You never know who you're going to meet while waiting for a bus. The young kid with the headphones and ironic tattoos who wants to talk about the ever changing American political scene. The older woman who shares pictures of her eight grandchildren, whether you asked to see them or not, or even the teenage girl who seems oblivious to the fact that everyone within a 20 foot radius can hear her phone conversation, and no one cares what Trisha told Brian about the so and so. But the likelihood of meeting a business partner? Unless it's Forest Gump asking you to join his shrimping boat crew, it seems your chances are pretty slim, but that's exactly what Dan York and Chris Wright did. The two met through a mutual friend at a bus stop, and now five years later they are the owners and brewers of Pikes Peak Brewing Company in Monument.
Dan and Chris came together over the shared love of beer. Chris has been homebrewing for fifteen years and Dan was looking to learn the art of beer making. One day, as Chris tells it, while brewing in his garage, "we just looked at each other and said 'let's do this thing, let's live our dream, create a business around our passion." And the idea to open a brewery was born.
They began looking for locations and quickly realized that their hometown of Monument was ripe for a small brewery of it's own, eliminating the need to drive either 20 minutes south to Colorado Springs, or 30 minutes north to Denver, to pull up a bar stool at an actual brewhouse. As Chris puts it; "A lot of people today say 'What? Monument's got it's own brewery?'" But Chris and Dan knew it would work, even in a small town like Monument (Population 4,903 in 2009). Both have traveled in Europe, and seen how each small town seems to have and sustain it's own microbrewery. "We knew this area wanted a place that they could call their own, somewhere to hang out, and be and bring neighbors and friends together and hand out over nice hand-crafted beer.", states Chris.
And they were right. On any given night the cozy tasting room is filled to the brim with loyal regulars and new patrons. On Saturdays they clear out a space for live, local musical artists. And maybe even a homebrew club meeting convening on the patio of their beer garden. You'll often find either Chris, Dan, or both helping out behind the bar, and willing to stop and chat with you about beer, sports, or even give you a tour of the brewhouse, visible through windows behind the bar.
Chris thinks one reason they have succeeded is a shift in American consumerism; "It's a return to eat and drink local, get as close to the source as possible and just know and appreciate everything that goes into making the product."
No doubt the passion both share for craft beer doesn't hurt either. "Chris was the one that got me impassioned about beer making. He's been making beer for years and years and years and it's awesome.", Dan gushes. As for how the brewing business has been treating them? Dan smiles; "Oh I think it's nothing short of fabulous. Monument is a very loyal community, and they've been very loyal to us. We've exceeded our expectations ten-fold."
So maybe next time you're waiting for your bus to roll up, you turn to the person on the bench next to you and ask: "Hey. Do you like beer?"
Dan and Chris came together over the shared love of beer. Chris has been homebrewing for fifteen years and Dan was looking to learn the art of beer making. One day, as Chris tells it, while brewing in his garage, "we just looked at each other and said 'let's do this thing, let's live our dream, create a business around our passion." And the idea to open a brewery was born.
Photo by Mike Laur © BDG2C
Chris Wright Owner and Brewer at Pikes Peak Brewing Company - "I'm very very passionate about beer, love everything about it."
They began looking for locations and quickly realized that their hometown of Monument was ripe for a small brewery of it's own, eliminating the need to drive either 20 minutes south to Colorado Springs, or 30 minutes north to Denver, to pull up a bar stool at an actual brewhouse. As Chris puts it; "A lot of people today say 'What? Monument's got it's own brewery?'" But Chris and Dan knew it would work, even in a small town like Monument (Population 4,903 in 2009). Both have traveled in Europe, and seen how each small town seems to have and sustain it's own microbrewery. "We knew this area wanted a place that they could call their own, somewhere to hang out, and be and bring neighbors and friends together and hand out over nice hand-crafted beer.", states Chris.
And they were right. On any given night the cozy tasting room is filled to the brim with loyal regulars and new patrons. On Saturdays they clear out a space for live, local musical artists. And maybe even a homebrew club meeting convening on the patio of their beer garden. You'll often find either Chris, Dan, or both helping out behind the bar, and willing to stop and chat with you about beer, sports, or even give you a tour of the brewhouse, visible through windows behind the bar.
Chris thinks one reason they have succeeded is a shift in American consumerism; "It's a return to eat and drink local, get as close to the source as possible and just know and appreciate everything that goes into making the product."
Photo by Mike Laur © BDG2C
Dan York Owner and Chief Beer Consumption Office at Pikes Peak Brewing Company - "We like brewing beer and we wanted to share that with our own community."
No doubt the passion both share for craft beer doesn't hurt either. "Chris was the one that got me impassioned about beer making. He's been making beer for years and years and years and it's awesome.", Dan gushes. As for how the brewing business has been treating them? Dan smiles; "Oh I think it's nothing short of fabulous. Monument is a very loyal community, and they've been very loyal to us. We've exceeded our expectations ten-fold."
So maybe next time you're waiting for your bus to roll up, you turn to the person on the bench next to you and ask: "Hey. Do you like beer?"
Photo by Mike Laur © BDG2C
A handcrafted beer ready to be imbibed at Pikes Peak Brewing Company.
