Perrin Brewing Co. lands Brewer Nate Walser

 Perrin Brewing Co. will open its new microbrewery and restaurant this summer with a familiar West Michigan face in charge of the beer recipes.  Nate Walser, who was head brewer at Founders Brewing Co. during its rise from a brewpub teetering on the edge of bankruptcy to the powerhouse craft brewery it has become, has been acquired by Perrin. “The sky is the limit around here,” said Walser, who joined Perrin a month ago. Walser, who worked at Founders from 2001 to 2005, said he helped develop the recipes for several of Founders' flagship line of beers, including their Dirty Bastard scotch style ale and Centennial IPA.  He also helped craft the recipe for one of Founders incredibly popular specialty brews, Kentucky Breakfast Stout, or KBS, as well as Blushing Monk.
 Walser came to Founders after several years working in the production facility at New Holland Brewing Co., and was promoted to head brewer after several months. He worked closely with Founders current head brewer Jeremy Kosmicki until he left Founders in 2005.  “He was an integral part of our team and he did a great job for us,” said Founders vice president Dave Engbers.
 Kosmicki characterized Walser as a mentor during a Q&A interview with Food GPS in 2010: "Back in the day, another one of my friends wanted to start homebrewing and asked if I’d come to his place and get him started. His name is Nate Walser and he was living and working near Holland, Michigan, at the time. Nate had been hanging around New Holland Brewery quite a bit and eventually got himself a job there as assistant brewer. Soon, my job at the tiny brewpub fell through, so I went down to Founders and took a job in the packaging department, doing whatever I could to get hours and be involved. In the summer of 2001, Founders’ head brewer left and we hired Nate to take over. I became his assistant and learned how to run the bottling line, transfer beer, and brew on the brewhouse. I pretty much did every job, including shipping and receiving. Founders’ owners soon gave me and Nate the opportunity to get really creative with the recipes and make the beers big and flavorful. Nate is one of those geniuses that can always find a way to make something work, even if he doesn’t know exactly what he’s doing. He’s a great visionary and really got Founders rolling in the right direction."
  At Perrin, Walser replaces Thomas Nicely, who was previously the head brewer for the new operation in Comstock Park, which tentatively opens later this month. Nicely had been a brewer at Lagunitas and Goose Island breweries, but left Perrin earlier this summer, said brewery partner Jarred Sper.
 Walser said there are no sour grapes between him and the folks at Founders. He left at a time when the brewery was expanding rapidly and his job was becoming more of a production manager and less of a brewer, he said. The brewery's capacity has skyrocketed from about 800 barrels per year when Walser came on to more than 25,000 per year in 2007 when Founders moved out of its longtime location in the Brass Works Building on Monroe Avenue NW and opened the 235 Grandville Ave. SW location. “It was a good time for him to move on and a great time for Jeremy to really shine as a brewer,” said Engbers, who called Walser “a friend of the brewery.” Walser said the two breakfast stouts were developed for the Founders taproom clientele and he’s proud of how popular they have become. Founders vowed to triple production of KBS this year based on overwhelming demand for the beer.
 Walser said he’s very excited for the opportunity to return to a production brewing facility at Perrin after spending the past six years working as a brewery consultant around Michigan.
Perrin beer has begun showing up on tap in local establishments such as Rockwells & Republic, HopCat and The Score. The brewery will eventually add a canning and bottling line, and the system has the capacity to brew between 12,000 and 15,000 barrels.