The idea of a farmhouse brewery often conjures up thoughts of rustic ales, spontaneously fermented concoctions, and tranquil yet complex recipes that force the drinker to slow down a bit and consider what’s in the glass and beer’s place in the world. However, this is 2019, and the old rules of beer no longer apply.
“The way that we’ve built our brand in the past few years has led us to being sought out by traders,” says McKinley Minniefield, director of sales and general jack-of-many-trades for 450 North Brewing Company (Columbus, Indiana). “They are an important part of where we see ourselves in the future. My personal belief is that is where the industry is going. The three-tiered system has pigeon-holed some craft brewers, and I think trading is sticking it to The Man and lets people do the beer promotion for us. Of course, we need to keep making a quality product so that people want to keep drinking it.”
First Came Wine
David and Brenda Simmons own a farm in Columbus where the family spent generations growing produce such as sweet corn and peppers. They also grew culinary grapes, but on visits to local farmers markets, David Simmons noticed that the grapes didn’t sell quite as well as the other items, so he started making wine.