The Microbrewery Handbook

Chapter 24Best Practices Q&A: Burial Beer Co. Co‐Founder Doug Reiser

BACK IN 2013, the idea of opening Burial Beer Co. was that it would just be a side hustle for Doug Reiser, his wife, Jess, and their friend Tim Gormley. Six years later, Burial has established itself as one of the strongest independent craft beer brands in Asheville, North Carolina. The Reisers and Gormley started as a one‐barrel system, quickly ditched that to keep up with demand, and have grown to become one of the leading names in craft in the United States. One of their biggest assets was the litany of vast experience in their ownership team. Doug, a former attorney, spoke with me about their journey through growing Burial in the taproom, the state of the industry, and key things to watch out for as you get your business off the ground.

D.C. Reeves:    Take us through the process of getting Burial open. What did you guys feel like you nailed? What did you struggle with? What do you remember most?

Doug Reiser:    This is a really good time to talk about this. We've been doing a lot of reflection on our vision and trying to divorce ourselves from tradition. I think a lot of businesses get stuck in something they did early on, and you just get attached to it. A lot of breweries, I think, really live and die by either being willing or unwilling to change and adapt and divorce themselves from things that have become stagnant or stale. A lot of breweries are just committed to the things they started with, ...