Community-Focused Brewer Runs the Gamut of Brews
A newcomer to the craft brew scene, don’t expect to find their current 20 brews in bars or in stores. You’ll have to visit their taproom or head to the Belgian Brew Fest to experience them.
Tell us about Woods Boss Brewing
We’re approaching our 8-month anniversary. We’re having fun. The brewery itself is meant to be taproom and community focused. Well-made, fresh beer, and something new, that’s kind of who we are. We’ve all been doing this for a number of years. I’ve been a professional brewer for a long time, and a home brewer forever. Our styles and preferences run the gamut -Belgian, English, Esoteric, well-made traditional, and everything in between. People always ask if we are going to focus on anything in particular. I always say, “Yes, really good beer!” Currently we have 20 of our beers on tap. We don’t distribute besides a select few tap accounts. We’re not into the packaging wars. We just want to interact with our community and have folks interact with the tap.
So many beer festivals these days to promote craft breweries. Why Belgian Brew Fest?
Number one, I love the guys at Bruz who manage the fest. We’ve been friends before we’ve opened. We’ve collaborated on beers together. Charlie and Ryan have helped us a lot; they’re fantastic people. We’re glad to be part of their world. I’ve got nothing but respect for what they do. When they say they’re a fan of us, we’re like, “Holy s*it that’s awesome!” Every time I brew a Belgian style, I bring it over to share. We’re always looking for their input. I don’t claim to be an expert, especially in any particular style, so when I have friends that can give good feedback, I ask. We’re really proud of what we do. We think we do a good job. When it comes to the Belgian game, we’re having fun. We try to keep our roots, but we do our own take, our own twist on things. Our Belgian Quad, for example, is a strong darker brown ale at 13% alcohol content.
Taster trays, “intelligent” taps and more; how can events like Belgian Brew Fest and tech marketing apps like Spigot Lab’s Taste Tracker, help promote your brand to the growing audience of craft brew enthusiasts?
We’re a microbrewery. We do a maximum of 15 barrel batches. And our production this year will be under a thousand barrels. We’re definitely craft, independent. So, we’re pretty picky when it comes to beer fests. There are a ton of them out there. For a long time I’ve seen beer fests as subject to the law of diminishing returns. We always ask, how many breweries are represented? And how many do participants typically remember? We try to be picky where we feel we can be intimate with the folks that are there, and it’s not just a drunk fest because that’s not fun for us. It doesn’t really accomplish our goals. We like to educate potential customers and share our enthusiasm and love of craft brew. The Belgian Brew Fest provides that opportunity. Only less than a dozen breweries are typically allowed to attend. Because of this, the participants will likely have more passion about the brew itself. Belgians are a little particular. It’s a ready-made audience for us, so it’s a good fit.
Lots of work goes into attending these festivals. What’ll make it worth the effort?
We have a blast at festivals. I love talking with people that haven’t been to our brewery. We love the conversations, and sharing our passion. As a brewer and a brewery owner, we love to see their reactions, the surprises. For us, it’s all about the interactions. It’s also fun to see our friends. We get stuck in our own breweries, so going out to a festival, it’s fun for us to be with our community and try out their brews.
Brews from Woods Boss Brewery to look forward to at the fest
We are bringing at least three different beers. One is going to be our Belgian Quad, Form and Function, brewed with figs, cocoa nibs, and dried cherries. Also there will be a Belgian Golden Strong, brewed with 4 different types of yeast, pretty unique for its style. And probably a new beer, as yet unnamed, but it’s a Belgian amber, a fun style we don’t see too often and mid-range in the alchohol content. We may bring our collaboration with Bruz Beers, unless they decide to bring it and pour. Maybe we’ll come up with something between now and then and bring that.
Your personal favorite brew at the moment
My own? The short answer is all of them. They’re all my babies. I always ask people who ask me this question, if they have children, do they have a favorite child? But if I have to narrow it down, there’s one I’m particularly digging on, and that is our Belgian Golden Strong. It’s so complex and fruity and spicy, and there’s a nice tart finish to it because we finish it on Saison yeast. It’s not a beer that I find often, and it’s not like a beer that I’ve had too often before, and it’s f*cking delicious.
Our annual Belgian Brew Fest is coming up April 28th. Get your tickets now before they sell out! 10+ breweries, food trucks, live bands, killer time!
