May 02, 2009 03:34 PM MDT
NABC Breweries
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6023 Reads
American Brewing, European Sensibility
NABC Brewery Grant Line, 3312 Plaza Drive, New Albany, IN 47150, Just off Grant Line at University Woods & Plaza Drive, (812) 944-2577
NABC Bank Street Brewhouse, 415 Bank Street, New Albany, IN 47150, (812) 725-9585
When brewing first began at the New Albanian Brewing Company in October, 2002, no marketing surveys were consulted and a business plan was prepared only because the bank insisted on it.
 Instead, NABC relied on instinct, cocktail napkin scribbling, all-night skull sessions and the occasional craft beer for inspiration. While the start-up process for the new Brewhouse on Bank Street was of necessity more detailed, our goals remain the same as we gather resources for a downtown New Albany brewing renaissance:
To be leaders in the craft beer segment and in the community, not followers.
To be progressive, not regressive.
To challenge and to educate, not to pander.
It can truly be said that the NABC has put New Albany, Indiana, on the craft brewing map.
Plaudits for our beers and brewpub have come from as far away as Madison, Wisconsin, St. Louis, Missouri, and Washington D.C., the sites of three annual microbrewing festivals. NABC annually ranks highly in “best of” lists published by web sites such as RateBeer.com and BeerAdvocate.com, and co-owner / beer writer Roger A. Baylor has come to be regarded as one of the region’s champions of the better beer movement.
Credibility like this doesn’t come from scratch. It has to be earned, and NABC has earned it.
NABC dates back to the Reagan years and has been known for excellence throughout metropolitan Louisville, Kentucky, since the almost forgotten time when microbrewing was still unknown in the area. The original NABC Pizzeria (founded in 1987 as Sportstime Pizza) and Public House (begun in1992 as Rich O’s Public House) remain the NABC’s on-premises dining and drinking establishments at the company’s original location at 3312 Plaza Drive off Grant Line Road.
 In 2002, NABC began brewing distinctive house beers at the same site and within a year had been declared “Best of Louisville” and “Best of Show” in the Indiana State Fair commercial brewing competition.
While the company has no intention of changing a winning formula after two successful decades on the scene, there was no longer room to grow at our North Side New Albany location and NABC began to look elsewhere for an opportunity to expand.
Why?
First and foremost, locally brewed beer is riding an unprecedented wave of acceptance throughout America, with 12% growth rates in each of the past two years, far above that of mass market lagers, and 11% growth in the first half of 2008, in spite of increased costs for raw ingredients and fuel.
As importantly, beer drinkers are taking an increasing interest in the concepts behind and origins of their beverages during a time of multinational macro-brewing consolidation. With the purchase of Anheuser-Busch by the Belgo-Brazilian consortium InBev SA, Samuel Adams is now the largest American-owned brewery!
It’s all part of a larger picture. According to author Chris O’Brien, who notes widespread alienation with modes of industrial production, “The craft brewing movement is part of a larger social trend toward commerce that incorporates the environment as a core business concern. But environmental concerns go hand in hand with a number of other values associated with the market segment called Cultural Creatives.”
 Taking these positive factors into consideration, NABC seeks to brew better beer in greater quantities right here in New Albany by expanding brewing capacity at a downtown New Albany site and selling beer to a regional market that includes Louisville, Bloomington, Indianapolis and all points in between.
The new Bank Street Brewhouse at 415 Bank Street will function as NABC’s larger-capacity production brewery, where primary brands like Elector, Hoptimus, Beak’s Best, Kaiser and Thunderfoot will be brewed, conditioned, kegged and canned for regional distribution.
 It will also be possible for consumers to buy kegs and carry-out growlers.
Meanwhile, NABC’s existing brewery on the North Side will remain in operation, with small batches, seasonals and specialties being brewed there. Limited amounts of these will be made available to discerning customers, enabling NABC to offer varied stylistic tiers at appropriate price points.
Indiana law permits self-distribution by microbreweries, but NABC will deliver only to licensed establishments within downtown New Albany. For Kentucky and the rest of Indiana, a wholesale distribution network is being assembled, with Louisville’s River City already inked and in place, and Indiana’s World Class Beverages soon to come onboard. As production increases, other states will be considered for distribution.
 At the Bank Street location, our Brasserie provides a pleasant for enjoying NABC’s beers, as well as a limited Belgian-style café menu prepared by Josh Lehman, our new head chef. A small on-premises shop will sell t-shirts and other apparel, glassware and souvenirs bearing our unique NABC logo and designs.
The Bank Street Brewhouse has undergone a phased start-up, with the Brasserie opening first, in the spring of 2009, the brewery installed in May, and fine NABC Beer from the Bank Street Brewhouse ready for distribution in the summer, the NABC brewery on Grant Line supplying the Brasserie as well in the interim.
Significantly, the NABC's Bank Street Brewhouse represents the expansion of an established suburban business into a reviving downtown, evidence of the NABC's firmly held belief that there is a future for downtown New Albany, as well as for our 'progressive pints' and the cause of progressivism itself in the city of New Albany, Floyd County, the Louisville Metro area and the surrounding region.
Craft beer’s target demographic continues to expand. A few key components:
· Education: Over 50% of American college graduates have tried craft beer
· Income: Over 50% of Americans with incomes over $75,000 have tried craft beer
· Age: The largest percentage of craft beer drinkers are aged 24 – 34, and the second largest percentage are aged 35 – 44
The “Cultural Creatives” mentioned by O’Brien share these and other demographic characteristics of the “Creative Class” (Richard Florida) and those standard bearers of the New Urbanism who are returning to live and work in downtown areas.
Unsurprisingly, the craft brewing revolution has prospered by emphasizing beer’s artisanal, local roots, and in like fashion, the New Urbanism urges the progressive reuse of cities. For NABC to grow by returning brewing to a downtown setting is to complete the circle initiated by New Albany’s beer-loving founders almost two centuries ago.
Good karma alone can’t win the battle of course, but it never hurts to have some. |
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"... Thunderfoot, it a magical and mysterious black ale, a Cherry Oak Imperial Stout. Sublime balance of chocolately malt, coffee roastiness, caramelly and toffee malt middle, woody and vanilla oakiness, all drenched in sweet and tart cherries, real cherries. Silky smooth and dangerously satisfying, it is a magnificent beverage."
"Malcolm's Old Setter's Ale on cask was arguably the best beer at the 2008 Great Taste of the Midwest, intense maltiness, some earthy and floral hops to balance the intense rush of toffee and breadiness with plenty of fruity esters and warming alcohol to round out an immense Old Ale. It was truly remarkable."
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Category: Brewing
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