Monday 9/16
Overall a quite day. We received the floor plan back with all accompanying dimensions that are needed for the brewing license application, which is great. We set up a couple of meetings but generally a slow Monday as we both had full days of work at the 9-5.
Sunday 9/15
We brewed our first Oktoberfest for the upcoming event on 10/26. Overall we brewed, BBQ'd, and watched some football. Overall a very relaxing brew day compared to the last two. The beer itself looked great and had a very nice caramelly sweet aroma from the selection of malts. We're all really looking forward to trying this in the coming weeks.
Saturday 9/14
We were interviewed for our upcoming crowd fund campaign. The video is currently in production and we hope we end up with 4-5 minutes of excellent footage, containing various interviews, building work, festival activity, etc.
Friday 9/13
We "officially" started our unofficial chef search by meeting with Mr. Steve Berkel, the Director of the Culinary Arts program from Jefferson College. Steve has extensive experience in local (STL) cuisine and has a strong network of individuals throughout he area.
We also worked on the brewer's application and put some finishing touches on the legal investment proposal.
Thursday 9/12
A busy day today. We talked with our lawyer about some of the needed changes on the investment proposal, which is close to finished. This will allow us to move forward on the financial end of our project...meaning its a very big step.
We met with an insurance provider to get a local quote for about every insurance we will need including liquor liability, workers comp, building, equipment, etc. Overall, a productive meetings.
We also spent a decent chunk of the day working through the tedious Brewer's Application through the TTB. This application is as detailed as you may expect when dealing with alcohol and the government. We're working hard to make sure that it is accepted on the 1st submission rather than the 5th.
And finally, we were selected to receive a very very helpful loan from the Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation. They contacted us about the idea and it couldn't have worked out better to this point. Their board saw the difference we will be making in regard to Festus Main Street and the Twin City and Jefferson County economies as whole and proceeded with funding to help renovate the exterior of the building. We appreciate their belief in the project a great deal and hope to work with them more in the future to do our part to help develop the county economy further.
Wednesday 9/11
We met with our accountant to discuss a variety of things in regard to taxes, payroll, and other accountant oriented topics. Things look good on this front and the meeting went very well overall.
We also started the brewers application, which would allow us to begin brewing when our equipment arrives, rather than having to wait on an eventual approval. This application would make us an officially recognized brewery in the eyes of the Us Government.
Tuesday 9/10
Tuesday we worked further on the rewards for our upcoming crowd fund campaign. We'll be doing a campaign very similar to those on Kickstarter (for those familiar). However, we have chosen to go with local start-up www.DreamFund.me instead of the more known Kickstarter. We have chosen Dreamfund for because we believe in their cause and because they are St. Louis based. Everything we are working toward is a local first, community oriented aspect. Everything we are doing has the community in mind and going with a local start-up furthers that message. They are obviously more risky than going with the known Kickstarter, but we believe the community will embrace both our project and a nationwide local start-up by spreading the word and making our campaign (and their first featured campaign) a giant success.
