Chicago brewers return from Belgian apprenticeship, use Kickstarter.com to open local boutique brewery
(Chicago, IL) – After spending the early winter apprenticing in Belgium, brewers Gerrit Lewis and Beejay Oslon have returned to Chicago to open their unique vision of a craft brewery, Pipeworks Brewing Company.
Even smaller than a micro-brewery, Pipeworks plans to open a nano-brewery on the North Side, focusing on producing bold beers, using uncommon ingredients, in limited releases. To raise the initial startup funds, the pair has turned to a new form of capital raising known as “crowd-funding”, using the website Kickstarter.com.
In January of 2009, the founders of Pipeworks travelled to Oostvleteren, Belgium, to apprentice with the famed De Struise Brewers. In 2008, The De Struise Brewers were named the #1 brewery in the world by the popular beer review website ratebeer.com. During their apprenticeship, the Pipeworks boys collaborated with De Struise on a few beers, including Pipedream, an homage to Chicago and their journey.
Pipeworks future facility will include a tiny three barrel brewhouse and may produce as little as 200 barrels in its inaugural year. The smaller system affords them the flexibility and control to produce a constantly changing lineup of beers ranging from traditional to the extreme. Pipeworks aims to offer new beers nearly every week. Whether you’re looking for a classically brewed Belgian Wit, a hefty 13% ABV Imperial Stout, or their unique take on an IPA brewed with Szechuan peppercorns, Pipeworks hopes to please a variety of palates. The brewery itself will feature a bottle shop where customers can walk-in to purchase the newest Pipeworks beer or fill a growler with draft-only releases.
To help fund the brewery, Gerrit and Beejay have taken their project to the masses on the “crowd-funding” website of Kickstarter.com. Crowd-funding is a relatively new concept that allows the general public to show their support by pooling money together in efforts to back innovative and creative ideas. In exchange for a pledge on Kickstarter.com, the backer receives a reward from the project creator if the project is funded successfully. In Pipeworks case, they are offering backer rewards ranging from bottle openers, tasting glasses and T-shirts, to having your likeness on a beer label, creating your own beer with the boys, and even a trip to Belgium. They are also giving away a $500 homebrew setup to one lucky winner from their facebook page.
Earlier this year, friends, family, and perfect strangers banded together on Kickstarter.com and raised $44,000 for Erik Meyer’s project, Mystery Brewing Company. Pipeworks is hoping to raise $30,000 by midnight on January 1st 2011. In the three weeks that the project has been live on Kickstarter.com, Pipeworks has amassed over $7,500 in donations and has seen their facebook.com page quadruple in patronage to over 3000 fans. If the funding goal isn’t reached by the deadline, none of the money is collected from backers, and Pipeworks walks away empty-handed.