With new production capabilities producing up to 90,000 barrels per year, the launch of its Session 47 Series, as well as a foray into canned beer, 2015 has been something of a hectic one for the West Coast brewery.

Alongside its new beers that include the Baby Daddy IPA, and its Suds Session Ale, the Evans Avenue business exudes an effortless cool that, arguably, so many breweries in the UK and Ireland would kill for.

Production capacity has increased 500% in 2015 which, Speakeasy explains, has been a pivotal moment in the company’s history.

“ The journey to become a larger company is just beginning. Our expansion will allow us to reach a lot more beer fans, not only in the U.S., but internationally as well. This was the vision of Speakeasy’s owner, Forest Gray, who has guided the company since it was founded in 1997, Brian Stechschulte, public relations & media director at Speakeasy Ales & Lagers, tells The Brewers Journal.

Transitional period

He says: “The potential for growth is enormous, and all our equipment upgrades, including a new canning line, brewhouse, and centrifuge, will not only allow us to make more beer, but at a consistent higher quality, working also with Prospero to source our new brewhouse and canning line.”

While the last months have been transitional for the West Coast brewery, tastes have certainly changed since its formation in 1997 when its first beer, the amber/red Prohibition Ale, was created.

Stechschulte explains: “Back then it was popular among beer fans, and drove the company, but only achieved critical success on a national scale in 2013, when it received a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival. So sometimes beers are before their time, and some drinkers adapt their tastes to the beer.

“On the other hand, our Big Daddy IPA, a classic West Coast IPA, has been eclipsed by beers that are far more hoppier today. When Big Daddy IPA was created, it was considered very bitter and hoppy. Now some consumers want more hops and more bitterness.

“As a result, we’ve made some minor changes to Big Daddy IPA, but we don’t want to change it into a new beer. We’ve created other IPAs that conform better to modern tastes.”

While Speakeasy has a strong idea of its position in the San Franciscan landscape, it sees its strongest sales from its Prohibition Ale and Big Daddy IPA and outside of the local area, it distributes to AZ, CA, CO, DE, IL, MA, NH, NY, NJ, NV, OR, RI, VA, and WA.

It also exports to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Brazil, New Zealand, Netherlands, Alberta (CA), AAFES, Nexcom, Germany, and Italy, with plans to broaden this reach further in the near future.

Influential breweries

It’s located a fair distance from the UK, and Stechschulte explains the local drinkers get very little beer from these isles, “which is a shame,” he says.

“I personally love classic English styles, but they probably wouldn’t keep very well over such a long distance. Wild Beer Co. is one of the few English breweries that I’ve seen on the shelves in San Francisco. Their experimental barrel-aged approach probably resonates with the interest of beer drinkers in the U.S.,” he adds.

While the US is seeing an increased presence of beers from the UK and Ireland, Stechschulte believes that the explosion of creativity, experimentation, and beer quality is why the US is influencing breweries around the world.

He explains: “In the early days of U.S. craft, brewers were inspired by European brewing traditions and styles, who then put their own spin on them. Now It’s nice to see our trends and styles playing a role in European beer development.

“In reality, we’re just one big global community of brewers, and it’s wonderful to see how ideas, information, and techniques are being shared and used everywhere.

“That being said, I also think it’s important for brewing communities, cultures, and countries, to maintain their own traditions and what makes them unique.

“In the U.S. there’s a growing focus on sessionable beer, something that the UK brewing culture has been built around for centuries. Beer fans want big flavors with less alcohol, that they can consume over a long afternoon or evening.

“Speakeasy Ales & Lagers just released a series of new beers focused on this interest, which include Baby Daddy IPA, Suds Session Ale, and Pop Gun Pilsner.