Kane Brewing (December 2015)

So, hung in there the best I could given the sound issues, but I had one clear takeaway from this interview. And that takeaway is that Kane is actively choosing to run their business the way I believe a craft brewery should operate.

Let me explain.

My first real taste of this hobby was back in 2004 after attending the 1st Extreme Beer Fest in Boston at the Cyclorama. Back then, Dogfish Head was a big deal and Sam Adams pouring Utopias that day was a religious experience. Amazingly, Shelton Bros. was there pouring a little known Belgian brewery called Cantillon that most folks whisked right past, myself included. Man, how things change.

Fast forward to 2006 and a brewery called Captain Lawrence opened it's doors right in my backyard in Pleasantville, NY (I'm originally from Westchester County). And thanks to a close friend who was into beer before being into beer was cool, it was at CL that my beer education truly began.

And that experience of watching and being apart of CL's organic growth shaped my thoughts on how a craft brewery should operate. CL was draft only (outside of some bottle sales and limited releases at the brewery) for nearly 6 YEARS. They launched with only 3 or 4 beers and it took a decent amount of time before they expanded to more than that. It wasn't until their move to Elmsford in late 2012 that they started kicking out 6 packs and, finally, getting a distribution deal large enough to start entering the retail market of the Tri-State area. So, overall, it took them 9 YEARS from launch to where they are now.

These days, a new craft brewery opens and launches with 6-8 offerings. In less than two years, sometimes one year in a some cases, they are producing cans or bottles. To me, it takes a few years just to get the beer dialed in. Yes, you have your outliers, of course, who are great from the get go, but I cannot help but notice the onslaught of mediocre beer out there produced by folks who are simply moving too fast.

So, it was a breath of fresh air to hear Mike Kane talk about the fact that that their plan was to be draft only for 5 years and that it took them 2 years of planning regarding cans. Yes, some of this time was because they couldn't get a mobile canning company to take them on. But he also uses the words like "picky", "controlling", and "having the right look and feel", which is the exact strategy you want if your intention is to build a long lasting craft brewery that evolves organically over time.

Now, this strategy is currently not en vogue these days as evidenced by the constant, non-stop criticism Kane receives regarding everything from their canning schedule to their limited releases. But from my perspective, Kane is doing everything the right way and the way it should be done if you want to last in this highly competitive industry.

And trust me, I'm not a Kane fanboy. I've gotten shut out of every one of their big releases including both the BPT and Lottery for ANTEAD this year and I'm totally cool with it. I'm more than happy to wait because, if they keep doing what they're doing, they're going to be around for a long time and we'll all be better off for it.

 

Limit is 6/pp

 

Well there goes that, silent night sold out

 

Heads up.....was at Kane about an hour ago and Silent Nights has sold out.

 

Wow that was fast...how is the ANTEAD bottle process going today??

 

@bostonbro5 Since I didn't enter the lottery I wasn't paying attention to what was going on with the ANTEAD allotment pick-ups. But considering it seemed a perfectly normal Saturday at Kane, I imagine the process was smooth.

 

Silent nights gone lol. I give up. Got here at 3 and missed it.

 

Piece of cake. Walked in, walked up to Mike, handed him my ID and got my bottles. Also tried the Triple IPA. It was definitely juicy and great. Little bit of alcohol heat peaked through. As good as AGE? Not to me. Still fantastic.

 

Only 1 person in front of me at 2:30 to pick up ANTEAD bottles, got a growler fill and a Malus bottle and was out in about 15 minutes. Said silent nights bottles sold out about an hour before I got there, anyone know how many bottles this run was?? must not have been a very big run, maybe 1200-1500? I'm actually surprised they sold out so quickly

 

I listened to the entire clip, after raising 4 kids its easy to ignore the noise you didnt want to hear, and what pleased me most is his desire to concentrate first and foremost on making his beer easy to get throughout NJ. He stated that one day he will think about opening the market to Philly & NY but not until NJ is covered. At the 8 minute mark he talks about how he loves the New Glarus model of just focusing in state.

 

Wonder if there is any chance of bottles at the brewery tonorrow from those who didn't pick up

 

I think Silent Night benefited from ANTEAD hangover. People just had to get something Kane.
I was planning on driving down on Sunday. Guess I can save the miles

 

I wouldn't count on it

 

Popped open my first bottle of antead this year last night. It was even better than how I remember last years and tops this years bcbs for me. So viscous and thick like a milk shake. Tons of barrel character. I'm in love.

 

Agreed. I've opened a Vanilla and Coconut. This beer definitely lives up to be hype

 

Had a can of AGE from the last release Friday which is probably the best I have ever had!

Opened my growler of Kane Hop Lab IIIPA tonight and it is very underwhelming for me. IMHO, no comparison to OH AGE. A good beer, just not as juicy as I've heard/read.

 

So, I haven't seen a single complaint on how Kane handled the Silent Nights release... Everyone feeling ok?

 

We have learned to cry on the inside

 

Same experience for me. Enjoyed it none the less.

 

I think that's because all of us who only go to Kane once a year to pick up our 8 bottles are good for 51 more weeks or so.