Monday, April 2, 2007

Monday Update on The Bruery (4/2)

Reading through my previous posts, it's not very clear what I'm working on right now to get the brewery up and running. I'll try to do better on this and give an update every Monday, unless something great comes up, which I'll post sooner.

Most of my time is spent looking for a location to lease. Once I find a place to lease, then I can get the ball rolling on getting Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) approval, city approval, put in whatever fixtures the building will need to accommodate my equipment, and many other things that I can't do until I find a place.

I have given up hope on finding a location with floor drains already installed. I thought it wouldn't be too difficult to find this, but boy was I wrong! I'm now focusing on places that have everything else I need, such as a sewer line running in or around the warehouse portion of the building, 3-phase power, at least 200 amps, 3000-4000 s.f., appropriate sized gas line, and so on. I'll just have to bite the bullet and add my own floor drains, unless something great comes up!

I had found location I liked a lot in Santa Ana at the 55 fwy. and Edinger, but that fell through as the landlord was not willing to allow me to run a tasting room, public sales, or tours. One of the things about running a brewery that especially appeals to me is catering to those who enjoy my beers and want to check out where they are made, so it's back to the drawing board. There are a few promising locations in Huntington Beach and I'll know if those will work later on this week.

Also, this last Friday I assisted Dave Moody from Back Street Brewing in Irvine in brewing a batch of his amazing Jagged Little Pils. Dave has been a great mentor and advisor, always welcoming my questions and supporting what I'm doing. I've brewed with him a few times, and he's always shared a lot of great info with me. Dave is a very talented-- I stop by Back Street once or twice a week and am thankful I have such a great beer destination a few miles from my house. Try some of his Baltic Porter or IPA next time you're around-- you won't be disappointed.

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