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Texas Beer

Birds Barbershop Gets Crafty, Taps St. Elmo Brewing Co. as New Beer Partner

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AUSTIN, TX – Today, Birds Barbershop proudly begins serving St. Elmo Brewing Co.’s signature brew Carl at the barbershop’s nine Austin locations. The partnership kicks off with a fun “Free Cuts for Carl” promotion, offering anyone named Carl – with proper I.D. and 21+ years of age – a complimentary haircut, along with St. Elmo’s flagship beer of the same name, the entire month of January.

“We’ve always dreamed of a partner like St. Elmo that taps into that same homegrown, Austin vibe,” said Birds Barbershop co-founder Michael Portman. “Our companies were founded down the street from each other in South Austin, and we both value our local communities above all else.”

Founded in 2016 at 440 E. St. Elmo Rd., St. Elmo Brewing was established by a group of passionate beer lovers with a vision to create high-quality craft beers in Austin. The company recently added a second brewery and taproom location at 8110 Springdale Road. The brewery hosts events, live music, and food trucks, making it a hotspot for locals, just like Birds Barbershop.

“When I moved to Austin, I got my first haircut at Birds Barbershop and received a free beer with my haircut,” said Bryan Winslow, co-founder of St. Elmo Brewing Company. “It is beyond cool to now be the brew of choice at all Birds’ locations, and we already have plans for more fun collaborations to come.”

In addition to St. Elmo Carl, Birds Barbershop will feature St. Elmo Hazy IPA and, for those embracing Dry January, St. Elmo Hop Water. Each following month, the lineup will spotlight St. Elmo Carl alongside rotating seasonal favorites, including award-winning brews like St. Elmo Amber Lager and St. Elmo West IPA. These beverages will be available year-round at all Birds Barbershop locations for clients aged 21 and up. For more information or to book a haircut, color or style service, visit birdsbarbershop.com.

About Birds Barbershop

In 2006, childhood friends Michael Portman and Jayson Rapaport found themselves living in Austin, TX, with nowhere to get an affordable, high-quality haircut. Together, they created a salon for men and women, took out all the fuss, and added free beer to the experience. An addiction to old school arcade games developed. Birds Barbershop has been named six consecutive times to ELLE Magazine’s list of the 100 best salons in America and by the Austin Chronicle as Best Haircut every year since opening. Today, Birds Barbershop serves upwards of 20,000 people monthly and employs more than 150 people in nine locations across Austin.

About St. Elmo Brewing

Since opening in 2016, St. Elmo Brewing has become a staple in Austin’s vibrant craft beer scene. Known for crafting approachable beers that cater to all types of drinkers, St. Elmo offers a wide range of styles from hazy IPAs to traditional German lagers. These beers can be enjoyed onsite at the brewery’s two Austin locations or found on menus and retail shelves throughout the city. Recognized as one of Condé Nast Traveler’s Best Breweries in Austin, and with multiple gold medals from the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) and U.S. Beer Open, they recently expanded to a larger second location in East Austin. True to its roots, St. Elmo continues to be a hub for the community by regularly hosting programming and events like the popular Grassy Thursdays and weekly trivia nights. The brewery also fosters creative collaboration through partnerships with local artists and designers with their influence seen not only in the design of the brewery’s space but also in the artwork featured on the cans, including those for the flagship Carl Kölsch, St. Elmo Amber, St. Elmo Hazy, St. Elmo West, and Hop Water. For more info on hours & locations, events, and more, follow @stelmobrewing.

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Lakewood Brewing Co. Introduces Stub’s – Texas Pils

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DALLAS, Texas— Lakewood Brewing Co. has launched Stub’s – Texas Pils (4.5% ABV), a clear, crisp, and refreshing pilsner with a balanced smooth finish.

“Classic beer styles have survived a long time for a good reason. Like we say in Texas, ‘If it aint broke, don’t fix it.’ We created an uncomplicated beer, with quality ingredients, to enjoy at the end of your complicated day,” said Wim Bens, founder and president of Lakewood Brewing. “We’re going back to beer flavored beer. Stub’s is a beer you can grab for any occasion.”

The beer, priced at an inflation busting $8.99 to $9.99 for a 6-pack and $18.99 for a 12-pack, is a nostalgic nod to a simpler time with a retro branding that will be on shelves and on tap throughout the state starting in March. Stub’s is made in Texas by Texans for Texans.

Lakewood is also introducing two new Temptress varieties and a new Seasonal.

Irish Cream Temptress (9.1% ABV), currently available market-wide, is indulged with rich creamy flavors of Irish Cream and the velvety roasted malt and chocolate flavors of Temptress, the Stout of Texas.

In April, Cookies ‘n Cream Temptress (9.1% ABV) will hit shelves, which is brewed with an outrageous amount of Oreo cookies.

Sunburst Wheat (5.5% ABV), Lakewood’s NEW Spring/Summer seasonal “tastes like a Texas Sunset”. Light and refreshing with soft hints of fruit, it will be available state-wide in time for the solar eclipse on April 8.

Lakewood is most notably known for its Temptress Imperial Milk Stout, the best-selling craft stout in Texas. Today, its portfolio also includes Stub’s – Texas Pils, year-round IPA’s, lagers, stouts, and popular seasonal offerings like Sunburst Wheat, all of which draw beer lovers to the Brewery and Taproom at 2302 Executive Drive in Garland. Lakewood beers are available on shelves Texas-wide and can be found using Lakewood’s online Beer Finder.

About Lakewood Brewing Company

Lakewood Brewing Company is a family-owned, independent craft brewery making Seriously

Fun Beer. Lakewood exploded onto the DFW brewing scene in 2012 and became famous for its Temptress Imperial Milk Stout, which is now the best-selling craft stout in Texas. Its diverse beer portfolio includes IPA’s, Lagers, seasonal, and limited release beers.

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Lakewood Brewing Co. Taps the Next Generation With The University of Texas at Arlington

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DALLAS, Texas— Lakewood Brewing Co. is brewing up the next generation of beer talent through a collaboration with The University of Texas at Arlington, which is offering a new Brewing and Fermentation Science Certificate. Dylan Parks, Ph.D., biology assistant professor of instruction and former Lakewood Brewing lab technician, is head of the four-course certificate program that Lakewood is helping provide the hands-on experience for.

Designed to teach students from the ground up, Dr. Parks has developed a curriculum that will include The Science of Brewing, Fermentation Science, Brewing Lab and Sensory Evaluation, QA/QC, and Product Design. There will also be a requirement for a 16-hour internship at a local fermentation or brewing facility, for which Lakewood is one of the first to participate.

“Hands-on experience is critical to anyone that is going to go on and work in a production facility, whether it be a winery, brewery, cidery, or distillery,” said Wim Bens, founder and president of Lakewood Brewing. “It’s important to have an educated workforce, or to even power someone’s future hobby – that’s how I started, and I’m stoked to help others go that path.”

Bens is a graduate of Southern Methodist University, which he has also worked with following the launch this year of PONY PILS, a beer Lakewood made for Mustang fans. After it flew off shelves after launching this summer, SMU added it PONY PILS to its concession offerings at home football and basketball games. The beer also has an associated scholarship with $1 from every case sold going to the LBC Future Brewer STEM Scholarship, which has a goal to “Inspire the passions of the next generation of craft brewers.”

Lakewood is most notably known for its Temptress Imperial Milk Stout, the best-selling craft stout in Texas. Today, its beer portfolio includes year-round IPA’s, lagers, stouts, and popular seasonal offerings, all of which draw beer lovers to the Taproom at 2302 Executive Drive in Garland. Its beers are available on craft beer shelves Texas-wide and can be found using Lakewood’s online Beer Finder.

About Lakewood Brewing Company

Lakewood Brewing Company is a family-owned, independent craft brewery making Seriously Fun Beer. Lakewood exploded onto the DFW brewing scene in 2012 and became famous for its Temptress Imperial Milk Stout, which is now the best-selling craft stout in Texas. Its diverse beer portfolio includes IPA’s, Lagers, seasonal, and limited release beers.

For Brewing fun facts, trivia, movies and more, Click Here.

The Spoetzl Brewery Announces Major New Sustainability Initiatives

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SHINER, Texas— The Spoetzl Brewery, the family-owned and independent craft brewer of the iconic Shiner Bock, announces its extensive new onsite sustainability initiatives. With a dedicated mission to care for the environment and surrounding communities, the brewery now implements new sustainable systems including solar-powered energy, updated waste reduction procedures and effective recycling processes.

With sustainable energy on the rise, The Spoetzl Brewery now features solar panels to the brewery to reduce waste and produce cleaner energy. The solar panels generate over 2.0 megawatts of electricity, powering 30% of the brewer’s electrical requirements. In addition to solar energy, the brewery also uses skylights and super-efficient LED lights to further reduce electricity use.

“At the Spoetzl Brewery, we’re committed to investing in renewable energy initiatives and to minimizing our carbon footprint”, says Tom Fiorenzi, Shiner’s Director of Brewery & Distillery Operations. “We’re proud to have the largest solar array on a Texas brewery and are hopeful that other breweries and businesses will follow in our footsteps.”

In addition to adding solar panels, the brewery enforces procedures to reduce waste. To date, the brewery recycles 98% of its waste. To further reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions, 200 tons of paper and over 300 tons of glass are recycled each year. The Spoetzl brewery also transfers exhaust from brew kettles to a hot water system that supplies heat for wort preheating, cleaning systems and offices throughout the brewery.

With the new conservation efforts and procedures, the Spoetzl Brewery is focused on helping the surrounding communities and businesses. Each year, over 13,000 tons of spent grain is sent to local farmers as a source of food for animals. The brewery also uses an anaerobic wastewater pretreatment system that collects all the brewery’s processed wastewater. This apparatus generates a biogas that is cleaned, compressed and then used to supply over eight percent of the brewery’s heating needs. Further, over 33 percent of the brewery’s pretreated wastewater is used to grow hay to support local farmers.

The Spoetzl Brewery recently introduced a brand-new onsite BBQ restaurant and a craft spirits distillery with a tour and tastings open to the public. Tours of the Spoetzl Brewery and Distillery are available seven days a week.

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Viva Beer and Alamo Beer Company Unite to Craft a Bold Future for San Antonio’s Beer Scene

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SAN ANTONIO, Texas – In a union that promises to enhance San Antonio’s craft beer community, VIVA Beer and Alamo Beer Company are thrilled to announce their merger. This exciting merger will bring together the best of both worlds, creating a powerful synergy that will strengthen their shared commitment to crafting exceptional, approachable beer for the San Antonio community and beyond.

For VIVA Beer co-owners, Micheal (MJ) Johnson and Bobby Jones, their innovative style, self-distribution model, and contract brewing partnerships fueled their rapid growth since 2019, and they have become a San Antonio favorite at a rapid pace. After a fortuitous meeting with Alamo Beer Company in 2022, Johnson and Jones saw the Alamo Beer Co. team taking the helm of brewing operations for VIVA. The result was a dynamic partnership built on shared values and a deep passion for San Antonio.

Johnson, co-owner of VIVA Beer, states this merger is not only an exciting next step but also a testament to the mentorship and support they’ve received from the Alamo team. “Eugene has been a mentor of ours since we started. With the help of the Alamo team, we know we can continue to grow the brand throughout San Antonio and beyond.” Jan Matysiak, Alamo Beer’s new VP of Operations and talented brewmaster, is excited to lead the brewery team in continuing the VIVA recipes of their much-beloved craft beer to an even larger fan base.

Eugene Simor, owner of Alamo Beer Co., shared his enthusiasm for the merger, stating, “I have been really impressed with how quickly VIVA has grown and how the beer has resonated with San Antonio.” It was only 20 years ago that Simor was delivering kegs out of his minivan all over San Antonio, and the similarities with VIVA’s growth shed some light on why this is a special event for both companies. Be sure to look for VIVA Beer’s “Ale Camino” which is rigged with taps to pour beer from the back. Some things never change.

As the craft beer scene in San Antonio continues to grow, this merger promises an exciting future, with both VIVA Beer and Alamo Beer Company working hand in hand to craft exceptional experiences, celebrate the essence of San Antonio, and raise a toast to the vibrant craft beer culture that defines our beloved city.

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Alamo Beer Company Appoints Jan Matysiak as VP of Operations

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SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Brewing expert and Weihenstephan graduate, Jan Matysiak, is set to bring his two decades of experience in the brewing industry to San Antonio’s Alamo Beer Company.

With a background spanning operations management, quality assurance, supply chain, and product innovation, Jan Matysiak has a record of transforming breweries’ bottom line and driving substantial growth, and now brings his experience to Alamo Beer Company.

Matysiak, a native of Germany, began his journey at the esteemed brewing program at the Technical University of Munich-Weihenstephan, earning a degree in Brewing Science. His journey in the brewing industry started with a position as QA/QC Assistant Manager at Memminger Brewery in Bavaria. Matysiak then expanded his horizon and moved to the United States to explore the burgeoning craft brewing sector.

His exploration led him to a leadership role at Sixpoint Brewery, which he describes as a “great experience.” His involvement in the launch of dozens of new beers, and overseeing production across several facilities, earned him a reputation as a rising star in the brewing industry.

This momentum carried him to Big Bend Brewing in 2016, a challenging period following the untimely death of its award-winning founder. Through effective teamwork and a focus on quality, Matysiak led the brewery to win various competitions, including a prestigious gold medal at the 2018 World Beer Cup.

Matysiak now takes on the role of Vice President of Operations at Alamo Beer Company. In this new position, he will oversee brewing operations, manage the supply chain, and implement high-quality standards of beer production, while simultaneously fostering innovation.

His experience across a variety of breweries, both large and small, has granted Matysiak a comprehensive perspective on the industry. Alamo Beer Company’s COO, Jessenia McMeans, praises his skillset as “crucial” for the future success of the brewery, emphasizing his prowess in ensuring product quality, and business profitability.

On adapting the German-inspired brewing processes at Alamo Beer, Matysiak insists on adhering to high-quality brewing standards and is confident in Alamo’s ability to produce beers with the highest quality and consistency levels, ultimately bolstering the brewery’s growth.

Eugene Simor, Alamo Beer Company’s founder, and owner, celebrates Matysiak’s arrival, applauding his technical knowledge, practical experience, and business acumen. “He’s a real name in the industry…We’re excited to have this exceptional leader on our team,” he asserts.

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