portland airport to great notion brewing

Under the shared arrangement, any Brujos beer will be all Brujos with the same branding Zermeño has been doing and will be formulated and brewed by him. Similar in this regard, where Great Notion will be in charge of the production (under Sam’s guidance), packaging, marketing, distribution, etc.” The label is in charge of pressing, distribution, marketing, etc. Paul Reiter, Cofounder and CEO of Great Notion, adds his take, “When we had talked with Sam about letting him launch Brujos under Great Notion, it reminded me of an artist getting signed to a record label. “When Paul asked me to come up with a pitch, I was like, ‘dude, you’re like the Roc A Fella Records of craft beer and I’m one of the artists that works for you.’” When pitching the idea to his bosses, Zermeño drew a hip-hop analogy of a label putting out new artists. If we can retain the employee and help them reach their dreams, it seems like a win for everyone involved,” adds Miller.įor the Great Notion founders, placing Brujos under their umbrella allows them to present something different and exciting to their loyal fanbase that is still stylistically close to the hazys and stouts that put them on the map.

We've always looked at it as a positive reflection of our company. “Other breweries are worried about their employees leaving and starting brands on their own. Since the moment they hired me, they knew I came with that project.” I think this could be beneficial for both of us and it’s a good way to test the waters,’” says Zermeño, adding, “They were always kind of on board. I want to take Brujos to the next level and I feel like it’s best to bring it up to you guys before I start putting in my notice or getting an investor or whatever. “I was like, ‘hey I just want to let you guys know that I would love to work with you if you’re willing to. Though he wavered on whether it made financial sense to go all-in with Brujos as a full brewpub, Zermeño ultimately saw a mutually beneficial opportunity with his employer that would allow him to gain more exposure for his side project. Adding to the buzz was the can designs and beer names inspired by heavy metal and the occult, which Zermeño had always been a fan of but found even more inspiration from the gloom of the Pacific Northwest. With each new beer came a mysterious buzz that eventually led to the kind of Instagram hype that can propel a brewery to success. These super limited releases were doled out to a membership – mostly friends - called Order of the Magus. Throughout this time, Zermeño was feverishly brewing Brujos beers with his elaborate home setup and sharpening his craft with each release. He's a team player that comes up with an idea to wear a Sasquatch suit in the Miami heat at a festival, and an all-around wonderful fit with our growing team.”

We got an extremely creative person who is dedicated to the details. Most recently, he was promoted to head R&D brewer as his bosses realized his passion and creativity.Īndy Miller, Cofounder of Great Notion, reflects on hiring Zermeño, “We didn't just get a person that is so passionate about beer that he brews all day then goes home and brews a homebrew batch. It wasn’t long before he caught the attention of Great Notion in Portland – which had recently moved into their expansive Northwest production facility - and made the move to the other side of the coastal range to join the production brewing staff. That job wasn’t exactly what Zermeño was looking for but he did fall in love with Oregon. For those who missed it, here is a refresher: Zermeño got his start at Black Market Brewing in Temecula, CA before he was drafted as the first brewer at Oregon’s Newport Brewing Company. Zermeño’s Brujos project and his path to Great Notion were well-documented in this writer’s recent article for The New School. Now, his two worlds are finally coming together as part of a new partnership with his employer. It’s here that he gets to showcase his love of heavy metal and the dark arts while cranking out big hazy IPAs and pastry stouts primarily. But outside of his main gig, Zermeño has also been stirring up intrigue with his Brujos Brewing project. You can see his creative brewing style manifested in some of the more decadent hazy IPAs, pastry stouts, and sours that Great Notion releases. By day, he is the R&D Brewer at Great Notion Brewing, where develops new beer recipes and scales them to production. Sam Zermeño has a hand in two different worlds.

Portland airport to great notion brewing