As of November 2011, there are 855 breweries in planning — a number which has only gone up since. One such brewery on the list is Moustache Brewing, Long Island’s newest “brewery in planning”. As you can imagine, starting a brewery is not easy or cheap. Basic fees include licensing, rent, purchasing and installing equipment etc. And then you get to the actual building of the brewery, the research and development of beers, the purchasing of ingredients, hiring of staff and so on and so forth.

Starting from the ground up takes a lot of courage and optimism, and Matt and Lauri Spitz of Moustache Brewing have both in spades. Today, I’m extremely excited to introduce you to the dynamic beer loving duo and give you a a behind the scenes look at Moustache Brewing. Matt and Lauri recently launched a kickstarter campaign to raise capital for the brewery, so hopefully many of you will find it in your hearts and wallets to help make their dream a reality.

After all, wouldn’t it be cool to brag about how you helped an amazing beer project launch? My sentiments exactly!

Introducing: Matthew and Lauri Spitz

Founders & Brewers, Moustache Brewing

Long Island, NY
Facebook: Moustache Brewing
Twitter: @moustachebc
Kickstarter: “We’re Growing a Moustache”

Tell us a little about yourselves and your backgrounds!

Matt: I grew up here on the island. I went to school for music performance and audio recording at 5 Towns College. I currently play bass in a reggae band called Royal City Riot. I’ve done some touring with them, but it has slowed down a bit recently. I think we’re all busy with other things in life.

Lauri: I’m from Long Island, NY and I’ve lived here my whole life. After high school, I college hopped for a bit studying various visual arts. Then after Matt and I got married in 2007 I went back to college at Stony Brook University and graduated with my BA in Asian & Asian American studies. We had spent a month living in Tokyo before our wedding and I wanted to move to Japan and teach English. It just ended up not being the right thing for me at that time so we stayed here.

How did each of you get into craft beer?

Matt: I was never happy to go along with whatever anyone else was doing. I also was never happy to just get something stock, and not customize it myself. That actually led me to a brief stint as a guitar and bass maker. Before I was legal drinking age, I was playing in bars. My older band mates would ask me what I wanted to drink, they all had Buds, and I’d ask for a Guinness.

Lauri: I was completely unamused by the standard beer offerings when I turned 21. Luckily for me Matt had a year on me and was able to guide me to the good stuff at the time (Guinness, Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada) Later on we met our friend Anthony, who was a brewer at Blue Point Brewing Company here on Long Island at the time, and starting drinking lots of Blue Point beers. Anthony is also how we got into brewing. We were the cool kids drinking our fancy beers.

What did you do professionally before you decided to start a brewery?

Matt: I’ve been working in retail since I could work. Although, I usually work in the back of house doing operations/ logistics and inventory type things. I’m much more of a behind the scenes guy.

Lauri: I work in health care. I’m a health information manager for a small family practice. My day consists of converting paper records to our electronic health system and helping the Dr.s ensure they are meeting the new meaningful use requirements that are being implemented by the government at the end of this year. It can be really interesting, but sometimes it’s so mind numbing.

How long have you been planning to open a brewery?

Matt: We started home brewing in 2005. After our first batch, we started day dreaming about having our own brewery. We doodled names and logos, thought of seasonal releases, and just talked about how cool it would be to have a brewery. Back then, we didn’t realize what actually went into creating a brewery. About a year and a half ago, we really started to do a lot of research, and talk to breweries on the Island to pick their brains.

Lauri: It’s been a while for us. For a while it was totally an “It would be awesome to do but we really can’t pull that off” kind of thing. Then, I started working in health care and became unhappy with the way my life was going. I started seeing a life coach to try to find a new direction and a way to be happy. I told her my dream was to open a brewery but I knew it would never happen. She immediately made me realize that I first needed to change my attitude to make things happen. Once I was able to change my attitude and had my “ah ha!” moment we got really serious about things. We started doing tons of research and BOOM! Here we are today.

What is the hardest part about starting a brewery?

Matt: Trying to figure out the “best” way to do this. Our plans have changed a whole bunch of times. From what size brew house to start with, to what kind of location, what the overall feel for the company will be. It’s all evolved a lot.

Lauri: The whole process is crazy. We need to have Federal AND State licensing before we can brew or sell beer. In order for us to even apply for both of the licenses we need to have our building and our lease secured. Then we need to have our equipment and everything set up and ready to go. After that, we send in our applications and just wait. While we are waiting we are paying rent and utilities on a brewery that we can basically just stare at. We can’t make or sell beer before receive both federal and state approval. This takes at least 6 month, usually more time though. We know breweries that have been waiting over a year. It’s so daunting just to think about it.

When is Moustache Brewing scheduled to open?

That’s tough to say at this moment. We’re planning to secure a location by June. Once we have a location, we can start the licensing process. If everything goes swimmingly in the very beginning of 2013.

Where will Moustache Brewing be located, and why did you choose that location?

We’re not sure on what town it will be, but it will be on Long Island. We would like a more central location, western Suffolk county. Not too far from the City, not too far from the east end either.

What is the significance behind the name, Moustache Brewing?

Matt: I’ve been wearing a handle bar moustache for about a year and a half now. I think of it as a symbol of class and sophistication. I’m also a big anglophile, I love British pop culture and television (Monty Python, Doctor Who, Douglas Adams). One idea we had for the brewery early on was to give it a Victorian era British feel, and only make beer styles from the UK. We ditched the UK only idea as to not limit ourselves, but are keeping elements of 19th century British feel. I think the Gentleman’s moustache plays into that theme nicely.

Lauri: Have you seen Matt’s moustache?

What kind of brewery will Moustache Brewing be? A brewpub? A production only facility?

We will be a production only brewery. Starting a brew pub is a whole other head ache. Also, with a brew pub in New York, we could not distribute to other bars and stores, and certainly not out of state. We will have a tasting room and do growler fills for off premises consumption.

What kind of system do you brew on, how big is it, and where did it come from?

Once we are up and running at full steam ahead, we will have a 15BBL brew house. We were looking at used systems, but they are harder to come by now a days. As soon as they are posted in the classifieds, they are sold. Once we have our capital raised, we’ll look for a used system, but we’re not counting on it. Plus, with a new system, you know everything works and it’s guaranteed .

What kind of styles of beer will Moustache Brewing focus on producing?

We have an idea for our year round beers, an American Pale Ale, American IPA, a London ESB and a session-able Porter. It will depend on what our drinkers want, though. We’re also going to have a seasonal or special beer every other month, that’s where we get to have fun and brew new stuff all the time. We’re planning on doing cool, yearly releases of cellar-able and collectable beers in bottles as well.

For fun….

What is your favorite style of beer to brew?

Matt: I like brewing Pale Ale and IPAs. We make ours very hop forward. I enjoy blending different hops and playing with addition times to coax different flavors and aromas out of them. I’m going through a hop head phase right now.

Lauri: I love brewing porters and stouts. It’s the coffee and dark chocolate lover in me for sure. With the porters I enjoy playing with the different roasted grains and find a nice dry balance that’s not too bitter but has a nice roastyness to it. On the opposite end of that I love doing sweet stouts as well.

What is your favorite style of beer to drink?

Matt: I’m loving big hop forward beers right now. Hops that hit you in the nose and dance on the tongue, but are very smooth in the back. No harsh bitterness. I also love big Imperial Stouts. I could just smell Bourbon County for hours before I take a sip! I can’t get enough.

Lauri: So hard to say I’m really into dubbels and quads right now. I love that thick bodied maltyness they all have to offer. Now that the seasons are changing and it’s getting warmer out here, I’ve been craving ESB. ESB on nitro….

What is your favorite beer and food pairing?

Matt: You can never go wrong with a big stout and a rich chocolate cake. There’s a cheese maker named Beehive Cheese Co. that make a cheese rubbed in tea, and one rubbed in espresso. The tea one goes really well with a floral, citrusy IPA. The espresso goes well with a drier porter. So good.

Lauri: IPAs and Indian curry. I LOVE Indian food so much but my tongue is such a wimp. It has no heat tolerance what so ever. So I find the IPAs are a nice balance to the heat in the food. I also love a nice charcuterie plate with a nice dry porter. The roasty malts are such a nice balance to all the salty goodness.

Most beer people experience at least one life changing experience. I call these moments craft beer epiphanies. Please describe your most memorable craft beer epiphany:

Matt: My craft beer epiphany hit me when I realized as a home brewer, I could make anything I wanted. If I wanted a Mojito Pale Ale, or a Belgian Pumpkin Porter, I could just figure it out and make them. You have no limitations.

Lauri: Our month in Tokyo was a real life changer for me. I find that this trip set the wheels in motion for where I am today. I can look back and connect the dots from today to that moment I stepped off the plane. Everything in between happened for a reason which got us here today. Spending that month in a country where I did not speak the language and only knew Matt really opened my eyes how I could do anything I needed to.

If you were a style of beer, what would you be and why?

And lastly, what does craft beer mean to you?

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Special thanks to Lauri and Matt for sharing their story with me! Looking forward to seeing Moustache Brewing open in 2013 and wish them both the best of luck!! Cheers!

DRINK WITH THE WENCH PRESENTS:
The Beer Blogger Interview Series

Curious what goes on in the minds of your favorite beer bloggers? Well, The Beer Wench is and she has embarked upon a mission to interview as many beer bloggers that she can — from all over the world. Are you a beer blogger? Do you want to share your story? Send me an email!

INTRODUCING: ZAC EARLY

AUTHOR OF: Building International Coalitions Through Beer and Pavement

Beer Blogger Interview

Full name: Zac Early
Twitter handle: @como_zac
Name of blog: Building International Coalitions Through Beer and Pavement
Current location: Columbia, MO

Background “Snapshot”

1. Where did you grow up?
I was born at the highest point in Ohio, Bellefontaine. I grew up in a small, dry town a few miles south of there by the name of West Liberty. We were located an hour north of Dayton and an hour west of Columbus.

2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond?
I played everything growing up, but I lettered in football, basketball, and track. I played one year of college football (Div. III), but found it got in the way of my studies, beer, girls, and rock shows – not exactly in that order.

3. How old were you when you had your first beer?
18

4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it?
My first beer was the first summer I worked for a YMCA camp. One of the directors opened his house for a little party on our 24 hours off. I don’t remember exactly, but I made a point of only drinking beers with the word “premium” or “dry” on their labels. All were industrialized, rice-adjunct lagers. So, nothing special, but I was trying. It was to impress a girl, but it didn’t work.

5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college?
I attended Capital Universtiy in Bexley, OH (suburb of Columbus). I studies elementary education. Football (one year), University Programming, and Orientation Assistant were activities in which I participated. I later earned a MA at The Ohio State University, also in education.

Craft Beer Epiphany

Every craft beer enthusiast has at least one pinnacle craft beer experience that completely changes ones perspective on beer. I refer to this mind-blowing moment as a “craft beer epiphany.”

1. What was your first craft beer epiphany? Recall as many details about it as you can:
I had dabbled in craft beers for a while (Pete’s, Sam Adams, Columbus Brewing Co., etc.) without really knowing what I was choosing. Then, one night I strolled down to this beer shop on the corner and walked out with two bombers of Stone Ruination. My taste buds were never the same. From then on, I looked and searched for that same experience of getting punched in the face with hops and a beer experience that rendered my taste buds useless for the remainder of an evening.

2. Have you have additional craft beer epiphanies since the first? Detail as many of them as you wish:
There have been many. I’ve traveled to Seattle on several occasions and have come back more and more knowledgeable about beer. We started a beer club here in Columbia. Our first tasting included somewhere near 30 different beers – 90% of those were completely new to me. Then, there was homebrewing. On my second batch, I brewed a single-hopped IPA with Simcoe and realized that I could brew a beer as good as or better than most professionally-brewed beer. Then, there are the moments that happen almost every day as I try one new beer after another. It’s never-ending.

Beer Blog Background

1. How long have you been writing your beer blog?
About 18-19 months, but I’ve been blogging for much longer.

2. What inspired you to start writing your blog?
I had this blog that had run its course and had others in the wings. One blog dissected Pavement lyrics and another reviewed beer. Someone somewhere suggested that I write a manuscript and title it “Building International Coalitions Through Beer and Pavement.” The rest was history.

3. Why did you choose the name of your blog?
As I said before, it was suggested, but it perfectly encapsulates what the blog is about. I’m all about promoting the things I love to the masses. Through exploring intersections between these interests, I hope to turn a few people on to craft beer and indie rock.

4. What are you personal goals for your blog? What do you hope to achieve with it?
I’d like to eventually move to my own domain, but I’m too lazy. Id also like to see a steadier amount of traffic so that I can justify such a move. Then, I’d like for it to be self-sufficient. Eventually, I think there’s a book in all of this, but I’ll have to somehow tie a lot of loose ends before that happens.

Beer Talk

1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles?
IPA/DIPA, Imperial Stouts, and Sours…Does it get any more cliched than that?

2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries?
Mikkeller, Stone, and Founders

3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why?
There are a couple that come to mind. I recently met Brian of Stillwater by chance in a bar in DC. He was pretty cool and liked to talk music. I’d totally work for him. The other would be these friends I have here who are trying to start a nano-brewery. They keep talking about asking me to blog their exploits in exchange for beer, but it hasn’t happened yet.

4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer?
Yes. I rarely do your run-of-the-mill brews, but I do popular styles for the most part. There was the Wowee Zowee, as huge DIPA (9% ABV) named after the Pavement album that was super sticky and dank as hell. It looked like I swirled corn starch in my glass it was so sticky. Then, there’s the New Slang Saison I brewed this summer with lemon zest, Sorachi Ace, and rosemary. Currently, I have an imperial stout in secondary sitting on wood chips, cocoa nibs, and vanilla beans, all soaked in the same bourbon. As a bonus, that bourbon turned out to be a beautifully chocolate/vanilla sipper. We’re thinking of using it for a dessert sauce at some point.

5. Do you have any beer certifications (BJCP, Cicerone, Siebel, American Brewers Guild)?? If so, what are they?
Nope, I’m just a gentleman dabbler.

6. What is your favorite beer and food pairing?
We smoke a turkey every year for Thanksgiving. I love to eat that bird with St. Bernardus Abt 12.

The Personal Side

1. What is your current day job?
I’m an instructional specialist for a non-profit organization that provided professional development for teachers in technology and inquiry-based instructional practices. I’m also proof that Obama’s stimulus package saved jobs.

2. If you could change your career at this very moment, without any restrictions on what you could do, what would you want to do and why?
Without restrictions? I’d write. Otherwise, I’m looking into what it would take to own my own business. I’m thinking of starting a beer shop with some home brew supply as well as a couple of taps for imbibing while you shop.

3. Are you married? Children?
I am married and we have a daughter who will be three on September 11th.

4. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies?
I buy my weight in records every month and go to as many shows as work and fatherhood allow. I am also a lifelong fan of Ohio State football.

Off The Beaten Path

1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be an why?
Sour. I might make you wince or pucker upon our first encounter, but you’ll soon realize that I’m complex. You’ll either like me or you won’t and that’s okay.

2. You were caught smuggling beer illegally, which has now been made punishable by death. Right before you are sent to the executioner, you are offered one last beer. What beer would you chose and why?
I’d wait for a minikeg of Hopslam. That beer is so light, sweet, bitter, and perfect. That and it only comes out once a year. My execution might have to wait until they can round some up for me. That and I would be so shnockered after a whole minikeg I wouldn’t even notice the execution.

3. If I contracted you to brew a beer (or design a beer recipe) called “The Beer Wench” — what style would you chose and what, if any, extra ingredients would you add?
For the originator of IPA Day? I’d brew a big-ass Imperial IPA, of course. The hop profile would be carefully selected so as to feature tons of citrus and fruit on top and loads of bitter beneath. Id also go for a crystal-clear appearance and sharp flavor profile so that it would pair well with foods and look more at home on the table than any glass of wine. Of course, we’d have to change the malt bill and specialty grains every year to get the color to match your always-changing hair color. I’m not sure how we would achieve purple, though.

4. If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
I would want two hollow legs so that I could drink every brewery dry. However, I’m not sure how that would make me a hero in anyone else’s eyes but my own.

5. What is one of the craziest things you have ever done and lived to tell the story?
I’ve lived a pretty boring life so far. The craziest thing I’ve ever done is probably either something I did after a few too many and promptly forgot or something else I’ve blocked from my memory. Getting licked once by New Bomb Turks frontman Eric Davidson was pretty wild, but I don’t know that it was all that life-threatening.

6. What are your thoughts on bacon?
Is it possible to make love to a pork product? Last Thanksgiving, I had some leftover dark chocolate from making Buckeyes (peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate) and there was bacon in the fridge. So, we did the only logical thing and dipped those mothers. Words cannot even attempt to describe the ecstasy I felt that day. My wife recently took a charcuterie class and I’m hoping there will be a lot of homemade bacon in my future, especially after we get the half pig we recently purchased.

SPECIAL THANKS TO ZAC FOR AN AWESOME INTERVIEW!

CHEERS!