USA, IL: Wake Brewing opening its doors in Rock Island on November 4

Rock Island’s craft-beer scene is hopping, with another home-grown producer, Wake Brewing, opening Saturday, November 4 at 2529 5th Ave., in the former Stecker Graphics building, Quad-Cities Online reported on November 1.

"Portland, Oregon, has 138 breweries, and they're all doing just fine. We've had three breweries for 20 years. We could easily have 10 more," Wake co-owner Jason Parris said. "I think it's going to replace your average bar."

Mr. Parris, 42, has worked at Rock Island Brewing Company for 10 years, booking acts and organizing beer events, like the three-year River's Edge Homebrew Festiv-Ale.

Justen Parris, 40, is an engineer at the Exelon nuclear power plant in Cordova, Illinois. They played in the band Driver of the Year together, Justen on drums and Jason keyboards/vocals.

The brothers have been making their own brews for about 10 years.

"There's no reason why your taste buds won't gravitate to a better beer," Jason said. "Why do you want a Bud Light when you could have a Guinness? Why do you want a Guinness when you could have a Surly IPA?

"Coming from a music background, being into art and film, we try to push our limits to what we like. When we tried our first craft take on beer, all of a sudden we found this whole other world," he said. "Back in the '90s it was a way smaller demographic than it is now. Now, it's still progressing."

"It was playing in bands where I got my first taste, getting a hold of something you normally don't see," Justen said of hand-crafted brews. "That turned me onto seeking out things locally. I didn't really think of Blue Cat at first. I then realized what these places were, and enjoying what they had. It gave me a definite appreciation for all kinds of craft."

Davenport's Front Street Brewery and Rock Island's Blue Cat Brew Pub have been operating more than 20 years, with Moline's Bent River Brewing opening in 1997. In the past 10 years:

Great River Brewery, 332 E. 2nd St., Davenport, opened in 2009.

Radicle Effect Brewerks, 1340 31st St., Rock Island, the Q-C's first nanobrewery, opened in 2012 as Against the Grain.

Bent River, 512 24th St., Rock Island, opened its brewery, bar, special events room and distribution center in 2012.

Rebellion Brew Haus, 1529 3rd Ave. A, Moline, opened in 2016.

Baked Beer & Bread Co., 1113 Mound St., Village of East Davenport, opened last spring.

"Seeing the evolution growing gave us more confidence in what we're doing," said Justen, who's been president of the homebrew club MUGZ (Mississippi Unquenchable Grail Zymurgists).

He said Wake will have a continual rotation of beers, with six to eight styles on tap at a time, including pale ale and a porter or stout. "We want to keep it fresh, as fast as we can brew them and people drink them."

He'll be head brewer, and they'll both keep their full-time jobs.

"We're not new to working together," Jason said. "We've been best friends our whole life and in bands our life. We know what makes each other tick."

Wake has been providing beers for the "Cinema at the Figge" independent film series since it launched in fall 2016. "They flexed their creative muscle. It's not just beer; we have this amazing beer that's tailored to the event," film organizer Josh Ford said.

"Wake" has a double meaning, alluding to special occasions and the Mississippi River, Jason said, crediting former building owner Bob Stecker, the city, Brian Hollenback, of Rock Island Economic GROWTH, and Bridge Investment for vital help.

Bridge Investment Community Development Corp. is a nonprofit that offers financial programs and services to help disadvantaged communities.

"They received gap funding, in addition to what conventional banks would provide," Erik Reader, executive director of the Rock Island Downtown Partnership, said. "The space looks great; it's one of the highest traffic counts in the city."

Wake's back room — which has a 20-foot ceiling — houses the brewing tanks. And the owners' father built the shiny bar from reclaimed barn wood and did all the woodwork.

They have other domestic beer options, wine and liquor, and plan to have food trucks. Wake hours will be 4 p.m. to midnight Tuesday through Friday, noon to midnight Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.

02 November, 2017