Wisconsin Brewing Co.

Do we not already have a state brewery??? I thought it was called New Glarus

All kidding aside, I will give them a shot, the IPA sounds decent, I doubt the Session IPA will replace the likes of Moon Man in my fridge.

Also is there plan really to be bigger then New Glarus?!?! They better makes the best beer I have ever tasted for that to even be a 1% possibility.

 

I feel like Wisconsin Brewing Company's Grand opening has been surreal... No word from them really. They did a few tasting events with the Dane way back when... I didn't manage to make it to any of those events, but did get a chance to go with some WDI guys and tour the brewery. No beer for sampling at that point, but definitely a ton in production. It looked like one of those "If we had all the money we ever needed to build a brewery we would do it like this..." blank check situations. It is interesting that they are starting up with no bank debt load, and that provides them a great opportunity.

I feel like a coffee table book in five years that told the story of Capital and WBC would be something I would read cover to cover. There is a lot of Wisconsin history and trends across the craft community that are seen in what is happening now. Good or Bad.

As for the bar, worst case they got me for four kegs. While none of the four beers are whales, who isn't interested in what Kirby has come up with using brand new equipment and *gasp* hops? Interesting release for sure. As usual, time will tell.

Chef Casey is making two types of Poutine for the game Monday night if anyone wonders through... Ill be behind the bar.

 

Any idea when they are planning on hitting Distro, if they are gonna be the biggest shouldn't they be here already if they are open?

 

They opened their tap area in the brewery Friday. Street date is Monday the fourth, which means their distributor can send out their stock....

 

All I know is that their Session IPA I tried while on tap at Vintage certainly didn't win me over. That said, I realize you've gotta let new brewery's work out the kinks before you get too judgmental. Of course I never was a big fan of Kirby's brewing style, save for some of his dopplebocks, so I don't expect I will enjoy too much of what WBC releases. But who knows, maybe they'll surprise me.

 

This. I'm a lager fan, and I'm not a big Capital fan, save for their blonde dopplebock.

I know a lot of people are pissing and moaning about the marketing of the beer and I kinda see where they're coming from. But I'll play wait and see. If the beer's good/great in six months to a year, that's really all I care about. If they make good beer, I'll certainly buy it.

 

I could see this being a disaster of epic proportions. The arrogance to think you are going to go toe to toe (and eventually out-sell) with the likes of New Glarus, a brewery with 20 years of experience, name recognition among craft drinkers, and an unsurpassed quality across their line-up is unbelievably dumb.

The only thing I see going for this place is the fact that they have no debt and have plenty of investors. Have these investors considered how this beer is going to be sold? How do they plan on selling 20k barrels in the first year to people who know next to nothing about the beers or the brewery? And what if the beers aren't on the level of New Glarus or even priced comparably? The idea that they are going to brew massive amounts of beer and the public is going to shift their spending habits towards them is hard to believe, especially on the scale they are talking.

The craft beer market has become flooded over the past 5 years and I don't think everyone who is getting into the industry is doing it for the right reasons. Big or small, I will be like others who have posted, and continue to be skeptical of these new ventures until proven otherwise.

 

You're forgetting two things: 1) they're going for sales volume not BA cred, and most beer drinkers aren't BA craft beer drinkers, and 2) they've got brewing experience in spades -- Kirby Nelson was brewing at Capital for almost a decade before New Glarus even started.

I doubt WBC will ever become craft beer favorites like New Glarus. I don't doubt they'll be successful at selling a lot of beer.

 

Okay, then apply the same questioning before while swapping out New Glarus for Leinie's. Regardless of their target audience, they are talking about taking a serious chunk from some well established brands within the state.

 

How much was a single?

 

Which, IIRC, is where Capital used to bottle as well, right?

 

7.99 is more than New Glarus and Lakefront. yikes.

 

The exceptionally bland branding isn't going to help meet their crazy growth projections.

 

How long until they bottle a 'lite' beer for mass consumption at Badger tailgate events?

 

Capital is redoing Eternal Flame as a chocolate habañero stout.