Opening this coming Saturday August 29, owner and head brewer James Hansen is hoping Brew Monkey Beer will become a destination within San Antonio. The California native started his brewing career cleaning tanks at Devil’s Canyon Brewing in San Carlos, California, and would eventually go on to handle production procurement and brewing for Gordon Biersch Brewing Company’s production facility.
Hansen met his wife, a San Antonio native, in San Jose, California and after many trips to visit her family, fell in love with the Alamo City. Soon after relocating, Hansen came up with his plan for Brew Monkey Beer, a name derived from a system he used to work on that was described as being so easy a monkey could use it. Hansen will take his decade-plus industry experience and put it to use on a 15-barrel ABS Systems brewhouse located at 11935 Starcrest Dr. on the Alamo City’s Northside, across from the North East Independent School District’s Blossom Athletic Center.
Hansen will start with five core beers: ‘Summer Lightning’, a honey blonde ale; ‘Home Town’, a lager in the California Common style; ‘Hot Wells’, a German-Style Hefeweizen; ‘Meet In The Middle’, a West Coast inspired IPA; and ‘A Man and His Dog’, an Irish stout, along with several small batch seasonal offerings. Hansen doesn’t plan to keep all the brewing knowledge to himself though— he plans to eventually create multiple brewing educational programs for homebrewers, and those just looking to learn more about the malted beverage they love.
Pre-orders for 32oz crowlers of Summer Lightning, Home Town, Hot Wells, and Meet in the Middle, will begin on Wednesday the -August 26th, though we’ll all have to wait a little longer for to-go options of A Man And His Dog, as that one is on nitro only at this time.
Saturday’s opening will include State mandated 50 percent taproom occupancy, with plenty of outside seating. Brew Monkey will have onsite food provided by Benjies Much Truck, offering up burgers, sandwiches, and a variety of other comfort foods.
Though Brew Monkey will be available to-go only for a couple of months, plans are in the works to distribute cans and kegs to retail outlets by late fall.
Photo courtesy of Brew Monkey Beer