Welcome to Flavortown: Gnarly Barley Brewing

In small town Hammond lies a married couple on the brink of absolute statewide success. Zac and Cari Caramonta are the proud owners and founders of Gnarly Barley Brewing, a small time brewery that opened up in 2014.

Zac and Cari met at Southeastern Louisiana University and got married in 2009. Cari has a degree in family and consumer science with a minor in marketing, while Zac focused on general studies. Neither of them knew what the future had in store for them.

After graduation, Zac would go on to work at State Farm for seven years. According to Cari, “Five of those seven years were probably spent planning the brewery.”

Zac started on his beer quest after he decided to make his own beer instead of buying it. Zac says he became, “Totally engrossed in it, I even built my own equipment.” Home brewing is no easy feat, a lot can go wrong very quickly, but they kept their composure.

At the 2011 BrewFest, the Caramonta’s submitted a new brew. They got the reaction they could only dream of getting, with people wanting more. At that point they had started to realize they had a real product that could sell.

Cari may not have understood all the science of brewing beer, but she said, “Zac was put on this Earth to brew beer and I was put on this Earth to facilitate and turn it into a business.” They have done just that, turning a hobby into a business.

There are over 6,300 breweries in the United States and many fail or never get off of the ground, so why did this one stick, especially in a small town in Louisiana?

The flavors and unique recipes make this brewery stand out. They’ve brewed everything from Peanut Butter Korova Porter’s to Black Strap Molasses Lime Rye IPA. Funky flavors like those are either hit or miss, and the Caramonta’s just hit a home run.

In fact, they have made it on the Brewers Association’s Top 50 Fastest Growing Breweries list for two years in a row, an exclusive list many can only dream of being on.

The Caramontas are still growing and have come a long way since 2014, brewing more than they ever thought they would. They have brewed many beers, retiring four of them, and coming up with new ideas every day.

Some ideas have come to life, like the Key Lime Blueberry Coconut Lager, an interesting and strange brew to those with little knowledge of beer.

Gnarly Barley is on its way to national success, and Zac and Cari Caramonta know exactly what flavors it takes to get there.