10 of the Country’s Most Interesting Breweries
Black Project Beer
Denver
A funny thing happened after Denver’s Former Future Brewing opened in 2014. The initial business plan of making “clean” beers like a porter or pale ale quickly began to change. The future of the brewery quite literally became a former idea, left in the past.
While hard to verify, it may be the first case of a brewery name serendipitously predetermining the business’ own fate.
When Sarah and James Howat opened Former Future, James, with a degree in microbiology, went to work creating wild ales on the side under the name Black Project Spontaneous & Wild Ales. After two Great American Beer Festival medals for those beers in 2014 and 2015 and a growing fan base, “Former Future” was officially dropped in 2016 so the husband and wife could rebrand solely as Black Project.
“The first time you win a medal, maybe people think it’s a fluke, but when it happens again, everyone sees you’re for real,” says Sarah Howat. “Two years in a row is legitimizing for ourselves and the people who follow us.”
Black Project has added more space to accommodate 100 wine barrels and a 10-barrel coolship. Foeders are a possibility for a later date. Additional space and more equipment will help turn around batches of fruit-flavored table sours and blended beers inspired by Belgian lambics.
With a refocused purpose, the brewery’s name once again reflects reality for the Howats, who took the spontaneous reaction from beer drinkers and never looked back.
“I don’t think James or I ever expected this reaction,” Sarah says. “Without that second medal in 2015, I also don’t think we would’ve had a serious conversation about making this shift.” –Bryan Roth
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Norey’s, Newport RI has OEC on tap on a regular basis. Right now Plumtastic is on tap. It is rare to find OEC on tap outside the brewery. If you are in Southern New England, stop by. Look for a Tap Takeover featuring OEC this summer. http://www.noreys.com/craft-beer-bar-newport-rhode-island/
You should probably change that caption on the OEC pic to Tony Pellino, OEC’s master beer snob 😉
Our mistake, Nic. Thank you for letting us know!
Daniel Hartis
Digital Manager
All About Beer Magazine
I know it’s difficult to name every brewery,
when compiling a ten best anything. Yet, you omitted one excellent local brewery in “Mad Tree Brewery”, in Cincinnati.
OEC!! TONY PELLINO!!!!!
Cigar City Brewery top 10 interesting places??? Are you kidding me their service Sucks yes with capital S, avoid at all costs.