Five Questions With… New Belgium Brewing
Here’s the latest installment in my Five Questions With… series. Today I bring you an interview with Bryan Simpson, media relations director for New Belgium Brewing in Fort Collins, Colo.
1. The Thirsty Beagle: First off, not everyone in Oklahoma has the chance to drink New Belgium beers, since the beer is not shipped here. My understanding is that the beers must remain cold, and since full-strength beer in Oklahoma liquor stores cannot be cold, thus the lack of New Belgium in this state. Is that a correct understanding of the situation?
Bryan Simpson: That … is accurate. It’s also not a traditional three-tier system but I can’t comment too much on OK laws for fear of not being 100 percent accurate. Regardless, it would be a tricky negotiation and we have no current 
plans for that.
2. TTB: Whether they see it at the liquor store or not, most people around here are familiar with Fat Tire. Is that your most popular beer? What other beers are doing well for you guys?
B.S.: Fat Tire is definitely keeping the lights on but we find our seasonal release program does very well in many markets. That consists of four beers rotated throughout the year. Craft drinkers are a curios lot and they crave continued innovation so that’s a great place for us to play around. Beers like Skinny Dip (summer), Hoptober (fall), and Frambozen Raspberry Brown Ale and 2 Below (winter) exemplify the category. Beyond that, Mothership Wit (organic wheat beer) and 1554 Enlightened Black Ale have strong followings.
3. TTB: I’ve written in my blog about New Belgium — the bicycles, the employee-first attitude, the environmentalism; is working there really a dream job for someone in the beer industry?
B.S.: I’d have to say it definitely is a dream job. I’ve been here 12 years and had no intention of staying longer than my first summer throwing boxes. We are an employee-owned company that practices open book management so co-workers are expected to be engaged in the business of running the business on a daily basis. It’s a creative, supportive environment where you are encouraged to take risks and bring your best self every day. Those are big benefits to me. There’s also a 12-pack a week and a shift beer and a free cruiser bike at one year’s employment and an all expenses paid trip to Belgium at five years. So, it’s like no other business culture I’ve ever encountered.
4. TTB: I saw a link on your Web site for 2 Below Winter Ale; nothing goes with Christmastime like beer, I think. What other seasonal beers can you recommend?
B.S.: Our other winter beer, Frambozen, is a raspberry brown ale that goes great with holiday meals like turkey, dark meats, etc. Our La Folieis a very rare beer – aged three years in oak barrels. This one is a sour brown ale so the flavor is far down the road toward a green apple kind of sour. It’s a beautiful beer but challenging if you don’t know much about it. This is part of our Lips of Faith program – a series of beers that really push the envelope using fruit, spices, esoteric yeast strains and a lot of creative juju.
5. TTB: We see more and more where the mega-breweries are introducing craft-style beers nowadays, or even spinning off entire craft-style breweries. Is this really just a reaction to the success of brewers like New Belgium?
B.S.: You look at the numbers and craft beers are growing an audience of curious and highly savvy fans. It’s not a surprise that people want to tap into that. At the end of the day, knowledge begets curiosity and craft drinkers will sample around and generally find a few brands the remain loyal to. Most folks know the difference.
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Comments
New Belguim crafts some good beers.
Fat Tire is an excellent pale ale and their seasonal brews are always good.
But, by far, the best microbrewery out of Colorado is Boulder Beer.
This, of course, is just the humble opinion of a home brewer.
Nick,
Thanks for perpetuating a myth.
I spoke with a representative from the brewery in 2003. I asked the same opening question, assuming that “the beers must remain cold.” The answer I got basically stated that New Belgium doesn’t see a potential market in OK. Go to Rob’s World of Beers in Wichita, and witness twelve packs of Fat Tire case stacked on the floor, not in the cooler. I agree it is silly that New Belgium beers are not sold in OK, since they are sold in every surrounding state. But, the brewery will not sell enough product in the state to justify shipping it here. If Fat Tire or Two Below or Sunshine Wheat or Blue Paddle were made available at your local package store, how much would YOU buy? And how often? Sad as it may be, most people in OK buy A-B products. It is refreshing to see a surge in craft breweries in the state (ie. Marshall, Coop). But until breweries like Stone or Dog Fish Head or New Belgium see potential for significant sales in OK, THEY WILL NOT SHIP HERE.
Hey Rob – have you ever let a case of Fat Tire get to room temperature, then re-chill it and try to drink it? It’s skunky and gross.
As high-class as ‘Rob’s World of Beers’ sounds, maybe they don’t know what the heck they’re doing…
Thanks for the interview. So what will it take to get those in the methane dome to move on some real legislation in this state to allow for more modern or even late 20th century laws governing sales of alcohol?? We have 2 distributors that pretty much control everything even the lobby. We try and promote Oklahoma Wine yet we hand strap them to only distributing in their own trucks.
I hope one day we see real laws in this state that promote commerce and the local economy.