E-Malt.com News article: US, NE & MO: Nebraska Brewing Co. coming to Missouri within next month or so

As noted on STL Hops on March, 31, Nebraska Brewing Co. signed a deal with Lohr Distributing that will bring the brewery's beers to the St. Louis area as soon as they get state label approval - likely within the next month or so.

And what beers from the Papillion, Neb.,-based brewery will be coming here?

Lohr "placed an order for just about every draft beer in our lineup," brewery co-owner Kim Kavulak is quoted as saying. "We also have a barrel-aged reserve series that's bottled, and they plan to carry pretty much all of that, too, as we release it."

Nebraska Brewing Co. is a tiny operation - last year it brewed about 1,250 barrels - but has received a good amount of accolades since Paul and Kim Kavulak founded the brewery and pub in 2007.

NBC's beers picked up 19 medals at competitions last year - "more than all other Nebraska craft breweries combined," Kim Kavulak says. Among the medal-winners: Hop God, a Belgian-style India pale ale, and Mélange à Trois, a Belgian-style strong ale aged for six months in French oak barrels that previously held Chardonnay.

Despite its small production, NBC is currently distributed to 10 states; Missouri will be the 11th.

"When we look to new markets, we look for areas with a good appreciation and appetite for craft beer," Kavulak says. "St. Louis might be better known for a macro brand that we're all familiar with, but Schlafly's there, other craft breweries are moving in there, and it's a market where we just see a lot of growth potential."


01 April, 2011