Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Jones.
Hi Chris, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
The idea to open South Georgia’s first brewery was born from a conversation on a stag party about what we would do if we won the lottery. A close friend of ours exclaimed he would buy a brewery and hire all of his friends. We took that sentiment to heart and within two months had ordered our first beer brewing kit, tossing name ideas around and learning everything we could about beer. Fast forward five years, endless hours writing business plans, countless conversations with potential investors, and a very unique public-private partnership between us and local government and non-profit organizations, we opened our doors officially on Jan 21, 2019.
Georgia Beer Co. is now a full-scale production brewery with beer distributed all over the Peach State. We brew Georgia-Grown products in a 7,000 square foot facility built in the early 1900s to be the City of Valdosta’s water utilities building. On-site are the remnants of the original well that provided water for the residents of Valdosta. The City deeded the building to the local economic development authority, who partnered with Georgia Beer Co. on a long-term lease to own arrangement, injecting over 3/4 of a million dollars into re-establishing the waterworks building as a prominent feature of the community while also enhancing downtown quality of life and tourism draw.
Today Georgia Beer Co. distributes eight different beers in cans and kegs and has brewed over 85 different beers for the patrons of its on-site taproom, which is open seven days a week and features rotating food trucks, live music performances, and a variety of festivals, special events and fundraisers. Georgia Beer Co. prides itself on using Georgia Grown products, including peanuts, blueberries, peaches, pecans, watermelon, and honey.
We strive to maintain extremely high standards of quality and freshness in our products. Several of our beers have won regional and national awards, including a Gold Medal in the U.S. Beer Open Championship for our De-Stress Express Coffee Milk Stout, Best Beer in the Suwanee Beer Festival for Pavilion Peanut Butter Porter, and multiple medals in the CanCan Awards – a competition limited to canned beer only.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The most difficult aspects of opening our brewery were financing and renovations of a 100-year-old brewery. Breweries are very expensive enterprises to start from scratch. Neither of our Founders particularly had much money, either for the renovation of our facility of the purchase of our equipment. It took over two years to identify the right investors and another year to secure the total startup capital. Renovations of our facility also presented unique challenges. The building had been vacant for decades, had no existing blueprints, and lacked lights, water, sewage; even floors. It took every part of an entire year to finish the extensive renovations and retrofitting on our brewery.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are most proud of our high-quality beer. Every ounce that we can or keg is crafted with love and respect from our production professionals. Our best-selling brands are Field Party (Blonde Ale) and Southern Isles (Tropical IPA). We also have a unique iteration of Field Party made with blueberries that is perfect for a hot summer day called Blueberry Field Party. In addition to our year-round offerings, we release quarterly seasonal beers such as St. Helen’s Oktoberfest and Pavilion Peanut Butter Porter. We are very proud to be Georgia’s southernmost brewery, located in Valdosta – the seat of Lowndes County, home of Valdosta State University and Moody Air Force Base.
What does success mean to you?
To me, success is the process of identifying an objective, working toward it, and with determination and hard work, accomplishing your goal. To us, it is important to be successful and accomplish our goals without compromising our morals, all while giving back to our community and making our corner of the world a better place to live.
Contact Info:
- Email: taproom@georgiabeerco.com
- Website: www.georgiabeerco.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/georgiabeerco
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/georgiabeerco
- Twitter: twitter.com/georgiabeerco
Image Credits
Pat Walker and Wes Sewell
