‘A really good, healthy vibe’: Business Q&A with Bearpaw River Brewing Company discussing new location and future of the family-run business

WASILLA— Bearpaw River Brewing Company operations manager Jake Wade recently participated in a question and answer interview to discussing the homegrown business he runs with his brothers, the upcoming arrival of their second location near the railroad tracks in downtown Wasilla, and how they’re moving forward as a company.

How are things in general?

“It’s all been going really great. Our new location has all the systems, the eating, the refrigeration, and everything is working correctly. We’ve spent a lot of time planning this. It’s been years in the making, so it’s getting really exciting to be able to get down there and open our doors to the public… Our taproom here at our original location has been slammed this summer. That has really been just a breath of fresh air, and it’s been really nice to see that people are coming out… It’s like the company vibe, the company culture, the spirit’s really, really high right now. It’s just a good time and a good feeling… It’s just an exciting time for everyone… It’s kind of a new beginning.”

When do you hope to open the new location?

“It’ll be the first couple weeks in August… That’s what it’s looking like. We’ve been doing a lot of brewing to get the tanks filled up. It’s sort of like a ‘hurry up and wait mode’ almost because it takes time for the beer to ferment. Essentially, as soon as the beer’s ready to go, we’re gonna open… We're certainly not going to rush anything just so we can open our doors a few days early. We’re taking the time to make the best beer we can every time.”

What are some of the main reasons to add another location?

“Lots of things. Volume, production is probably the primary one. We ran out of space at our current location… Our distributor, Specialty Imports, which does a fantastic job of getting our beer across the state… has the ability to outsell what we can actually produce, so we should expand because of that.”

“Also, we like pizza and food,” he added with a laugh. “We wanted to be able to have a restaurant and have that new component to it. We don’t have food now. It’s just the taproom and beer. So, I need to watch out so that I don’t gain too much weight because I’ll have pizza and beer around me all day.”

What’s it been like running a homegrown business over the years?

“It’s certainly been a rollercoaster ride,” he said with a laugh. “There has been highs and lows, but overall, at the end of the day, the feeling is high. I wake up in the morning and I feel really great about what I do in my job.”

What are some of the biggest lessons you learned from all this?

“I think one is: don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, and with beer… You gotta learn from it and pick your head up and move on, and just do it again… Most of the time it works out, but sometimes it doesn’t, and that’s okay.”

Are you feeling pretty hopeful for the future?

“I have a very positive attitude going into it and I think we’ll be successful… We have been fortunate to have the most amazing team that I could have ever asked for. We just work so well together and I totally lucked out by finding the people that I have. We would not be expanding to our new location without them. I truly believe that.”

What’s it been like running a business with your family?

“Running a family business certainly has its challenges… We get along really well. There’s always a difference in opinion, but so far we’ve been able to work our way through those conflicts and not let it impact the family, and that’s the main thing. It’s really tight-knit… It’s a good feeling.”

What’s the plan for the original location?

“We’re gonna keep this place going… Learning about operating two locations will be a challenge, but we’ll just have to learn and figure it out to get all the kinks worked out. We like it here. It’s a busy road… There’s a lot of people that live really close to here and love coming in. We see ‘em almost every day… This one, we can put more focus on the specialty beers… It’s a really good opportunity to do some experimenting with recipes and techniques… We’re manufacturing a product where we can be creative with the product we’re making. We have our core beers… but with the new beers we make all the time… just that freedom of creativity makes for a good work environment. With the employees and the customers that come in to consume the beer, it generally attracts a really good, healthy vibe.”

What’s your take on the continued boom of new breweries across the Valley?

“I think the rising ride floats all ships. I think it’s fantastic. I think there are some people that have some different ideas about that probably, as far as competition and sales and stuff, but I think the more the merrier. I think the best thing to do to is to focus on yourself, your brand, and your business; and do the best you can… I think the more breweries that around generate more consumption of craft beer and more of a culture in the community of locally brewed beer.”

What else is on the horizon?

“We’ll be six years old in December, so we’re looking forward to a really, really great six-year anniversary party at our new location.”

For more information about Bearpaw River Brewing Company, visit bearpawriverbrewing.com.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com