USA, KS & OH: Tallgrass Brewing Co. returning to Ohio

Tallgrass Brewing Co. is returning to Ohio, Ohio.com reported on June 14.

The Manhattan, Kansas, brewery — which makes brands such as Buffalo Sweat, Songbird Saison and 8-Bit Pale Ale — hopes to start selling its beers here by late summer.

“Ohio is a great craft beer market,” founder Jeff Gill said when asked why Tallgrass is coming to the Buckeye State. The Kansas brewery was in Ohio previously but had pulled out several years ago to focus on its home market.

Gill isn’t sure yet specifically which brands will be available here and the brewery is negotiating with a distributor.

Tallgrass has a core lineup that includes the beers mentioned before. It also offers seasonals and a special “Explorer Series” that includes beers such as Raspberry Jam and Key Lime Pie.
It sells its beer in four-packs of 16-ounce cans. The brewery also plans to have a variety pack available.

Buffalo Sweat, an oatmeal cream stout, is the brewery’s best seller and continues to grow in popularity, Gill said. The Vanilla Bean Buffalo Sweat, part of the seasonal lineup, won a bronze medal at this year’s World Beer Cup.

Tallgrass, a regional brewery that expects to produce about 24,000 barrels this year, started in 2007. Gill, who was a geologist before launching the brewery, has learned several valuable lessons over the last nine years.

“I’ve learned that beer quality trumps every other thing,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how cute your marketing is or anything like that. And making a world-class beer is really hard. It takes a lot of effort.”

20 June, 2016