Englewood brewery works with aspiring brewery owners on new beer
By The Thirst Team
Sunroom Brewing has become a fixture of the Englewood community in less than a year. Co-founders Melanie and Matthew Miller attribute much of their success to other Colorado brewers’ mentorship.
Wandering Sun release party
What: Tapping of collab hazy double IPA at 4 p.m., with live music by JC Allen at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Sunroom Brewing, 3242 S. Acoma St., Englewood, CO. 80110
When: 4 to 10 p.m. Friday, July 14
More details here
Now they are paying it forward by working with John Flaherty and Sam Odom, home brewers who are looking to open their own brewery. The result of their collaboration is the Wandering Sun, a single-hopped hazy double IPA showcasing the Strata hop. A release party at Sunroom tomorrow will showcase the beer and help launch a Kickstarter campaign for Wanderment Brewing, John and Sam’s planned brewery.
Many Colorado brewery owners talk about the spirit of cooperation amid the crowded competition in the industry. Matthew is especially thankful for the help of Jason and Jessica Bilodeaux, founders of Over Yonder Brewing in Golden.
John Flaherty works on a beer at Sunroom Brewing.
“There is never a time I cannot stop by Over Yonder and talk to Jason about anything industry-related,” he said. “From brewing to packaging-related tips and tricks, he has been invaluable as we continue to grow, can more beer, and even look to the future on light distribution. … We are so excited to be able to pay it forward now with John and Sam.”
John and Sam met the Millers at Sunroom shortly after the brewery opened last fall. They all bonded over home brewing, East Coast roots, previous software engineering careers and more.
“It was cool to sit down with Sunroom, design, and brew one of Wanderment's recipes at full commercial scale,” John said. “This is something I've always wanted to do since I started home brewing over a decade ago.”
Matthew said he had dreamed of a similar collaboration before he became a professional brewer.
“When I was just a home brewer, I wished I had the opportunity to practice scaling up recipes on a larger system, so we’ve always wanted to pay it forward by sharing this opportunity with other like-minded brewers who were in our position,” said Matthew.
He also said they all learned from each other during the brewing process.
“Yeast and the fermentation side is something that they are very knowledgeable about, and I know they will bring great things to the Denver brewing scene,” Matthew said. “They are putting in the sweat equity like we did opening Sunroom Brewing, so I know like us they have the drive and do not take this for granted.”
The Wanderment Brewing team is looking for a permanent location to craft mixed-culture beers brewed with locally sourced ingredients. Last week, they launched a $10,000 Kickstarter campaign, with creative rewards, to fund the brewery opening.
John said they are raising funds “to give us a year's runway to make sure the bills are paid and we aren't stressed about paying rent every month. It always feels easier to be more creative when there's less stress on the brain.”
They hope to open by early 2024, and are looking for more collaborators in the meantime.