Case Study


Case Study: DC Brau Is Lobbying for Mainsteam Success in the Beltway

After 11 years in business in the nation’s capital, DC Brau is banking on a nostalgia-infused mainstream lager and a neighborhood taproom to keep the local love flowing.

Case Study: Connecticut’s Fox Farm Finds Success in Classic Styles and a Warm Welcome

In rural New England, Fox Farm Brewery is sticking to its winning formula: Create a peaceful, welcoming customer experience and studiously make the kinds of traditional beers that the team likes best.

Chicago’s Maplewood Is Growing While Keeping “that Neighborhood Vibe”

This hybrid brewery and distillery is igniting growth with a second location while staying true to the quality-focused principles that lit its spark.

Case Study: Mujeres

The women of San Diego’s Mujeres Brew Club elevated their beer-education group into a full-fledged coop brewery. Now, their goals to educate, empower, and employ women in beer are more valued than ever—and it’s a model that could work anywhere.

Case Study: Urban Artifact Doubles Down on Fruit

From a 19th-century former church in Cincinnati, Urban Artifact is building a national reputation driven by heavily fruited, tart (and shelf-stable) beers and direct-to-consumer sales.

Case Study: Fonta Flora

North Carolina’s Fonta Flora Brewery now operates three taprooms and a farm, as the company learns how to bridge the gap not just between urban and rural, but also between idealism and reality.

Case Study: Otherlands Embraces Lager & Hospitality

In Bellingham, Washington, the cozy Otherlands brewery-café offers a lesson in Old World–inspired hospitality—as well as the risks and potential rewards of sticking stubbornly to a vision for your business.

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Ozark Beer Is a Blue-Collar Business Rooted in the Natural State

Far from any coasts and hours from the nearest big city, Ozark Beer has diligently grown its business in Northwest Arkansas with highly drinkable, reasonably priced beer and a locally rooted ethos.

Cape May Brewing Has No Secret Sauce

With careful planning and carefree beers, the New Jersey brewery took itself from a Shore town taproom to a three-state powerhouse.

Heater Allen and Its Lagers Are Built to Last

Was Heater Allen brewing lager before it was cool? Trick question. Lager has always been cool—it just took the rest of you a while to catch on. Here, the daughter-father team Lisa and Rick Allen lay out their approach to running a lasting niche business.