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  • Suggestions to Learn as much as Possible

    I'm going to make this short and sweet. A buddy of mine and I both would love to start a micro or brewpub. I currently live in Colombia, South America in a huge tourist town and I would love to do a brewpub there. I actually think the time to strike was about 6 months ago as there is a microbrewery/gastropub in the capital that this year expanded to distributing where I live and the day before I came home from the holidays I saw they are building a bar location where I live. However this is ok, as it provides a growth of the market.

    Here's the thing, I used to homebrew but never really learned the science behind it. I had just graduated to experimenting in all grain when I left for Colombia three years ago. My buddy dabbled in it too. At the end of the day we love beer and the idea of working for ourselves and having this but the truth is we don't know jack about really doing it. I mean I remember I probably did some things when I was in college that would make a legit brewer sick, jerry rigged stuff, screwing up recipes. heck I never even improvised a true lauter turn, just put everything into a cotton brew bag. I remember calling a friend over when I opened a busch light keg because I figured if I lost some fingers I needed someone there. put three batches of cherry stout in that thing and carbonated it in the kegerator, thats up there with national merit finalist in my list of life accomplishments at 25. I remember one time I left an october fest in primary far too long and saw things crawling on the top. then let it sit in secondary refigerated ferment for far too much longer..... finally boddeled it in december...one of the best and most complemented beers I ever brewed. Hey the beer was always good (well except for my like 2nd extract honey spruce lager, just not a good mix there). but man that cherry stout, I made friends with that thing.

    haha ok, sorry for the reminiscing. the point is I realize full well that I have no idea really behind brewing science and really doing things the right way. but I want to really learn. I have charlie pappazan's (sp probably) book which is how I learned and where I took most of my recipes back when I was brewing. I have Radical Brewing, and today I bought the Homebrewer's Bible. I know these are at the end of the day only going to provide a very introductory lesson on brewing chemistry but its a start. I also recently stumbled upon some companies that I can order ingredients from in Colombia (limited choices, but hey back to the old improvisation). I plan to pick up a couple things that I think will be hard to find to take back with me and at least get back into home brewing. the caribbean heat will be a new challenge.

    What else would you recommend? Tonight I've been kicking around the idea of looking into taking some biology/chemistry courses when I get back. Not sure if the cost, Spanish, and quality will be inhibitive. This is probably a couple years away as we have next to no money and no brewing education, however some things are happening that might make the money thing a little less inhibitive within the next couple years.. Coming home and taking brewing courses and/or begging a brewery to let me wash kegs for a little hands on experience seem like reasonable options in the near future as well. My idea right now is to have a brewpub/Irish pub although not necessarily specializing in only Irish beer as there is no Irish pub in this huge tourist city where I live. I think there's a market there to be exploited and a craft brew awakening coming in Colombia, but I need to learn the process (and the business) to exploit it.

    Any and all suggestions, books, etc. if its free, cheap or can be pirated the better....haha but en serio I want to learn and at least say I am an expert on brewing and evaluate doing this as a life. Living in Colombia on the Caribbean is great but I've accepted I am not a life long teacher there or anywhere. Cheers and Happy New Year to all.

  • #2
    ok, that wasn't short and sweet, but hopefully it was at least long and sweet. I'd appreciate any suggestions on the best ways to learn more over the next 6 months given that taking courses or working in a brewery is not an option over that time frame.

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    • #3
      It's a lot of work, for sure. Don't worry too much about not knowing the ins and outs of brewing beer. You can hire a brewmaster for that type of work and learn more about it through his/her expertise. Your best bet is to do as much research as you possibly can. Go to that local brewery of yours and see if you can go on a tour. While on the tour, ask questions, talk to the guide, find out if you can sit down with someone and chat about how they got started.

      I am working with two friends to open up our brewery. We spent 6 months working on our business plan. We scoured these forums for a lot of info, but we have also totally winged a lot of decisions. There are books out there, you should be able to google 'opening a brewery' and find ample resources. After our business plan was complete, we've spent the last year finding investors, overseeing our build out and talking about brewing. I never thought that 18 months ago, I would be where I am now and it definitely wouldn't be possible without the talents of the other guys I'm working with and a lot of hard work.

      Best of luck to you. E-mail me if you ever have any questions at adam@triplecrossingbeer.com.

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      • #4
        I embarked on a very similar mission in San Salvador, El Salvador in mid 2010 and the dream became true in february 2013 when we opened the first craft brewery in El Salvador with a 20HL brewhouse at its core. I had some homebrewing experience back in 2010 but I am also an electrical engineer by trade so that came in handy. The last 4 years have by far been the hardest but also the most rewarding of my life. I have made the least money in my professional career, have spent the most money but have had the most fun. If you are going to do it you really, really, really have to want to do it. 12 hour days are the short days of the week. Everything you need can be found in books and the internet but you have to be obsessive about educating yourself and you have to have a good mind on your shoulders to begin with. If you are going to distribute, the making the beer part is the easy part...running the business is even more challenging. I have acquired an enormous amount of knowledge across a variety of fields in the last 4 years. I love learning so I don't even consider this work, I love being a craft brewer and general manager. With a year under our belt I can say that our project is going really well and the people of El Salvador are getting a taste of craft brews and liking them. You will need more money and determination than you think and if you are married you need a spouse that is fully on-board with your project. If you really want to do it, go for it, it is a lot of fun

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        • #5
          Hey pretty exciting... Lot's to learn. If you are not a member of the American Homebrewers Association/Brewer's Association you should be. They have a ton of information regarding not only brewing, but the industry, opening a brewery, etc. They have several books worth reading. Some will make your brain hurt, but are great references. They have three books (I expect the 4th is in the works) Yeast is one, Hops is another and the most recent is Water. (I expect Malt is coming soon, being the 4th standard ingredient). All are good reads and can take you from the basics to the brain pain stuff. They also have "The Brewers Association's Guide to Starting Your Own Brewery by Dick Cantwell (Jun 16, 2013)"

          Tired of reading? Go to www.thebrewingnetwork.com. Pick "brew strong" and go to their "Going Pro" podcasts. You can listen to them on your commute/flights/etc. They are informational. And will help answer some of your questions. The brewing network also has other podcasts regarding brewing. (some of the info is actually worth listening to..) Jamil also has a beer style show.

          AND get yourself a BJCP guide. It will help with beers by style.

          That's enough to get you started. Real training at an accredited brewing school is expensive and takes time. Sounds like you need a foundation prior to that endeavor.

          Good luck.

          Phil

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          • #6
            Thank you guys for the advice. dfalken, I would especially love to hear more from your perspective. I am currently working as a teacher so I don't have the most free time in the world, but this is dream of both my buddy's and mine and I think there's potential. Craft beer seems to be just emerging and growing in Colombia.

            The beer part is actually I guess the part I'm least concerned about, as even starting with basic stuff and learning as I go, I am confident that that part can be done. I went through a phase where I put together a lot of ideas and thoughts on a blueprint but it was very basic, more a dream than a business plan. Honestly I was a history/poli sci major and have no idea really about putting a business together.

            I realize that if this is something I'm going to do I'm just going to have to dive in and start. Where to begin? That's the question I need to figure out. I just got the 3 year online membership to the Brewer's Association and will work on pouring over that. I actually tripped on a piece of rebar and busted my chin and broke my jaw, so I'm stuck at home on an extended vacation now anyway.

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            • #7
              anyone have any insight on Woodske, A Brewer's Guide to OPening and Operating a Brewpub? No reviews on Amazon. Am considering it along with Brewing up a Business, the BA's Guide to Starting your own brewery (is it worth the 50 buck price tag?), and Woodske, A Brewer's Guide to Opening a Nano-Brewery, which sounds short and sweet and a place to start if it doesn't end up being all that informative.

              Especially in reference to the first two, glad I went back and looked at the authors and saw they were the same, so probably will pick one as I have a feeling they have some overlap. Leaning towards the brewpub book as that's what I've always thought of as I think being in a tourist town it will be an easier entry.

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              • #8
                Originally posted by AdamBomb View Post
                Thank you guys for the advice. dfalken, I would especially love to hear more from your perspective. I am currently working as a teacher so I don't have the most free time in the world, but this is dream of both my buddy's and mine and I think there's potential. Craft beer seems to be just emerging and growing in Colombia.

                The beer part is actually I guess the part I'm least concerned about, as even starting with basic stuff and learning as I go, I am confident that that part can be done. I went through a phase where I put together a lot of ideas and thoughts on a blueprint but it was very basic, more a dream than a business plan. Honestly I was a history/poli sci major and have no idea really about putting a business together.

                I realize that if this is something I'm going to do I'm just going to have to dive in and start. Where to begin? That's the question I need to figure out. I just got the 3 year online membership to the Brewer's Association and will work on pouring over that. I actually tripped on a piece of rebar and busted my chin and broke my jaw, so I'm stuck at home on an extended vacation now anyway.
                Adam, feel free to write me at david@cervezacadejo.com. It all depends on what you are looking to do, (pub vs distribution), and size of your brewhouse. A pub is an easier business, although running a restaurant is certainly not that easy but a distribution brewery is much more complex. A nano is obviously going to be easier than a micro but you might not be able to make a nano profitable (it will depend on your business model). Going at it part-time is definitely a concern. When I started in 2010 I was looking at doing it part time. We were going to set up a nano and make beer for an Irish pub two of my partners own. After delving deeper into the subject I figured out we weren't going to make any money from it and it was going to take more of my time than I thought. I ended up closing the call center I owned and getting into the brewery full time (actually I would call it more like double time). A million bucks and change later we are where we are today. A brewery is not cheap or easy, but for those who are committed and enjoy the challenge, it can be very rewarding personally and you actually stand a chance of one day making a buck or two!

                I still remember what Dan Kopman (one of the partners, and GM at Schlafly's in St Louis told me back in 2010). He is now a personal friend of mine but back then my wive's uncle connected me with him and when I asked him what his advice was regarding the brewery he said "don't do it". I now fully understand why he said that but if I had to do it all over again I would still do it.

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                • #9
                  my thought has always been a brewpub....and probably more of a brewbar with a small basic bar food menu. That has primarily been due to wanting to keep it small and avoid distribution. I also like the idea of keeping control of the product. Colombia does have a few microbreweries that are doing well, but they have only recently expanded to the Caribbean coast. In general locals are going to go for their Budweiser-esque lager. I just don't see many people at the grocery store or in the handful of bars that serve them buying these craft beers. However, there is bar that serves beer made by a smaller brewery (I guess you could call it craft, basic light, blonde, red, and dark styles) and they do well. Part of that is atmosphere as well. There's a place that opened up early this year named Bourbon Street that looks like a college bar in the states, plays rock music, shows sports, and has lots of decorations up on the wall (which you rarely see) and they have just killed it. There's a German bar and lots of my Colombian friends who like it, say they go there for the music. What do they have a big projector, that projects classic rock music videos. So my thought has always been to go for creating a cool place where having good and different beer is part of that. Doing brewery tours and making people feel like they are part of something and cultivating interest in beer is a big part of how I see our potential success. Getting people in and telling them about the beer, giving out samples if they order a pitcher of the domestic stuff, doing pint nights, specials during the week (which few bars do with the exception of a sort of happy hour), are all things that are part of my ideas. Those are my primary reasons for thinking brewpub on top of navigating the Caribbean inefficiency in trying to distribute.

                  I have more recently given thought to just a brewery as where I am, property and rent are incredibly expensive and limited (at least in the areas where you would want to put a business of this sort, ie the tourist centers). Factoring in the cost of getting a place big enough would be our biggest financial hurdle, where as if you put a brewery in the industrial zone, you're looking at a much cheaper cost. The idea of distributing locally to bars in the city to start is appealing. The other idea I've kicked around is doing the brewpub/bar but brewing offsite.

                  David, I appreciate the email, I will most likely be contacting you very soon. I'd especially like to hear about your experience with investors, redtape, and demand. Obviously Colombia and El Salvador are different, but I'd imagine there are some parallels. I am under contract at my job for another year and a half. It pays pretty well for Colombia and is allowing me to set aside a decent bit of money. My goal would be to have a good business plan and timetable set and then launch into this fulltime, which could be a year and a half down the road, could be more.

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                  • #10
                    Good luck Adam and I look forward to hearing from you.

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