Romulus and Remus (evil twin beers hopped with different varietals). While inside we bumped into acclaimed brewer Teri Fahrendorf, who left her job and is traveling the country visiting breweries and blogging about it. In an industry dominated by boys and men, Teri has built a reputation as a skilled brewer equal in all ways to her counterparts. Her new gig let's her be an informal ambassador for craft beer and based on my first impression she makes for a good one. It would be nice if a few more women would slip on the pink rubber boots like her (although she wasn't wearing them when I saw her). The sausage festival nature of most beer events gets old after a while, and that's not just because I'm a vegetarian.

Project update

Submitted by josh on Fri, 07/27/2007 - 16:30
Everything is coming along with our plans to acquire the building in the next few months. We recently made our application for financial assistance from the City's Fullerton Milwaukee Tax Increment Financing District to defray some of our rehabilitation costs. The City recently announced similar assistance for a new Uncommon Ground location on Devon St.

Illinois Craft Brewers Guild

Submitted by josh on Thu, 07/19/2007 - 14:17

I biked out to Geneva on the Illinois Prairie Path yesterday for a meeting of the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild. I'd been to one of their meetings ages ago when I worked at the Goose, and it is good to see that they are still active. The meeting was held at Stockholm's Pub on State St., a tiny place with a brew system in the front window. The guild hosts the Festival of Barrel Aged Beer in the fall at Goose Island Wrigleyville and participates in other events throughout the year.

While in Michigan recently, I was real impressed by the work of the Michigan Brewers Guild, including their upcoming festival in Ypsilanti and their fight against a proposed beer tax increase.

Syndicate content