By Rose Laudicina
Staff Writer
It takes a village to raise a child. Or in Erik Lars Myers’ case, it takes a community to raise a brewery.
Myers is the founder of Mystery Brewing Company in Hillsborough, and earlier this month he became the recipient of a loan from the Orange County Small Business Loan Program.
The program is a county-funded revolving loan fund created to support development of small businesses with gross revenues of less than $3 million. A volunteer board of directors comprised of local business owners, bankers and county staff reviewed Myers’ application and chose him as the fifth loan recipient in program history.
This isn’t the first time Mystery Brewing Company has been on the receiving end of massive community support. Start-up capital for the brewery was received from donations via the website Kickstarter.
Kickstarter is a micro-financing website where fund-seekers post ideas and set a deadline to raise money needed to complete their vision. If the money requested isn’t raised by the deadline, the money returns to donors.
Myers’ idea was to start an artisan craft brewery that, rather than having a flagship brew, rotates beer options seasonally.
“If I look at my personal drinking preferences, I definitely don’t drink the same beer all the time, so it seems stupid for me to make the same beer all the time,†Myers said.
“The beer market is such right now that people are not brand drinkers, they’re portfolio drinkers and want to try something new, and I’m happy to give them something new.â€
Myers said that when most people hear his brewery is based on seasonal beers available for a three-to-four-month period, they think it’s either brilliant or insane.
Luckily for Myers, those who found his idea on Kickstarter thought it was brilliant, and he soon reached his goal of raising $40,000.
“It was a really good way to get people invested in the brewery,†he said. “Those people hold a real strong place in my heart.â€
To give back to those who gave to him, all Kickstarter donors will be honored in the Mystery Brewing Company taproom with their names on a permanent plaque.
Thanks, Mom
While Kickstarter contributors will have their plaque, Myers should consider erecting another one thanking his mom.
Twelve years ago, his mother gave him a small gift that snowballed into the big idea of starting his own craft brewery: a home-brewing kit.
“I made some really terrible beer,†Myers said of his first brewing attempts. “It was awful, and I really like beer, so it was disappointing.â€
He said it took him five or six years of brewing before he made anything decent.
While those first attempts may not have been the best – and some of his recent trials, such as a garlic-flavored beer, might also be considered less than terrific – Myers insists that he knows what flavors work and wouldn’t make anything he wouldn’t want to drink.
For example, the brewery’s Langhorne rye wit, named after Mark Twain, is made from rye, hibiscus, rose hips and blood orange peel.
“I make what I like,†he said.
In addition to not having a flagship beer, Mystery Brewing Company won’t have six packs; it will sell its beer in kegs and growlers only.
“I tell restaurants to feel free to order a mystery tap at all times,†Myers said. “The beer might change but the quality won’t.â€
Continued support
The brewery’s opening date has tentatively been set for Feb. 29. For those who can’t wait until 2012 to check it out, Mystery Brewing Company, located off Dimmocks Mill Road, is hosting a New Year’s Eve party, allowing the curious and beer-centric to ring in the new year with all the necessities of any great New Year’s Eve celebration: food, music and beer.
While Myers is thankful for the monetary support his venture has received, he’s also thankful for the generous helping of good faith from the community.
Although he initially chose Hillsborough for its proximity to multiple major highways, which allows for easy distribution, the exuberance displayed by townspeople for his little brewery proved he chose the right location.
“It is absolutely unbelievable how many people I have met in this town that are excited to have a brewery in town,†Myers said.
“They’ve done a lot to help us get off the ground,†he added. “They’ve been a very supportive and very warm community.â€