Thursday, August 30, 2012
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
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.
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.
Friday, August 3, 2012
Coming To Holland, Big Lake Brewing
The Lakeshore is getting another craft brewery project next year after a trio of West Michigan engineers finish a planned nanobrewery and winery operation in Ottawa County.
Big Lake Brewing LLC in Holland Township is in the very early planning stages, but has secured a lease at 977 Butternut Drive, Suite No. 4, in a commercial plaza near the intersection of Butternut, North 144th Avenue and Riley Street. There, partners Nic Winsemius, Gregory MacKeller and Travis Prueter plan to open a brewery and winery in the next six to nine months. The trio of Ottawa County engineers are starting the business with money saved between them.
“It was a process of seeing how much we could save, what kind of equipment we could get our hands on and what kind deal we could work out with a landlord,” said Winsemius, an engineer for the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power. “It kind of just all came together for us.” Winsemius, 28, has been brewing beer at home for about eight years and started brewing on a bi-weekly basis with Prueter several years ago. Prueter, 28, and MacKellar, 31, are both engineers at Gentex Corp., and MacKellar is an amateur vintner.
Big Lake Brewing will be a microbrewery exclusively selling product made on site. They will start with a 3-barrel brewing system and are still determining the scope of the winemaking component. The location is about 3,000 square feet total.
Their microbrewer and winemaker license requests won approval from the township in late July and are pending approval by the state. The brewery will not include liquor or food sales and Winsemius said patrons will be encouraged to bring food or have it delivered. The brewery will have a pub feel with some televisions, but much of the interior design and aesthetics are still being determined, said Winsemius.
Beer styles are still being determined, but the partners will mostly likely begin brewing the type of ales popular in Michigan right now, given the extra investment necessary to brew lagers, although Winsemius said they would like to explore different styles in the future.
The three engineers plan to keep their day jobs after opening the new venture, which would become the third brewery in the Holland area behind New Holland and Our Brewing Co., which is opening this fall downtown.
“I really like the Holland area and I think its going to be a good market for us,” said Winsemius.
BEST OF LUCK GENTLEMEN!
Big Lake Brewing LLC in Holland Township is in the very early planning stages, but has secured a lease at 977 Butternut Drive, Suite No. 4, in a commercial plaza near the intersection of Butternut, North 144th Avenue and Riley Street. There, partners Nic Winsemius, Gregory MacKeller and Travis Prueter plan to open a brewery and winery in the next six to nine months. The trio of Ottawa County engineers are starting the business with money saved between them.
“It was a process of seeing how much we could save, what kind of equipment we could get our hands on and what kind deal we could work out with a landlord,” said Winsemius, an engineer for the Grand Haven Board of Light and Power. “It kind of just all came together for us.” Winsemius, 28, has been brewing beer at home for about eight years and started brewing on a bi-weekly basis with Prueter several years ago. Prueter, 28, and MacKellar, 31, are both engineers at Gentex Corp., and MacKellar is an amateur vintner.
Big Lake Brewing will be a microbrewery exclusively selling product made on site. They will start with a 3-barrel brewing system and are still determining the scope of the winemaking component. The location is about 3,000 square feet total.
Their microbrewer and winemaker license requests won approval from the township in late July and are pending approval by the state. The brewery will not include liquor or food sales and Winsemius said patrons will be encouraged to bring food or have it delivered. The brewery will have a pub feel with some televisions, but much of the interior design and aesthetics are still being determined, said Winsemius.
Beer styles are still being determined, but the partners will mostly likely begin brewing the type of ales popular in Michigan right now, given the extra investment necessary to brew lagers, although Winsemius said they would like to explore different styles in the future.
The three engineers plan to keep their day jobs after opening the new venture, which would become the third brewery in the Holland area behind New Holland and Our Brewing Co., which is opening this fall downtown.
“I really like the Holland area and I think its going to be a good market for us,” said Winsemius.
BEST OF LUCK GENTLEMEN!
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