E-Malt.com News article: USA, GA: Abide Brewing Company accepted into Newman’s community very gracefully

Newnan’s first brewery, Abide Brewing Company, opened for business a little more than a month ago and seems to have been accepted into the community gracefully. The brewery, located on Werz International Blvd., has offered several successful tours and tastings since its grand opening in February, Newman Times-Herald reported on March 15.

“It went better than expected,” said Evan Scanlan, one of the brewery’s founders. “We hoped it would sell, but we didn’t know it would sell out.”

Scanlan is one of three founders of Abide. He and two friends, Philip Leonard and Matt Kapusta, brewed as a hobby and always dreamed of taking their craft to a professional level. When the dream became a reality earlier this year, the demand and the response were bigger than the three men had anticipated.

Scanlan said the brewery was equipped with 18 kegs of beer for its first weekend in business, and in the span of three days, every keg was sold. This was the positive reception the men had hoped for. Abide Brewery moved quickly into marketing its craft beers to beer sold in local restaurants and bars. Rednexican was one of the first Newnan eateries to carry Abide beers. According to Scanlan, the popular local restaurant sold out of the new beer within two hours.

Newnan’s Ace Beer Growlers also experienced a high demand for Abide’s beer and sold out within six hours.

The three men are overjoyed to serve in Coweta County and are grateful for the community support.

“We want to become the local brewer,” Leonard said.

“We want to bring good beer, good cheer, and good jobs to Newnan,” added Kapusta.

In addition to the local restaurants and businesses serving the beer, Abide also utilizes the local company, LaGrange Grocery Company, to distribute its beer.

“We are excited to finally have a brewery in our service area. The response from our retailers has been tremendous,” said Al Zachary of LaGrange Grocery Company. “I think people are excited to have a beer brewed here.”

“Without [LaGrange Grocery], we don’t know where we’d be,” added Leonard. “They helped us keep our beer in Coweta County.”

The brewers plan to continue brewing Local Pale Ale because it is still in demand, but they also have a seasonal brew, Three Rivers Ale.

Abide Brewing plans to create other brews with the help of input from those who attend its beer tastings and tours. On most Saturdays, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., those ages 21 and older are invited to the brewery for both tastings and tours. Souvenir glasses are offered for $10, and each participant will receive a wristband allowing up to six pours, or 32 ounces or craft beers.

During the tastings, Abide will offer 6 to 9 different beers for participants to sample, most of which are brews the company is currently working on.

“We want them to try beer that they can’t get in public,” said Scanlan. “It’s our way of giving people our takes on their favorite styles.”

Tours are offered every hour, and participants can enjoy an informative lecture on the brewing process.


18 March, 2015