It’s not every time that I will flat out tell you that you need to do something. I might put my opinion into things on occasion, but it’s not often that I flat out order you around. This time I’m ordering you, but in a really nice way, to back Alexandria Brewing Company. Hear me out.
Why Alexandria Brewing Company Needs Support
First off, that’s a little misleading – they don’t really need support. They’re opening their doors one way or another. It’s not going to make or break their business if you decide to keep your hard earned money for their grand opening (though it might make their taproom look a little different).
The brewery has several different plans for what their space is going to look like, all depending on how much money they are able to get together to open their doors. They are very open in their Kickstarter about what the different plans will look like. The reason they are kickstarting this brewery is pretty simple, but it still might not answer the question of why you should give them your money right now.
If a better taproom just isn’t enough of a reason for you, then you should support Alexandria Brewing Company because of Andy Reynolds.
The Long And Winding Road Of Alexandria
There are a ton of really great people and wonderful stories in craft beer. There are few, though, that have pulled me in quite like Andy’s has. The guy is soft spoken, but full of knowledge that he’s extremely happy to share with you at the drop of a hat. A love for traditional styles is balanced out with the desire to screw around with those styles just as frequently. You don’t have to actually have tried his beer yet to be eager to do so. He’s the type of guy that just seems destined for this business.
The idea for Alexandria Brewing Company has been a LONG time coming for him. Sometimes its a little hard to get the guy to talk about himself long enough to hear the story for yourself, but when you do, you can’t help but what him to succeed in this.
It started back when he was in the military. He started making hard cider in his barracks (shhhhhh, alcohol wasn’t really allowed, exactly). He describes the process as something that he enjoyed because he had control over it – when I suppose there wasn’t much of around at the time. He was good at it… and the brewing bug is hard to shake at that point. After finishing his service, he moved into the miserable corporate world… but it just didn’t fit. After some convincing from his wife, he made the decision to start working on the process of starting his brewery.
Due to his military service, Andy’s plans were put on the back burner with some really serious health issues shortly thereafter. It flipped it all inside out and upside down, and it didn’t look like much hope was in sight for the dream to become a reality.
The Return Of The Dream
I think we can owe the resurgance of Andy’s brewery dream to a retreat that he took in 2014 with the Wounded Warriors Project. After the retreat, he got himself enrolled in the Siebel Institute.
The result of it all? The business plan is better… the Cincinnati beer scene is better. The only way to look at it with out feeling terrible is to think of it as a blessing in disguise.
But you can’t just read that story and really understand where I’m coming from. You’ve got to meet Andy Reynolds to really get it. I know that not everyone is going to have that chance before the kickstarter ends, whigh is why I’m here. You might need to put a little with in me about this guy. He’s the real deal – a good person who’s going to create something really special that has the chance to change Alexandria.
What Do You Get?
Look, I know that you guys don’t support kickstarters just for the heck of it… you need rewards. Alexandria has some great ones too. From an awesome growler and glassware, t-shirts, hoodies, a really awesome bomber club and some really great brewing opportunities, there is really something for everyone.
The campaign is winding down, and once it’s done, it’s done. It takes more than buying a few beers here and there to make some of these dreams come to fruition, and it’s our duty to support the good guys who sometimes just need a little push.
If you haven’t found it yet, you can meander over to their kickstarter page and pick your level – more importantly, share it with your friends. Social media is how these things become something really unstoppable, so do your part!