We are living in what could be considered the golden age of American craft beer; a glorious time to be a taste bud! There are currently over 1,500 American craft breweries and that number will likely continue to increase. It seems like I discover a new brewery or brewpub every week. For every Dogfish Head, or  New Belgium, there are countless other breweries trying to grow and make a name for themselves.

I love being able to wander into my local craft beer store and find an unfamiliar brew; something new to spark my interest. Not many brewers have the time to have their personal bio’s published, or even offer a quick draft on their website. So, I decided that I needed to get to know more about the people behind these sprouting breweries. Over the next few weeks, I will be launching my craft brewery interview series. The goal of this series is simple – learn more about the people and the breweries that create the delicious craft beer that we all enjoy. I hope you all enjoy my first interview with Lavery Brewing Company below.

Lavery Brewing Company is a new brewery from my hometown of Erie, PA, founded in 2009 by husband and wife duo, Jason & Nicole Lavery.

After winning a ‘People’s Choice Award’ for their Smoked Porter in March 2009, Jason’s wife Nikki suggested they try to bring something new and dynamic to the local culture, something desperately needed in Erie.

Before I begin, I want to thank Jason for willing to be the first interviewee in my craft brewery interview series.

Scottie: Going back to the beginning of your brewing career, do you remember the first beer that you brewed? If so, what was it and how did it turn out?

Jason: I home-brewed a British Bitter. It was infected. Luckily, I had already started my second batch before I tasted the first.

Scottie: What was your “Ah-Ha” moment or experience that made you realize that you could make brewing your profession?

Jason: Winning an award for my smoked porter.

Scottie: When did your brewery first open and what was the inspiration for the name and logo?

Jason: We formed our company back in March 2009, but didn’t get our licenses until February 2010. We were originally going to name the brewery ‘Black Barrel Brewery’ but decided on Lavery Brewing Co because we are proud of our name and Irish history and hope to have our children take over the business someday.

Scottie: How much beer did you produce in 2009? What are your projected goals for brewery production this year? Over the next five years? How do you plan to get there?

Jason: 2009 – 0 bbls. 2010 – 250bbls. We are currently an alternating proprietorship brewery, meaning we rent space and equipment. We are working to open our brewery by Fall 2010 but for this year, we are small…very small.

Scottie: Do you have any new beers or projects in the pipeline that you would like to share with the readers?

Jason: We had plans to have 2 year round beers and 4 seasonals, but due to fermentation limitations, we are only going to focus on our flagship, Imperial Red Ale.

Scottie: Often times, I hear people refer to the craft beer industry as a brotherhood (and sisterhood). What brothers and sisters in the industry do you find inspirational and/or admire?

Jason: Chris Sirianni, owner of The Brewerie, really helped us out by letting us rent their brewery. He’s given me so much advice and help that we would still be dreaming of starting a brewery if it weren’t for him.

Also, the Sprague Farm and Brew Works have helped a lot. Dave from the Bierhaus International has been helpful as well.

As far as inspiration, Greg Koch from Stone is the man. He runs three different businesses (which is where I want Lavery’s to be in 10 years).

Scottie: What people outside of the craft beer industry inspire you?

Jason: There’s a world outside craft beer?

Scottie: Collaboration beers are becoming more and more popular. Have you collaborated with another brewery? If not, if you could choose one brewery to collaborate with, who would it be and why?

Jason: We’d collaborate with a traditional British brewery any day. Cask ales, firkins, kirkins, yum.

Scottie: The craft beer industry saw amazing growth last year (7.2% increase by volume and 10.3% by dollar) while overall beer sales decreased by 2.2%. What would you contribute this amazing growth to?

Jason: People choosing quality over quantity and the realization that local businesses make life better for everyone. Sending your money away to a Belgian owned mega brewery doesn’t do anybody any good.

Scottie: What value, if any, do you see in beer bloggers and social media sites like Twitter and Facebook?

Jason: More important is the Brewing Network. They far surpass the usefulness of Twitter and Facebook. It’s nice to see info travel as fast as it does with social media though. “Hey world, I have a new beer I’m releasing. You can buy it here”. Very helpful.

Scottie: Do you have a Twitter account and/or Facebook page? How do you see these types of sites impacting, and perhaps benefiting, your industry over the next 5 years?

Jason: We’re on Facebook. More special releases? Not sure.

Scottie: What is your opinion of the three-tier distribution system and do you feel that it benefits or hinders smaller craft breweries?

Jason: It sucks. We are lucky to have an awesome wholesaler who pays us lots of attention and sells our beer for us, but when we move out of our region or state, this tie will be gone.
Also, we’d make much more money if we sold the beer ourselves.

Scottie: Where can people find additional information about your brewery, new beer releases, festivals, or brewery tour info?

Jason: On Facebook and our website -  www.LaveryBrewing.com.

Scottie: We’ll finish with a fun, but perhaps difficult question. If you could only drink one beer for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Jason: Orval

Scottie: Tasty choice Jason!

Great answers and thanks again for participating. Best of luck to you both and your brewery!

CHEERS!

Beer Wars is a documentary that provides a behind-the-scenes examination of the ultra competitive beer industry. Director Anat Baron, former General Manager of Mike’s Hard Lemonade, reveals the obstacles small breweries must overcome to make their mark in an industry dominated by an evil empire of mega breweries.

The documentary reviews a brief history of the beer industry in America over the past century. Highlights include Prohibition, the rise of TV advertising, the decline of the local brewery, and the emergence of the three mega breweries – Anheuser-Busch, Miller Brewing, and Coors Brewing Company (movie filmed before recent mergers). This is the real story of beer in America – how it went from good to bad, and how demand for good beer is changing the market once again. If you like cold hard facts and random statistics, this movie is for you.

Anat Baron features the stories of micro and craft breweries. One of the craft breweries highlighted is Dogfish Head, a personal favorite. Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head founder) discusses his passion for beer as well as the unruly competitive tactics of the three mega breweries. He has created a niche market for beer drinkers that appreciate not just good beer, but great beer. Dogfish Head stands out from the competition by creating quality beer made from the highest quality ingredients. They also focus on taking an innovative approach to old world recipes. “If it’s already on the market, we aren’t interested in making it,” says Sam Calagione.

Dogfish Head and every other brewery featured in this documentary tell the same story – an unfair marketplace for small breweries in North America. It’s truly David vs. Goliath. These mega brewers have an unlimited amount of resources in terms of marketing and advertising budgets, but they also seem to control much more, i.e. politicians in their pockets?

What’s to come for the privately-owned craft breweries and micro breweries in America? Only time will tell, but there has definitely been an emergence of new breweries entering the marketplace since this documentary was created. Could the rise of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook be the ultimate tool of promotion for smaller breweries? Maybe Beer Bloggers and Beer Evangelists will continue to gain the attention of beer drinkers in America? Let’s hope.

Beginning today, Beer Wars is available to rent On Demand through Digital Cable and Satellite providers Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox, Cablevision, Charter, Insight, Bresnan, Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-Verse, Dish Network and DirecTV. It is also available for download on iTunes, Amazon Video On Demand, Xbox 360 and PS3.

Beer Wars definitely opened my eyes to the challenges that micro and craft brewers face when taking on the mega breweries. Here’s an idea, count how many beer commercials will be featured in the Super Bowl next weekend? The cost of one commercial airing during the Super Bowl outweighs the typical marketing budget of a micro brewery for an entire year. This is a movie that all beer drinkers need to watch.

Beer Wars website: http://beerwarsmovie.com/