For craft beer enthusiasts who are always looking for a fresh taste, a new program coming to the area could offer just the right batch.
Brew Pipeline, a program launched last month in major cities across the U.S. including New York, Seattle, Portland and Philadelphia, is now bringing select beers from around the nation to the Triangle.
The startup concept means to provide an easy solution to bringing some of the highest-rated, award-wining craft beers from around the U.S. to markets that don’t get the beer through distribution. This month, Brew Pipeline will feature beers for the Triangle market from such breweries as MobCraft Beer out of Wisconsin; Ska Brewery out of Colorado; and Oregon’s GoodLife Brewing Company.
Founded by Marty Ochs, Trip Kloser and Steven Kwapil, Brew Pipeline joins the combined knowledge of the group — they’ve worked in breweries and in distribution — with a new innovation for the industry: to work with local distributors in the area to bring in craft beers that wouldn’t typically hit the market because they’re not recognized brands.
“Because of the three-tier system, these brands can’t come in and be very sustainable and get distribution for any amount of time,” says Brew Pipeline’s co-founder Ochs. “We created that system for them to do that, but on a short term.”
For example, Two Brothers Brewing out of Warrenville, Illinois, doesn’t have a distribution partner in the Triangle, but with the help of Brew Pipeline, both beer fans and retailers can request beers from this brewery. And as Ochs explains, if the fanfare of a select beer is met well, the brewery can work out a distribution deal with the distributor working with Brew Pipeline.
But just how would a local watering hole connect with Brew Pipeline to bring new flavors to its taps? It’s simple. “Accounts would get in touch with who we work with, which is Artisan Beverages, and ask for a list of who we’re working with,” says Ochs.
Currently the startup has roughly 30 beers in its portfolio, which the group hopes to grow in the coming months.
In September, look for beers such as Axe Man and Furious from Minneapolis, Minnesota’s Surly Brewing Co.