E-Malt.com News article: USA, MI: Third Monk Brewing Company to open in South Lyon

If everything goes as planned, Third Monk Brewing Company will open in South Lyon this spring. Owners Darlene Dunlop and Jeff Robinson cleared their first hurdle last month by getting approval from South Lyon City Council, Hometownlife.com reported on February 4.

Robinson said he isn’t walking too far away from his past job as a record producer and recording engineer. “The same care taken creating those hits after countless hours in the studio will be brought to focus on hand-crafting beer for the South Lyon community,” said Robinson, who grew up in Plymouth, moved to Los Angeles and now lives in Salem. He also plans to host local entertainment on weekends focusing on singer-song writers, like South Lyon native Brion Riborn.

They chose South Lyon “for its small-town community and foot traffic,” he said. The target customers are age 25-50 and “anyone who is seeking flavor in their beer,” said Robinson.

“The idea is to help grow the community,” he said. “We look forward to helping connect the dots in the area from business to business.”

The microbrewery will focus on liquid refreshments, and customers will be able to carry-in food from nearby restaurants. Third Monk Brewing Company also plans to deliver direct-to-doorsteps for those 21 and older.

Along with making music and beer, Robinson likes to coin his own words, like brewconomy, which references the microbrewery industry.

“With the new expanding brewconomy in Michigan, we will welcome travelers from across the state to try our locally-crafted beers,” he said. “Beer lovers and people not familiar with craft beer can look forward to the McHattie’s Rye Ale, Longfellow Brown Ale, Liberty Street Porter, Lucious Lyon Maple Ale, Full Kilt Scottish Ale and many others.”

The next hurdles they need to clear are getting a microbrewers license from the Michigan Liquor Control Commission and final federal approval from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives.

Robinison and Dunlop plan to start small by producing 138 to 340 barrels of beer annually. The estimated annual gross income range for the early stages of this operation will be around $85,000 and potentially grow to $200,000, according to an outline of intended goals the company gave to city council.

The business will employ three people initially and hire as many as 12 people in the future. They also hope to have sidewalk tables and a rear patio area.

Three Monks will join Witch’s Hat Brewery providing specialty beer lovers their favorite drinks. The owners of Witch’s Hat Brewery recently announced that their first two years in town were so successful they’re moving to the building near downtown, which is more than four times the size of their current spot. Robinson said he sees the two microbrewers as “working together, very much so. There’s a huge range of beer to be made.

“Any small town should be able to have several of these,” Robinson said. “It almost becomes like a regional beer. Certainly we hope to produce beer as good as Witch’s Hat, but will do so in a different fashion through bottle conditioning all beer on premises. These will be naturally carbonated beverages.”


05 February, 2014