RI Brewers Dish on Fests, Laws, Music and New Brews

We’ve assembled a virtual roundtable of Rhode Island brewers to address a few topics for the Big Fall Beer Issue! Our panel of owner/brewmasters (except where noted): Armando DeDona of Long Live Beerworks, Nick Garrison of Foolproof Brewing Company, Michelle Kirms (assistant brewer) of Grey Sail Brewing of Rhode Island, Matt Richardson of Tilted Barn Brewery, Nate Broomfield of Bucket Brewery and Brent Ryan of Newport Storm. Cheers to all!

Motif: What’s the best bit of advice/wisdom that you’ve gotten from a fellow brewer?

Armando (Long Live): Dave [Witham] from Proclamation [told me], “Hire a lot of bearded dudes. You can’t lose.”

Nick (Foolproof): I would have to say it’s to “be your own brewery.” In other words, don’t try to be or do what another brewery is already doing. Find your own identity and embrace it. I consider that very sage advice.

Matt (Tilted Barn): Most of the advice you get from people in the industry is along the lines of “it’s going to be long hours … more cleaning than brewing … long, physical days,” etc. While this is all very true, the one thing that you don’t hear many people talk about is how rewarding being a brewer really is. I try to drown out most of that noise and take my own perspective. I enjoy every aspect of it and at the end of a long day there’s nothing better than putting your feet up and enjoying the fruits of your labor in a glass.

Brent (Newport Storm): Making great beer has nothing to do with how big your beard is, how many tattoos you have or how tight your jeans are.

Nate (Bucket): It’s hard to pick out one standout bit of advice. I’m constantly growing my knowledge of brewing, business and legal processes in incremental steps. I know much more than I did four years ago when I started Bucket, and I have my fellow local brewers as well as the online community to thank for that.

Motif: There are two big fests coming up – Beervana and the GIBF. What’s the best/most memorable reaction you’ve gotten while pouring at a fest?

Matt (Tilted Barn): My favorite reaction is when someone has no idea who Tilted Barn is and tries one of our beers for the first time and says, “Why haven’t I heard of you?”

Brent (Newport Storm): Guest: “You’re the brewery that just started up here in RI, right?” Me: “Actually, we started up about 10 years ago.” Guest: “Right, you just started up.” Me: “Ummm, OK!”

Nick (Foolproof): When we released Peanut Butter Raincloud at last year’s Beervana, the reaction was so positive and memorable. People were blown away by the flavor and drinkability of the beer. We knew we had created something special – a beer that has since grown to become one of our best sellers.

Nate (Bucket): I’d have to pick a couple of times. The first festival that Bucket served beer at was the Rhode Island Brew Fest at the Pawtucket Armory. Since it was the first time I had any in-person reaction, the huge amount of positive feedback was absolutely amazing. It took a couple of years to get past the usual question of, basically, “Who are you?” and to the point where people knew. But it was memorable at the Newport Craft Beer Festival this year when people were coming and asking for beers by name! Both are simple moments, but they stuck with me.

Motif: The new beer laws have raised the beer bar in Rhode Island. What other changes would you like to see implemented to make the business/beer culture climate even better?

Brent (Newport Storm): The Department of Revenue just decided to audit all the brewers – not because they felt we were doing something wrong, just because they felt it would be a good exercise. When you have a bunch of small businesses that just started up, a great way to derail their progress is to bog them down with accountants’ fees and paperwork that has nothing to do with growing their business.

Nick (Foolproof): I’d like to see more bars and restaurants embrace Rhode Island beer in the same way that we see in our neighboring states. There are still so many accounts in Rhode Island that don’t carry a single local beer and instead opt for beer selections that you can find anywhere. I hope this continues to change and people see the value in carrying and supporting local beer.

Matt (Tilted Barn): The new beer laws have been a tremendous boost for the RI beer climate. I couldn’t be happier about how it went at the State House this year. That being said, the one thing I still get frustrated about is the fact that we can’t self-distribute. I would like to see our beers at local bars and restaurants, but would like to do so on our terms. I feel we should have the choice whether we want to self-distribute. Maybe I’m crazy, but it seems like a logical way to do business.

Armando (Long Live): I would like to see more local breweries pouring at local events and not just beer fests.

Motif: Let’s play what if – or, more accurately, if what? If you were to brew a beer in honor of your favorite band/musician, what style would it be and what would you call it?

Matt (Tilted Barn): Anyone who has visited the Barn knows that we pretty much play Phish exclusively. We’ve already hinted at this with some of our beers (eg, The Mango Beer). I know that some people have been requesting that they come and do an impromptu summer gig here since they’re pretty much our house band. I’d brew whatever it would take to make that happen.

Armando (Long Live): Canyonero by Hank Williams Jr. – a smoky chile red ale.

Motif: Tell us about a beer you have in the pipeline that readers can look forward to sipping soon.

Matt (Tilted Barn): Our new seven-barrel system will be up and running any day now, so people can look forward to seeing our old favorites in much larger quantities and also some new recipes we’ve been sitting on. I don’t want to spoil any surprises…

Armando (Long Live): Snakes, a DIPA; Wyld Cat, a wild yeast pale ale; Butcher Block, a maple smoked porter; Hurry Sundown, a bourbon barrel-aged Russian imperial stout; Three Day Weekend, a DIPA; Black Cat (pale ale) – in cans!! And Eternal Pale Ale, a collaboration with Thirsty Dog.

Brent (Newport Storm): A rum barrel-aged farmhouse ale. Still looking for a name.

Nick (Foolproof): We’ll be releasing our Federal Hill Ale in time for Columbus Day and it will be featured at Beervana as well. It’s a pale ale brewed with blood orange and saffron, and dry hopped with Citra and Mosaic. We’ve partnered with renowned Federal Hill chef Walter Potenza on the beer, which has been an amazing experience.

Michelle (Grey Sail): Last year we switched to pink [can holders] and growlers, and throughout the month of October, a portion of the proceeds of those sales were donated to help fund breast cancer research. This year we decided to step it up a bit and brew a “pink” beer called Beet Cancer. It was heavily hopped with Hallertau Blanc (think a more subdued Nelson Sauvin) in the kettle and fermenter, with an additional dry hop of Citra. We steeped a pretty healthy amount of beets in the boil, lending the pinkish hue you’ll find when you pour it. It clocks in around 4.5% ABV, so it’s a perfect session ale with enough hops to make you want more. It will be distributed draft only, and a very limited amount will be packaged into cans available at the brewery only. A portion of the can sales, pink growlers and pink [can holders] through the month of October will be donated to helping find a cure.

Nate (Bucket): I recently did a five-gallon batch of a beer I’m calling Hand of Pawtucket. It’s a fairly accurate interpretation of a beer brewed in the early 1900s by Hand Brewing in Pawtucket. It’s an odd brew with raw barley in the grain bill and a huge portion of the fermentables being brown sugar and molasses. I’ll be serving it up again at Beervana Fest. If I get the same great response there that I had at the brewery, then I’ll be scaling it up to a full-size batch.

For more beer news, check Lou’s blog, bottlescansclaphands.wordpress.com, or follow @BottlesCansRI.