Whenever I see a new brewery in planning or open, I’m always a bit leery of who is behind it. With “crafty” beers like Blue Moon (a subsidiary of Coors) and AB-InBev buying up craft breweries like 10 Barrel Brewery, Goose Island, Elysian and the like, it’s hard to tell if a new brewery is one you’d like to support with your patronage. So as much as it seems uncomfortable to mix my private life with my business life, I would like to share a little about me and the family behind Inventors Brewpub.
Captn Adam Draeger is from Spencer, WI and graduated from UW-Platteville with a BS in Engineering Physics. His wife, Erin from Tomah, WI also graduated from UWP with the same degree. They met in Differential Equations class and it was love at first integral!
They relocated to Cedar Rapids, IA, to begin their engineering careers. After a few year they moved to Pella, IA where they started their family.
After a decade of active homebrewing and involvement in many homebrewing clubs, Adam decided to leave engineering to go back to school for brewing and explore a new career path. Erin actually said to him, “Instead of working all week and brewing every weekend, why don’t you ‘Go Pro’ and you can brew all week long and have your weekends free?!”* Smart advice from a very supportive wife. He graduated in May 2011 in Germany from the World Brewing Academy which is comprised of the Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago and the Doemens Academy in Munich, Germany). While Adam was in school, Erin stayed behind in the states for financial security to support their two toddlers, Julia and Raven, and relocated to Colorado with a new engineering job.
Adam followed closely behind and became the head brewer of Yak & Yeti Brewpub in Arvada, CO. They moved out of temporary housing to a house in Arvada and had their third child, Anna. Captn Adam’s reputation grew in the Colorado brewing community and he consulted on several brewery openings using his knowledge from engineering, brewing school and his professional brewing experience. One nano
brewery/brewpub approached him to build them a brewery and become their head brewer as well. Instead of quitting his job at Yak & Yeti, Adam successfully brewed at Colorado Plus Brewpub and grew both locations and their reputations. Captn Adam has over 17 professional brewing medals/awards including 3 national awards. His highest garnered award was for his Chai Milk Stout at Yak & Yeti in 2013 which took silver in Spice and Herb Beer at the GABF (Great American Beer Festival, the largest beer competition in the world).
Thoughts of Wisconsin and extended family led the Draegers to explore opportunities to move back to the Great Cheese State. In January 2016, they put together a business plan for a new concept, a Pizza/Poutine Brewpub with counter service. (read the blog here about Poutine). Port Washington, WI was selected as destination as it was very similar in many ways to Pella, IA, which still holds a place in their hearts. Trading the Mountains for the Lake, they moved back to Wisconsin in Aug 2016 to work on the launch of Inventors Brewpub and be closer to family. Thanks for reading and joining us on this journey.
eat.drink.invent.
**Full Disclosure: Summer weekends never truly freed up, thanks to an abundance of beer festivals in Colorado!