E-Malt.com News article: USA, CO: Fort Collins Brewery to launch a line of small-batch beers

Approaching 10 years in the beer business, Fort Collins Brewery becomes a little creative with a new pilot brewing system, Coloradoan reported on June, 13.

Later this year, the brewery will install a pilot brew system providing its brewers the leeway to experiment more with small-batch beers.

The new brew system ties into a new slogan, “Create Share Savor,” that the brewery unveiled this week. Marketing Director Charles Stanley said the new five-barrel pilot system will increase the number of small-batch beers produced at Fort Collins Brewery from one per month to possibly 10 per month.

“The beers will be pretty broad, not sours,” Stanley said. “This comes from the passion of our brewers, and the money is ultimately in the larger production batches because they are more cost effective, but brewers love to get creative and experiment. The five barrel is more of an outlet for that.”

Stanley said that the new pilot system will provide Fort Collins Brewery the opportunity to partner with the community and local businesses to brew beers.

While Fort Collins Brewery plans to have the pilot system operational by October, it will also replace its current 20-barrel brew house with a 50-barrel brew house.

The new brew house, which will go in the current building, will include a German brewing system and is intended to help boost distribution of standard and seasonal beers in Colorado and beyond.

The $1 million brew house should be running by September. The old brew house equipment will be sold and a new pilot system will be brought in, Stanley said. To accompany the expansion, Fort Collins Brewery has added two 150-barrel fermenters.

The new fermentation vessels will increase the brewery’s annual capacity from 22,100 barrels annually to 32,300.


19 June, 2013