The Brewer
Zach Hart, Brewmaster
We had a rare opportunity to catch
Brewmaster Zach Hart when he was NOT toiling away among the tanks.
Over a tall, cool pint, he shared some of
his thought on beer and the brewing process:
Zach, are you a native Fayettevillian?
I was born and raised in Dallas, Texas and graduated from the University of Oklahoma (go Sooners!) with a degree in business in 1996.
What inspired you to become a brewer?
It kind of fell in my lap!I was bartending at a sportsbar when they decided to add a brewery to it. I started going in on my time off to help them out and learn more about brewing. About a year later they opened up a second brewpub and asked if I would be the assistant.
Were you a homebrewer before your first brewing gig?
I was a very bad homebrewer! I messed around alot at the time but I didn ’t really understand brewing. I just put stuff in a pot and stirred it and drank it.
Where was your first brewing job?
I first brewed commercially at Big Horn Brewing Co. in Arlington,TX.
What are some of the differences between homebrewing and brewing large scale?
I think there are two big differences. First a homebrewer brews for himself and can adjust their brew to their taste. If they make a mistake they can dump in the rose garden. I can ’t because it would be too costly at the volume I do, and also I don ’t have a rose garden. Secondly, large scale brewing is much more automated. I can control temperature to the nth degree from the beginning of the brew to the end. This helps a great deal in consistency of the beer.
How difficult was it to brew on your first large scale system? Did you have training from the brewing equipment manufacturer?
It was pretty easy for me because I was an assistant. This enabled me to sit back and soak it in. The hardest part was knowing the manifold system, where all the pipes go and where they are from. Some people might remember that The Mash House used to be Cross Creek Brewing Co..
Tell us about that transition and how it came about.
Cross Creek wasn’t being managed to its potential. A couple of investors and fellow beer lovers from Raleigh saw this and bought into the company. They changed the name, Atmosphere and food and I got to change the beer.
How many barrels of beer are you producing now? What are the percentages of the styles?
We are brewing about 125 bbl a month right now. Our top three sellers are Blonde, Ravishing Red, and Hoppy Hour IPA.
How do you design your recipes for your beers?
I created a program on my computer that has all the formulas you need for designing a beer. I just plug in the numbers in and it tells me if it suits the style I’m trying to brew.
How did you decide what to brew in Fayetteville?
Fayetteville is a diverse market. We have a large amount of military who have been all over the world. I want to provide for the experienced drinker as well as the novice.
What percentage of your beers are sold outside of the brewpub?
We sell about 50/ 50.
What was the feeling like to win that silver medal for your IPA at the Great American Beer Festival in Colorado?
It was great! Especially because it was the IPA which is one of the toughest categories at the GABF to win in.
Was your IPA modeled after any specific beer? If so which one?
Not really. I designed my IPA to blow people’s socks off. I didn’t think any mass produced IPA did that.
How do you feel about the future of the craft beer industry in North Carolina?
The craft beer industry is on the rise in NC. The problem we have here is some nit-picky laws that hold us back from the rest of the country, such as alcohol content. We have a 6% cap on alcohol on beer and very high state taxes. NC taxes are $.53177 a whole gallon. Places like Texas are only $.16/gallon. Until we change these laws it will be hard to catch up with the rest of the country. (Note: The 6% cap issue is close to being addressed in the state legislature as you read this!)
Thanks for your time, Zach. Think you could hook us up with a Mondo Mash Sampler?
My pleasure.
