So You Want to Start a Brewery?: The Lagunitas Story

by Tony Magee

Overview

In 1993, Tony Magee, who had foundered at every job he’d ever had, decided to become the founder of a brewery. So You Want to Start a Brewery? is the thrilling first-person account of his gut-wrenching challenges and unexpected successes.

Based in Petaluma, California, the Lagunitas Brewing Company makes craft beer that is simple and flavorful and defies categorization. The same could be said for this book. Equal parts memoir, narrative, and business story—with liberal dashes of pop culture and local color—this honest yet hilarious account of a one-of-a-kind, made-in-America journey just happens to culminate with the success of one of the nation’s most popular craft beer brands. In twenty years, Lagunitas has grown from a shoestring operation to be the fifth largest—and the fastest growing—craft brewer in the United States.
 
First published in a limited edition two years ago by a tiny California press, So You Want to Start a Brewery? has here been revised and updated to include Lagunitas’s establishment of a new brewery in Chicago, set to open in 2014. So You Want to Start a Brewery? is unglamorous and full of entertaining digressions, but it’s never afraid to mess with the nuts and bolts. This is a must-read for all who have considered starting their own business—or have sweated blood working to get one on its feet. Told in the vibrant voice of Tony Magee—the man closest to the process—this blow-by-blow chronicle will introduce beer drinkers and entrepreneurs to the reality of starting a craft brewery from the ground up.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781556525629
Publisher:	Chicago Review Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	10/01/2014
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Tony Magee is the founder and CEO of the Lagunitas Brewing Company.

Table of Contents

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Introduction - The Days Before the First Days 1

1 The First Days: Don't Sweat the Small Stuff 11

2 The Tyranny of Fast Growth: What Doesn't kill You Makes You Stronger 23

3 But What Kind of Beer…?: Building a Beer in Make-or-Break Times 31

4 Creative Funding: Robbing Peter to Pay Paul 37

5 Dramas and Debacles: Good Judgment Born from Bad Experience 45

6 Tried and Tested: The Art of Staying Ahead of the Game 57

7 The Birth of a Brand: A Rose By Any Other Name… 65

8 The Arrival of Our IPA: The Beer That Was Destined to Become Our Destiny 73

9 Flavors and Labels: How a Rogue Brand was Established 81

10 Down with dogma: Feeling Around for the Edges 97

11 The Experimental Recipes: You Win Some. You Lase Some 107

12 The Brewery: The Story of the Place Itself 115

13 Moving to Petaluma: Friends and Frenemies and Petty Tyrants 123

14 Moving Again: Why a Brewery is Like a Rubik's Cube 135

15 A Word About brewers: The Ghosts in the Machines 151

16 The St. Patrick's Day Massacre: A.k.a. The Undercover Shutdown Investigation 159

17 The Beer Sanctuary: And Finally, A Bona Fide Place to Drink the Beer 171

18 Current Life on Planet Lagunitas: Still Doing Our Best to Keep It Real 177

Afterword-Thoughts on Thinking 187

Epilogue 195

Index 213

Editorial Reviews

If you really want to understand what makes craft brewing fundamentally different and more recklessly thrilling than its plodding industrial counterparts, it's hard to find a better spirit guide than Tony Magee. This is not a how-to business book, but a stream-of-consciousness sermon on one man’s ongoing trip into the unknown as he creates and continues to shape the destiny of one of the more iconic craft beer brands anywhere. There's no glib advice here. Tony insists that we all find our own unique way to success, but it sure is enlightening being along with him for the ride.” —Randy Mosher, author of Tasting Beer

“Documents the seemingly simple but uniquely savvy thinking Magee used to turn a six-barrel brewhouse into a top craft brewer. Instructive and inspiring for entrepreneurs of all stripes.” —Ray Daniels, director, Cicerone Certification Program, and author of Designing Great Beers

“A must read for aspiring brewers, beer aficionados, and entrepreneurs alike. This is a tale of perseverance and patience; creativity and wisdom; innovation and insight; and shared through the lens of an unlikely beer genius who cultivates his brand through a symphonic approach.” —Brett Joyce, president, Rogue Ales

“Like the beer of the brewery he founded, Tony Magee’s voice is original and provocative. Read this book.” —Tom Acitelli, author of The Audacity of Hops 

“All brewers think they can write, but Tony brings his unique and entertaining beer story to life in such a funny, breezy, yet thoughtful way that reading it feels like you’re having one of his IPA’s with Hemingway and Gore Vidal in a Key West bar. I read it cover to cover in one sitting and found myself laughing out loud throughout.” —Harry Schuhmacher, publisher, Beer Business Daily

“Unconventional brands come from unconventional people. Drawing from music and literature, Tony Magee sees the world in a way that most completely miss. He has poured his heart and soul into Lagunitas and we are all richer for it.” —Keith Greggor, co-owner & CEO, Anchor Brewing Company

“Tony is one of the most unique characters in all of craftdom, rising fast to become one of the top US craft brewers in recent years. He’s wicked smart and has a way with words; here’s his story told in his own inimitable fashion.” —Benj Steinman, Beer Marketer’s Insights

"Highly recommended for readers who are interested in beer, business tales, or even humorous and narrative American nonfiction." —Library Journal

From the Publisher

10/01/2014
Magee, owner of Lagunitas Brewing in Petalumas, CA, brings up to date his rollicking history of the brewery, founded during the rise of American craft brewing in the 1990s. Luckily for beer aficionados, the author managed to survive the difficulties that often accompany starting a business. Not only surviving, the Lagunitas brewery has thrived and created higher-end beers with its own distinct style that continues to draw in new fans. Magee's writing is easygoing and often pleasantly digressive, highlighting his philosophy and the brewery's business relationships, which include many great friendships; assets that have carried him through both difficult and prosperous times. Sprinkled throughout are short commentaries written by relatives and friends on Magee and his brewery. The chronicle is at its best when the author discusses the people who have shaped his company. Overall, this leads to a pleasurable read—with only a few tangents that seem more distracting than illuminating. VERDICT Highly recommended for readers who are interested in beer, business tales, or even humorous and narrative American nonfiction.—Ginny Wolter, Toledo-Lucas Cty. P.L.

Library Journal