A Day At Terrapin Beer Company

Time To Visit A Local Brewery

Athens, GA is maybe 60 miles from our house, so it’s easy to get to. Athens is home to the University of Georgia as well as the starting place for many successful bands like R.E.M, and the B-52′s. It’s also home to Terrapin Beer Company, a fast growing regional brewery with a link to music, as well as a strong reputation in the industry.  I have been a fan of their beers ever since I tried their Rye Pale Ale back in October, 2006 when we moved to Atlanta.  So, Pam and I decided to spend part of the 4th of July touring the brewery and drinking some of their beers.  I was also hoping that I might be able to spend some time with the Brew Master.

The Tour And Tasting

We arrived at Terrapin Beer around 5PM after spending a nice relaxing morning at home.  Terrapin is based in a 45,000 square foot  building just North of town.  Here’s the video:

We were lucky to have John Cochran,one of the founders, lead our tour.  He is very passionate about beer, and it shows.  Terrapin has grown tremendously the last few years and they use a surprisingly small amount of equipment for the amount of beer they produce.  That is going to change though, as they just got in a bunch of new tanks that need to be put to use very soon.

They had most of their year-round beers on tap as well as a cask of a special oaked version of their Rye Pale Ale.  I tried them all, of course, and liked the India Brown Ale and the cask version of the Rye Pale Ale the best, although all the beers are good.  We hung outside and listened to the music and had a hot dog, enjoying the casual, family atmosphere.  It was a lot of fun.

Brew Master Bonus Time

As we were waiting around for the tour to start, Brian “Spike” Buckowski, the Brew Master and co-founder of Terrapin with John, caught up with me and introduced himself.  I had contacted him a couple of days before, asking for a few minutes of his time, if he was around.  He was gracious enough to say yes.  So, about 30 minutes after the tour ended, Pam and I sat down with Spike to talk beer.  Before we sat down he poured us a big glass of their “30″ which was a special beer (with 30 ingredients) he made for Taco Mac’s (an Atlanta based chain of beer bars) 30th anniversary.  The beer was “hidden” behind an unmarked tap that was not being used, very nice The video of the interview is only about 7 minutes out of the nearly 30 minutes we talked but it contains some good stuff:

We thoroughly enjoyed our time talking with Spike.  As you saw, Spike is 100% into brewing.  He really loves what he does.  He is very knowledgeable about brewing and very proud of Terrapin’s beer, as he should be.  His story is great, going from home brewer to Brew Master through hard work and dedication to a goal.

New Beers On The Way

You may have heard in the videos, about two new beers that Terrapin will be releasing in the near future:

1. #7 in their Side Project Series-A farmhouse ale to be released in a few weeks.
2. “Hopsecutioner”-a big IPA with as much as 100 IBU’s to be released in the next month or two.

I’ll review these beers as soon as possible after they are released.

Slow And Steady

Much like the main character on their labels, Terrapin has pursued their goal through a relatively controlled strategy, focusing on what’s important, the beer.  There seems to be a good team in place that loves making great beer.  I don’t think they will stray from their roots in search of quick fame and fortune but rather slowly, and steadily, take over the world by producing great beer that stays true to their roots.

Right now they are mainly distributed in the Southeast but their beers are available in Pittsburgh (interesting story there involving his love of the Steelers) and it looks like they will be available in the Philadelphia area as well.  Beyond that, I think that they will add distribution only when it makes sense, not before.  Until then, all of you that don’t get Terrapin beer in your area will just have to enjoy the beers vicariously through my reviews

Thanks Terrapin

Thanks to John, Spike, and everyone else at Terrapin for making great beer and for sharing some of your time with us.  We enjoyed it and look forward to visiting again real soon.  And, if you guys need someone to help you taste new beers before anyone else…sign us up, we’ll take the job!