USA, MD: Tall Tales Brewery opens in Parsonsburg

When Jason Hearn opened up Blue Heron Landscape and Design in 1998, he had no intention of starting a brewery, delmarvanow.com reported on November, 3.

“Initially we had the landscaping company, but when the economy crashed, we went from 50 employees down to 15. We were no longer in need of our building and we were approached by a partner who wanted to open up a brewery. It started there,” Hearn said.

The process to full scale production has taken over two-and-a-half years to perfect.

“There are so many little details with craft beer,” Hearn said. “Part of the reason we took so long to open is to make sure we have everything fine tuned.”

A large part of that process, according to Hearn, was drafting the perfect team, which includes two full-time brewers, a Master Brewer and a chemistry student from Salisbury University, who are constantly tweaking the recipes.

“The brewers are able to experiment with the different hops and grains, and are able to achieve all kinds of different flavors,” Hearn said.

Though its main line beers won’t be available commercially outside of the brewery until the beginning of next year, the brewery has already pulled together the beer-related folk lore surrounding the titles of its beverages for inventive labelling and marketing. It markets its range of rich flavors with American tall tales, such as “Calamity Jane” blonde ale, “Buffalo Bill” American brown ale and Hearn’s current favorite, the “John Henry” strong stout.

While Tall Tales is currently only open from 3-8 p.m. on weekends, Tall Tales Brewery plans to be open every day by early December, offering an array of brews and snacks for all palates. This spring it intends to debut its completed facility, featuring a large outdoor area where patrons can watch their beer brew and enjoy Tall Tale’s spacious natural accommodations.

09 November, 2012