Selling your beer, What does it take? Options

[anti]

What is required to see your beer?
Are there different requirements for selling kegs to bars then bottles and pints to consumers?
Do you need to be certified?
What are the first steps?
What does it take to open up a brewery, and are there less requirements if you dont have a brew pub?
Surely someone has done this and knows what it takes.
FIll me in!

Thanks!

[anti]

P.S. I am concerned with the rules in Chicago, or in IL somewhere.

[just-cj]

Before someone else says it, "The most important thing is to make good beer."

Beyond that, if you do a quick search (try "going pro" or "opening brewpub" or something similar), you should be able to find a bunch of threads -- I remember there have been many over on Northern Brewer as well. Other than that, I can't offer anything -- Japan is such a different animal when it comes to licensing a brewery.

[Fletch]

You can start your search for infor here at the TTB's web site. Then you'll need to check out your State and Local regs. But if you can't get past the Federal requirements, you most likely won't be able to meet the State/Local regs, either.

Little hint: if you're thinking about brewing AT HOME, it'll never fly.

[toonces]

+1 to what cj said. and just because you think your beer is good, doesn't mean that everyone else does/

if you are going to do this, be prepared to enter the most government regulated industry on the planet.

fletch brings up a good point. is this going to be on premise consumption or sale to others? the big profit margin is in on premise consumption, but usually requires a restaurant as well since most people won't go to a place that sells beer only. unless you want to have a bar as well, which will cost you a full liquor license. in some places, like new mexico, the number of liquor licenses is limited by the state (that government regulation thing). and here, a liquor license can cost you a house. an expensive house. a beer and wine license? not so much.

if it's sale to others, you'll have to go through a distributor. and convience him that your beer is good enough to try to sell to clients. think about it. if a distributor already has 4 ipa's or 3 american lagers or 5 apa's, why would he try to take on another? but, you could get a distributor's license and do your own distribution.

you can sell wholesale, but that takes a lot of hard work in getting and keeping clients. think about it. you walk into a bar and tell the owner you make really great beer. and give him some. he thanks you for it. and that's it. why should he take on a product to sell that no one has ever heard of? and it takes a large volume to make up for the cut you took in profit margin.

are you catching on to how hard and complicated this can get rather quickly?

and oh, btw. it usually take about 6 months to get said licenses.

good luck. let us know how it turns out....

[ontheten]

Two of my friends are opening a microbrewery. They have been in the process since late summer/early fall. I live in PA, so things are probably a little different for you in IL but I'll give you a rundown of what they had to go through.

1. They had to apply for a federal license to brew/produce alcohol.

2. Then they had to apply with the state. The PA Liquor Control Board is pretty serious so they had to basically open up their lives to them - everything from their pasts, where they worked, where all the funding is coming from for the brewery - including looking at their investors banking accounts and what not. The board has to inspect the brewery building to make sure its acceptable.

3. They got their licenses back which took 2-3 months of applying/investigating in which time they acquired a 12 BBL brewing system. Now the Board has to come back once it is plummed up and do a final inspection.

They started back in September and hope to be rolling kegs out the door by April or May. They have been talking about opening a brewery since we were like 16 and no one ever took them seriously. But they stuck with it - each got their bachelor's in business followed by the Seibel Institute for brewing in Chicago and Germany, so they are really making it happen. Now we are 24 and I'll be having Roy Pitz Beer on tap in a couple months.

Also they hired a brewing consultant who was also a lawyer who helped walk them through the process - the paper work and getting the right brewing system for their needs. In PA you can either be a microbrewery or brewpub.

Hoped this helped a little. Brian

[GehanG]

It's obviously not easy. It if was we would all probably be running breweries instead of just being addicted to a good hobby.

If you want to do it, or I should say, if you are going to do it. My advice would be to stop by the nearest brew pub in your area and talk to them about what they did. If you don't have any of them around talk to a lawyer. Your probably going to have to hire a lawyer to help you get everything filed anyway. Might as well see what they have to say...

edit: ontheten posted while I was typing. He hit it, if your going to do it, get it done....

This post has been edited by GehanG: Feb 29 2008, 10:52 PM

[andy77]

you can sell wholesale, but that takes a lot of hard work in getting and keeping clients. think about it. you walk into a bar and tell the owner you make really great beer. and give him some. he thanks you for it. and that's it. why should he take on a product to sell that no one has ever heard of? and it takes a large volume to make up for the cut you took in profit margin.

True dat. Proprieters of bars/resutrants don't care how good your beer is, only if their customers will pay for it. Salesmen are calling on these businesses constantly. Why would he or she take a risk on a small startup when they know that BMC, Blue Moon and Guiness will sell consistently?

I'd say your best bet is the micropub route. People like to frequent something that's local and unique. If you can get a consistent client base locally, you can start to distribute to local bottle shops. From there, well, hire a good salesperson!!

This post has been edited by andy77: Feb 29 2008, 10:44 PM

[cbbrown40]

I looked into it in California and it was a nightmare. Not so much for the license but for the zoning. I wanted to be able to sell a keg here and there for weddings etc. I had to get a small micro-brewerey license and it was for like 60,000 brls a year. Nothing smaller. The problem was that I can't say I want to make 10 Kegs a year it just goes down as 60,000 brls a year so you have to be in a place that will alow that. It definately was not my garage, In the middle of a housing area. Best of luck I would love to get something going like that to. (IMG:style_emoticons/brewboard/hehe.gif)

[BrewBasser]

Right now is quite possibly the worst time imaginable to open a new brewery. Not to be a wet towel or anything but consider:

1. Stainless steel prices are the highest ever= expensive brewhouse
2. The hop market is totally farbed for the next 3 years at least and hops will be impossible/expensive to obtain.
3. Until the corn for ethanol thing gets figured out malt is going to be super expensive.
4. The competition is very fierce with lots of other small brewers.

On the plus side, due to 1-3 number 4 is going to go down as lots of breweries go out of business in the next couple of years.

If you are going to go for it, go in with both eyes WIDE open.

EDIT: my bad for not reading the whole thread.

BrewBasser

This post has been edited by BrewBasser: Mar 1 2008, 12:00 AM

[Brian72]

True dat. Proprieters of bars/resutrants don't care how good your beer is, only if their customers will pay for it. Salesmen are calling on these businesses constantly. Why would he or she take a risk on a small startup when they know that BMC, Blue Moon and Guiness will sell consistently?

I'd say your best bet is the micropub route. People like to frequent something that's local and unique. If you can get a consistent client base locally, you can start to distribute to local bottle shops. From there, well, hire a good salesperson!!

I agree here, but in a way to at least get your name out, do you know of any bar owners? maybe drop by a couple kegs on a good night for samples and to get some feed back on what people think? Maybe a good way to tweek things to fit into the local palet (sp). It might just be like music (I know a little about this music thing) start a fan base and the rest will fall in line, you need a following.

[the4th]

... I'll be having Roy Pitz Beer on tap in a couple months.

"Is that beer good?"

"GOOD?!?! IT'S THE PITZ!"


Sorry, had to be done. Back on topic, everyone.

[al_bob]

I agree here, but in a way to at least get your name out, do you know of any bar owners? maybe drop by a couple kegs on a good night for samples and to get some feed back on what people think? Maybe a good way to tweek things to fit into the local palet (sp). It might just be like music (I know a little about this music thing) start a fan base and the rest will fall in line, you need a following.

Yeah, I agree here. Spread your brew around, and get a fan base. I take mine down to the local pubs I go to, and we all taste them there. Lately, I've had some good feed back. I've had total strangers tell me my beer was awesome, and if it was on tap they would pay for it. It's flattering, but I'm nowhere near that yet.

I have to satisfy myself first! I'm still striving for perfection in the world of IPA. (IMG:style_emoticons/brewboard/devil.gif)

If you're beer is really good, and has a following, someone will want to help put you in business. (IMG:style_emoticons/brewboard/wink.gif)

[Denny]

You need...
lots of money
a good lawyer
the ability to take something you love and turn it into a job you have to do every day

[al_bob]

You need...
lots of money
a good lawyer
the ability to take something you love and turn it into a job you have to do every day

(IMG:style_emoticons/brewboard/rolf.gif) ............and, night.