Mustang Brewing Co.: Part 2
Here’s part two of my conversation with Oklahoma City’s Tim Schoelen of the Mustang Brewing Co. In case you missed the first part, Tim plans to unveil a new line of beers in the metro area this year.
The Thirsty Beagle: Do you have a location secured for the brewery? Any idea about a specific opening date?
Tim Schoelen: Our home office will be in Mustang. Rather than building one, large brewery, we plan to have a central business office and smaller production facilities throughout the OKC metro. Mustang Golden Ale will be available in kegs late Spring. We debated about whether or not to introduce bottles first. Kegs felt like the right thing to do to make sure we are in the hands of the die-hard beer fans in Oklahoma City. Those are the folks that are going to tell us whether we have a beer that’s drinkable. Bottles and/or cans will hit the market in 2010.
TTB: Give me a sense of the scope of this operation: Are we talking a mom-and-pop deal, or a significantly larger commercial enterprise?
TS: We’ve tried to be careful so far in calling our operation a Brewing Company, rather than a Brewery, but the two terms are often interchanged. All of my partners have solid business backgrounds. Our goal is to incrementally build the business and establish a strong, regional presence. We hope to be the Shiner or Pete’s Wicked of Oklahoma. We understand, though, that you need to crawl before you can walk. To meet demand, some of our beers will be brewed here in our own facilities, while others will need to be produced under partnerships with other breweries.
TTB: Tell me a little bit about your flagship beer, Mustang Golden Ale. What other beers/types of beer should we be expecting?
TS: Our research showed that over 70% of the beers sold in Oklahoma City are lighter-styled beers. That’s what we wanted in our flagship beer. Mustang Golden Ale is one of the easiest drinking beers I have ever tasted. My great grandfather owned a saloon in Kansas City. He called this kind of beer a picnic beer – something you can drink all day while hanging out with friends. It’s not a light beer by any means, but it’s not so heavy that you feel full after drinking two or three. It’s flavorful, but not too hoppy. We are extremely pleased with how it turned out. Our early tasters gave us rave reviews. In addition to Mustang Golden Ale, we plan to brew two seasonal beers a year. One will be something lighter for the Spring and Summer – maybe my Dad’s Belgian Wit recipe – and the other will be something heavier for the colder months. I’ve always been partial to Scottish Ales in the winter time. We’ll have to see what people request. We want to brew something OKC will be proud to call their own. If there are enough people who want it, we’ll brew it. Beer will be our mainstay, but we may move into ciders, lemonades or teas, as well.
So there you have round two of our conversation. Check back for the third and final installment.
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