Meet The Latest Wave Of Chicago Homebrewers Turning Pro

By Ben Kramer in Food on Mar 4, 2015 8:00PM

Photo via Vice District Brewing. Quintin Cole on the left. Curtis Tavers II on the right.

I don’t like starting with a quote, but Bob Marley’s “Don’t bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality” is appropriate for this post. Following their dreams, seven Chicago homebrewers have left their basements and garages for the professional world of brewing.

These people account for three separate breweries. Vice District Brewing by Quintin Cole and Curtis Tarver II, Brewery Zatkoff by Matthew Zatkoff. Though each brewery came together in different ways (Rude Hippo is the combination of two former breweries and Brewery Zatkoff is still in development) all three went through a similar process in their transformation from homebrewers to brewery owners.

To start, all agreed having a partner(s) is the best way to go and extremely beneficial. Rude Hippo's Marilee Rutherford says, “When you multiply the talent pool you start to find puzzle pieces that make sense in different places and help things run smoothly.”

Vice District's Quintin Cole echoed her sentiment, adding, “I encourage anyone who’s going to business...be truly honest with yourself in what your strengths are...and find help on what you’re not good at.”

All sought advice from professional brewers in the craft beer community, which proved invaluable. They’ve been there and done that. Sometimes it’s even good to have them on your team. Zatkoff has an experienced group behind him, while Vice’s first brewmaster was Charlie Davis. Formerly of Finch’s Beer Co., Davis was instrumental in helping Cole and Tarver understand the new, professional equipment they were working with.

Knowing how to scale to the right size is also important. “I think it’s important to start at the right size,” says Zatkoff. “Not too big, not too small.” The fear in starting too big is if you don’t sell enough beer you won’t make payments. Vice has their own space, which caters to them nicely, and Zatkoff is in the process of landing a location. Of course, finding a spot and then brewing isn’t the only way to go.

Via Cory Dewald Photography. Karl and Marilee Rutherford on the left. Madea and Ian Denson on the right.

Rude Hippo currently rents space from Slapshot Brewing and has from 18th Street Brewery in the past. This enables them to brew while looking for a permanent location, and has also enabled them to break into the market. Through this setup, they’ve been able to keg and distribute their beer to establishments such as Compass Bar and Links Taproom.

With everything each brewer learned during their transition from homebrewer to professional, the most important was understanding they were starting a business. Brewing is still their passion, but as Marilee puts it, “If you can’t make money then you can’t do what you love.” It’s hard work, sleep is lost, funding and budgeting must be regarded, but for them it’s been worth it. They’re living the dream, brewing for a better tomorrow.