Wolcott, CT – Since opening its doors to the public in May of 2013, Shebeen has expanded from a one barrel brew system to a 15 barrel with four 30 barrel fermenters added in 2014. The expansion has resulted in a new 1000 sq. ft. visitor center to accommodate the hundreds of regional visitors a week to the brewery. More expansion is on the way.
A canning line was added in 2014 but due to limited funds, only one can was produced, the Black Hop IPA. Shebeen is set to launch 2 more cans starting in February. The Irish Pale and Turbo IPA.
“The Irish Pale is a nice session beer somewhere between a pale ale and an Irish red.” said co-founder Rich Visco.”We pulled the can design from century old Irish Ginger beers served in ceramic bottles. It has a great modern yet traditional look.”
The Turbo IPA on the other hand is all modern. It incorporates 14 different hop infusions with an emphasis on aroma versus bitterness. “Its name is derived from its use of Turbinado sugar which gives it a sweet taste balanced against the late finish hops. We are also designing a cool race car can to go along with the name.” said Rich Visco
Their re-branded brew, JavaPig, is set to launch end of January. It was originally called Bacon Kona Stout but out of respect to Kona Brewing Company, Shebeen agreed to change the name. Its an oatmeal stout brewed with ingredients from local Connecticut businesses. Nodine’s Smokehouse of Torrington supplies the bacon and Shearwater Coffee Roasters of Trumbull supplies the coffee.”We love Connecticut and want to use as many local suppliers as possible. We believe in farm to table and this was great way to incorporate these fantastic Connecticut products into our beer.”
In addition to distributing throughout the state of Connecticut, Shebeen launched with P. Lacerra & Son in Hilton Head South Carolina on January 1, 2015. Due to the popularity of craft beer in South Carolina, Shebeen decided to be the first Connecticut brewery distributed to Palmetto State.
“We saw this as a natural progression of the brand in a very accepting craft beer state. With P. Lacerra & Son focused on selling just this line of beer, it was a no brainer. The launch was fantastic with over a dozen places right out of the gate with dozens of new clients weekly. We are even featured at the upcoming Restaurant Week at the Lodge from January 24th through the 31st in Hilton Head,” said Visco.
Shebeen is registered in the state of New York. A launch date is not set but the brewery is focused on serving the greater tri-state area. “We have a ton of friends and family in and around Yonkers that are demanding the beer. New York is a natural fit for Shebeen.”