🔒Kinsmen Brewing Co. poised to grow with Husky Hops

The Kinsmen Brewing Company in Southington’s Milldale section did just fine in its first four years, selling its many beers inside a spacious, comfortable tavern along the Farmington River bike canal.

Greg Caucci and Bruce Staebler of Kinsmen Brewing said they built a loyal following and generated good sales by brewing and selling their beer inside the former Clark Brothers Bolt Co. building on Canal Street.

Kinsmen, which bills itself as Central Connecticut’s fastest-growing brewery, has seen sales grow from around $2 million in 2019 to about $3 million in 2021.

Now, Kinsmen’s partnership with the University of Connecticut’s Division of Athletics to produce and can Husky Hops, a hazy IPA sold at UConn sporting events and on-campus facilities that sell beer, has Kinsmen poised for more growth.

“We’re ramping up production significantly with this UConn partnership, and even over the last couple of years with this expansion of our space,” Staebler said. “We don’t distribute much as far as mass production. But we’re getting into it and that’s why we really think we’re going to grow exponentially over the next couple of years, given that we’re just starting with UConn.”

So the brewery that began with seven-barrel fermenters before moving to 15-barrel fermenters just ordered three 30-barrel fermenters.

“It’s an aggressive investment in what we hope to be the distribution side,” Staebler said.

“We’re also looking at other locations to possibly open,” Caucci added. “We’re looking at this as the next phase.”

Premium experience

Premium beers are what you expect at Connecticut’s 120-plus craft breweries. But what Caucci and Staebler try to offer at Kinsmen is a premium experience, he said.

Complete with leather chairs and a fireplace, their 6,500-square-foot taproom has a rustic, cozy feel.

“When we began, the business plan was really about the experience,” Staebler said. “What if we created this premium product and offered it in a premium environment — as if it were an extension of their living room and they would feel like they’re almost at home.”

Family and kinship spawned the idea and name of Kinsmen.

“This is extended family and that’s why we intentionally created this living room, for this comfortable experience to be differentiated from not just being able to produce a fantastic product but to also marry it with this experience,” Staebler said.

If they do expand to another location, they will recreate that feeling, Caucci said.

The business plan, which included bringing in a restaurant that makes gourmet pizza and other food on-site, has proven successful. When they started, Kinsmen sold around 700 barrels a year, Caucci said. Now they’re up to 1,400.

“We serve almost 100% of our beer here,” Caucci said. “The experience is that we don’t keg it up and send it off to your restaurant. You get it fresh.”

Unique strategy

Although Kinsmen is expanding with Husky Hops, selling your product only in your taproom is not a strategy every craft brewery uses. Some breweries also keg and can their product for distribution to restaurants, bars and retailers.

“We’ve seen breweries open with a mixed mode of selling in the taproom and distributing to bars, restaurants and package stores,” said Phil Pappas, executive director of the Connecticut Brewers Guild. “But in the last five years, we’ve seen the business model where breweries do 100% of their sales in the taproom. They do all their sales on-site and don’t sell to a wholesaler or a distributor. That means their taproom is the only place you can get their beer.”

Kinsmen offers around 10 beers on tap at any given time with brews varying by season. The favorite, said head brewer Bob Bartholomew, is their flagship double IPA.

“Bob is responsible for all of the product,” Staebler said. “He brews, he recipes, he name-develops, he even manages 100% of our social media. All the product that’s coming out, Bob’s fingerprints are on it.”

In addition to its massive taproom, Kinsmen has a 6,500-square-foot banquet hall for weddings and other functions, a beer garden out front and tables in back along the bike path.

123 breweries and growing

The craft brew industry is booming in Connecticut with 123 operational breweries and more planned. The industry generated $3 billion in economic activity in 2020 and employs almost 18,000 people, including about 25 at Kinsmen.

Pappas, of the Brewers Guild, said he thinks Connecticut can handle still a few more craft breweries.

“We’ve seen the growth rate [of breweries] slow down but we’re still seeing eight to 10 new ones each year,” he said. “That will put us at around 130, which I think is a good number.”

Although more breweries are opening each year, Caucci said successful companies must adapt to changing customer tastes.

“All of it — the entire offering — will be different five years from now,” Caucci said. “The market will change and those [breweries] that adapt will continue to grow. The idea is to keep things varied so whether people stop by in the winter or the summer, there’s always something for everyone.”

Pappas said the brewery of today has become what the corner bar was a few years ago — a place to go and be with your friends.

“The breweries are becoming part of their communities, and the beers are always changing so you never get bored,” Pappas said.