WE NEED YOUR HELP! Join the fight for Fair & Open Access to Market and sign the petition @gacraftbrewersguild 💪 🍺 https://setbeerfr.ee/47esVqq

The craft brewing industry has seen significant growth over the past several years, thanks in part to some smart policy changes by lawmakers at the state Capitol (SB 85 in 2017). Unfortunately, Georgia still remains one of the most restrictive states to open and operate a small brewery.

With the challenges of rising costs of goods, materials, and services, supply chain challenges, market shifts and other economic pressures over the past few years, small breweries lack the flexibility they need to thrive, and in some cases, survive. Fair and Open

Access to Market is essential for a small brewery to meet consumer and community demand for their products.

The F.O.A.M. Act (Fair and Open Access to Market) would:

– Allow for limited self distribution for small brewers
– Reform beer franchise laws in Georgia. Georgia lacks fair franchise laws that govern how a small brewer enters into a relationship with a distributor.
– Remove the daily to-go limit of 288 oz. per person.

Urgent action is needed to keep this vital industry moving forward. These proposals will give local breweries the flexibility they need to not just survive, but thrive.

A pastor and a pilot start home brewing beer…

It sounds like the beginning of a good dad joke, but it’s a key part of our brand story and the values behind everything we love. November is National Entrepreneurship Month and we wanted to take a moment to honor our two entrepreneur/co-founders and OG reformers: Spencer Nix (former pastor), and Nick Downs (the pilot).

These two friends — along with their families and so many friends and supporters along the way — took a leap of faith over ten years ago. The risks to see their dreams become reality. To set beer free and liberate it into a new community of timeless values. From homebrewers to hometown brewery, Spencer and Nick embody the entrepreneurial spirit alive in our culture, values, and our growing community of reformers. They recognize entrepreneurship is definitely a community sport and are proudly in Cherokee by choice.

So, cheers to all the dreamers, doers, and reformers who never settle for being settled.

Woodstock, you brought the trick to our treat and the scare to the square! What a fun night celebrating all things fun dressing up, getting into character, and enjoying laughs, dances, and Halloween-themed drinks. || Special thanks again to Lindsay Ann of https://www.photosbylindsayann.com/.

Bracelet exchanges, live DJ, special Swifty-themed slushies and drink specials, decked-out taproom, parents dancing!, and lots of bestie moments all wrapped around Taylor Swift’s highly anticipated relaunch of her “1989” album. We loved seeing everyone come out in the Summer to celebrate Swift, we just had to experience the fun again. What an incredible night surrounded by such a loving community. Cheers to you, friends, and all your Swifty support! || Special thanks to Lindsay Ann of https://www.photosbylindsayann.com/ for the great pics!

North Georgia Made Makers – stories of makers from North Georgia (full video story below).

At Reformation, we are proudly North Georgia Made — located at the foothills of the North Georgia Mountains with three taprooms uniquely positioned to give our guests memorable outdoor experiences along trails and rivers.

As makers ourselves, we know both the challenges and pleasures of making handcrafted products high in quality and value for our loyal fans. North Georgia comprises a variety of hardworking and dedicated artists and makers who love their craft and love sharing it with their local community. As we prepare to enter Fall and our 10th-anniversary season, we could not think of a better way to tell the story of being North Georgia Made than highlighting the makers in our community and sharing their inspiring stories.

In this first pilot episode, we chose to feature one of our local vendors and handmade leather craftsman, Nate Bridges of Alpine Leather & Supply, Co. Nate’s story of taking the entrepreneurial leap in college, discovering a love for leather on a trip to Nashville, and overcoming challenges will leave you inspired and ready to engage the maker in you.

Nate’s shop is located at The Mill on Etowah in Canton, just a few steps from our taproom and main production facility. We hope you enjoy this story and it spurs you to not only support your local community of makers but get busy making something too. Cheers to the reformers and makers in all of us!

Learn more about Nate and grab one of his handmade goods from Alpine Leather & Supply, Co.

Follow our story and learn more about what it means to be North Georgia Made.

*Stay tuned for hopefully more to come in this series focused on makers. Cheers to the makers and reformers in all of us.

Live music, pup ice cream, dog licking, furry friendships, puppy merch, and more – our Reformation Pup Crawl on Saturday, August 26th celebrating National Dog Day was a barking blast! Thanks for celebrating with us and bringing your furry friends out in style! Special thanks to Tyler Anderson at Southern Photo Co. for the great pics!

Line dancing, bull riding, and shotgunning – Reformation Rodeo was a good time! Thanks for celebrating with us as we attempted our first and greatest beer pyramid, & can only release of Shotgun Light Lager. Special thanks to Tyler Anderson at Southern Photo Co. for the great pics!

Brewing beer, kissing babies, petting all the good dogs. Our last Brew Night of the Summer is coming soon, Friday July 21st. Hope to see you there! Here’s a roundup of some moments from June.

📸 TSWIFT PARTY PICS @photosbylindsayann
…
The 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗔𝗞 𝗡𝗢𝗪 (𝘙EFORMATION’𝘚 𝘝𝘌𝘙𝘚𝘐𝘖𝘕) album release event at @reformationbrewery was one for the books! Swifties of all ages came together for a night of sing alongs with friends, sipping on TS inspired drinks and the exchanging of friendship bracelets. 

Meet the Crew: Discover the Faces and Stories behind Who We Are and What We Do.

“I love our production team right now. We have a very solid crew. Everyone knows what they’re doing. Nobody has to be asked what to do twice. We all make fun of each other but everyone knows what to do and when to do it. We’re pretty happy with production.” — Paul Hamill

STORY

Our Reformation Crew is the backbone of who we are and what we do. They are often the unknown faces and stories behind the well-known places and products you love. You can’t taste our drinks or enjoy our spaces without interacting with one of our incredible crew members.

This is why we are launching a brand new series starting this May highlighting our crew and featuring their stories called, “Meet the Crew.” Each month, we will feature 1 crew member in a blog post and a fun video on social media to share their unique roles and personalities.

FEATURING: Paul Hamill, Lead Brewer/Head Distiller

For our next crew member, we want to introduce you to Paul Hamill, our Lead Brewer/Head Distiller responsible for the overall production of our Craft Spirits line of products. You have probably seen Paul in Woodstock or most likely Canton – our production headquarters – distilling vodka or gin, telling cheesy dad jokes, embellishing his Irish charm, picking on his fellow production crew mates, or kicking back one of his favorite Reformation libations (a Reformation IPA or our new London Dry Gin).

When Paul’s not raising spirits he can be found making homemade guitars, enjoying the outdoors with his wife, or cooking up something delicious in a backyard bbq.

Get to know Paul and what makes him who he is in the conversation below.

And, watch the FULL VIDEO on our YouTube channel. Share it from our Instagram page.

GET TO KNOW PAUL HAMILL – Fun Q&A

Do you have a fun nickname at work?

No, not really.

How would you change your title?

The director of all the things nobody else wants to do. Messy and uncomfortable, I’ll do any of those. I’ll do anything that is necessary.

Where are you from and where do you call home?

Eastern Tennessee, the deep South (haha)! I am originally from Belfast, Ireland. But, I have now lived in the States since 1997. I have been in Atlanta all that time. In the last year, I have lived up near Canton. It feels like home up there and we are enjoying it.

What is your favorite Reformation beer and the most underrated?

My favorite of all time or go-to used to be Atlas – our original IPA, a rye IPA. I really loved that. We stopped making that for a couple of reasons. My go-to now is our Reformation IPA. It’s a good solid IPA. I also drink our Lagers – we have nice New Zealand Lagers. I like our Cold One.

What are some hidden talents or special interests?

During the Covid lockdown, I taught myself how to make solid-body electric guitars. I made a couple of those from blocks of wood, a neckpiece, and a fingerboard. I can shave and put together an electric guitar.

Is a hotdog a sandwich?

Yes, an unpleasant sandwich but a sandwich. I would top it with everything on it: tomato, mustard, sauerkraut, relish, the whole thing to hide the taste of animal parts.

Who makes you laugh the most at work?

That’s a good question. Who makes me laugh the most or who do I laugh at the most? Everyone is funny at the brewery. We try and have a good time. Currently, I pick on Kyle. I won’t say what I say to him because it gets unpleasant (laugh). He’s fine with all this picking unless he has a heavy flow day and then I back off a bit (laugh).

Favorite place to enjoy a great drink with friends?

Reformation, especially in Canton.

What is one thing you love about Reformation culture?

You can come up to Reformation anytime, any day and there will always be somebody there to talk to whether it’s a friend, a local, or a regular. Everyone is so happy and welcoming here.

Famous person dead or alive you would spend the day with?

I would say, Ed Sheeran. I watched his show on Disney+. He seems like a really nice guy. He was in Atlanta recently and mistakenly went to SweetWater Brewery (haha) had a couple of pints, went behind the bar, served some beers, and played a couple of songs, he seems a really nice guy and has his own guitar company in Northern Ireland.

Paul in the brewhouse of our Woodstock taproom.

Want to join our incredible crew and get in on the excitement? Send in your resume at the link below to apply: https://reformationbrewery.com/careers/

Subscribe to our blog and follow us on social media to stay connected to everything Reformation and this exciting series.