Yes, I am writing a love letter about a brewery, the guys who started it, the people that work there and the members of the equity punk community that has grown around it. I drank the Kool-aid, it was hoppy and delicious.

The Beginning

We first found BrewDog by way of it’s TV show on the Esquire network in the fall of 2013 (they have since started a TV network, Drink TV, and are making new shows). We fell in love with James Watt and Martin Dickie, the hosts and owners of BrewDog. These guys love beer the way we do. They don’t take themselves seriously and have fun in everything they do. They brewed beer underwater, on a dogsled, on a parade float…. Almost everything was a go, it was about creativity and wackiness. In each episode, they would travel to a different city, visit and tour local breweries, talk with the brewers and other local business people, then craft a beer that in some way represented the city they were in, and share it with local beer enthusiasts.

The Hotel

Before even trying the beer, I backed the DogHouse hotel in Canal Winchester, Ohio, on Indigogo. The hotel opened in August of 2017 and is a magical place. Growler tapper, curated (very well curated) guest beer fridge and a shower beer fridge full of BrewDog beers in every room. Amazing breakfasts, comfy beds, cool rooms and it is inside a brewery! If you love beer, this needs to be a destination for you. If you know someone that loves beer, get them a night there as a gift.

Becoming an Equity Punk

One of the unique things James and Martin have done with BrewDog is creating the Equity Punk. They sell equity shares in the company from time to time. This lets you own an actual piece of BrewDog. I currently own a tiny amount of shares and never expect to make any money on them, but that is not why I bought them. Buying different numbers of equity shares brings different perks, from discounts at every BrewDog location to a chance to brew a small batch specialty beer at the BrewDog brewery. The perks cover all price entry points. There are over 100,000 Equity Punks worldwide at this point. Think of it as a global mug club, but instead of a mug, you get discounts and a tiny bit of ownership. I bought 4 shares in the first US round, before even trying any of their beer, and more in the second after having a change to actually taste it. The sense of ownership among equity punks increases commitment to the brand, creating a loyal and invested (literally) fan base. I often talk about BrewDog being a cult. I am good with that.

The Beer

In July of 2017 I finally made to it Canal Winchester to try the beer at the DogTap, the bar at the brewery. I was nervous because I had already invested in the hotel and owned four shares in BrewDog. I was so very happy that every beer I tried that first day was above average. To date I have tried over 70 different BrewDog beers, by far the most from any brewery I like. Most are above average, some are spectacular, a few are so so. These guys do amazing things with hops!

The People

That first time I visited BrewDog in Ohio, I took a tour. Kayla, our tour guide was great – fun, friendly and full of facts. After the tour, we chatted for a while about BrewDog and beer. She has since moved onto a different position at BrewDog and is Cicerone trained, like most of the BrewDog staff. After the tour, some of the staff invited me to hang out in the outdoor beer garden area. I learned that James and Martin are good people, and that the company does good things. Like 20% of the profits go to charity. And they pay their serving staff a living wage. Since then, we have met and chatted with James and Martin on several occasions, I can’t think of another company the size of BrewDog where the owners are so involved in what the customers have to say and so approachable and personable. This goes for all of the staff we have met. Involved, committed, and friendly.

The Community

The biggest part of BrewDog (other than the beer) is the community of Equity Punks from around the world. We have met some of the most amazing people every time we go to a BrewDog bar. We have made life long friends because we share a love of beer. There is a definite family feel to being an Equity Punk. We have now visited 14 different locations and have been joined at each by other Punks, many of which we did not know until we got there, but can now count them as friends. We just let people know on the forum or Facebook page that we were going to be in the area, and they came to meet us. We had my partner’s birthday party at BrewDog Tower Hill in London, joined by fifteen Punks from around the United Kingdom that went out of their way to join us there to celebrate. The staff pulled out all of the stops, providing free apps for the table and a full cake!!! They also supplied the birthday girl with some very special beers that weren’t available to the public.

Conclusion

• Get thee to a BrewDog!!!
• Is it a cult? Most likely.
• Is it a MLM scheme? Not really.
• Is it a company that pays a living wage, donates a huge amount to charity? Yes
• Do they make fantastic beers? Absolutely
• Want to buy shares the next time they go on sale in the US? Use my referral code: A116938
• They have Pawternity leave for a week if you get a pet.
• James Watt and Martin Dickie have amazing Scottish accents.
• No really, it is my favorite brewery, hotel and group of people.

P.S.

And, yes, BrewDog has made some pretty good size mistakes, mostly with regard to advertising and marketing. They are not perfect. They are growing and moving so fast they sometimes lose site of how much impact these mistakes can have. Pink IPA? Scofflaw? BeerPorn? While I can see what they were aiming at with these, they clearly missed the mark. But they learn lessons, regroup, and move on from there.