USA, WI: Component Brewing eyeing mid-June opening in Milwaukee

Jonathan Kowalske hasn't exactly had a lot of time to consider what will be the first brew served by his Component Brewing. It's been maybe a month, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on May 25.

Kowalske plans to open Component Brewing on Milwaukee's south side in mid-June with his cousins, Steve and D.J. Kowalske, at 2018 S. 1st St., in the Lincoln Warehouse brewery and taproom recently vacated by Eagle Park Brewing.

In April, Eagle Park opened a brewery and restaurant at 823 E. Hamilton St., the spot previously used by Like Minds Brewing, which expected to move to Bay View but disbanded.

It's like an old-school math problem, and the correct answer is turnkey building.

Jonathan Kowalske, the longtime home brewer in the family, will open Component Brewing with a Pilsner.

"It's something we've been working on for a little while, and I think we have our process down," he said.

Pilsners, by nature, have to be error-free. Plus, it's a practical choice.

"Everybody brings their friend who says, 'What do you have that tastes like Miller Lite?'"

Jonathan wants to brew lagers, because "clean pale lagers are not that well represented in the Milwaukee beer scene."

He also plans a highly hopped India Pale Lager and an Extra Special Bitter. Down the line, there could be a kettle-soured IPA. The small, two-barrel system and the 10 lines that run to the taproom mean customers can expect a variety of beers, like the experimental Porter Jonathan brought from home for the interview. It's a Porter that tastes of hearty roast flavor but isn't heavy.

"Once a month, you're probably going to have something different," Jonathan said.

The cousins have been brewing together for a few years — brothers Steve, an electrician, and D.J., who is in finance, are learning from Jonathan, and all three have talked about starting a brewery.

They all had gone to Eagle Park, especially Jonathan.

"I really liked what they were doing here. It showed me it can be done without big investors and loans," he said.

"When the space became open, this get-up was too good to pass up," D.J. added.

They plan some changes to the taproom. They'll lighten the walls and add a German beer hall vibe to the room with two or three long tables and chairs and string lights.

"We wanted an area where people could sit and play games," Jonathan said. He and D.J. have five children between them and plan an area that would keep kids busy.

As patrons did with Eagle Park, you have to buzz in to get to the second-floor taproom. They plan a sign outside. Then maybe a trail for people to follow like they use in hospitals — a stenciled foot path to lead people to the taproom.

Once they decided on the space, they needed a name, "and every good name was taken," D.J. said. Inspiration struck when they remembered Jonathan talking about his recipes and referring to the stages of brewing as components.

And there's one more way the name works.

"We want to become a component of the community," Jonathan said.

28 May, 2018