Buckbean brewery secures site, set to open in December

Buckbean Brewing Co., a privately funded venture by longtime Reno resident Doug Booth and brewer Dan Kahl, finally has secured a site for its brewery operations and expects to open in December.

Buckbean leased 7,600 square feet in a 78,000-square-foot building at 1155 S. Rock Blvd. Suite 490. Trammell Crow Construction Co., which built the shell, also will handle tenant improvements, Booth said. The interior will include a 600-square-foot office and a 400-square-foot tasting room, while the exterior will have a 33-foot tall malt silo. Barry Brown, managing partner/senior vice president of Colliers International's Reno office, helped Booth and Kahl find the site and secure the lease.

Both men have been planning Buckbean for more than three years. Though the next few months will be incredibly busy, they are eager to begin brewing beer.

"It is going to be huge relief and great accomplishment," Booth says.

Buckbean's brewing and canning machinery is still in production. Kahl will visit China at the end of October to check the specifications on the new brewing and fermenting equipment, while the canning machinery is being built in Canada and should arrive by November.

Buckbean will distribute only kegs and 16-ounce cans. The company plans to start sales in Douglas, Carson and Washoe counties. Although it has not yet lined up a distributor, Buckbean has already drawn interest from several companies, Booth says.

"This time next year we hope to be close to breaking even, have a very solid base in the community and be in as many bars, restaurants and retail outlets as possible. Our goal is to grow throughout Nevada and move into California and eventually throughout the West."

Reno's rugged winter weather won't affect the outdoor silo's functions. "These things are used all over country in far worse weather than this," Booth says.