Tools of the Trade
Our brewing and cellaring equipment was manufactured in Hayden, Idaho, using US stainless steel and US labor, by Labreck Stainless Works. Brandon LaBreck’s (owner) attitude is right in line with NoCoast’s no-nonsense approach to getting things done and making something you’re proud to put your name on.
Our steam-fired brewhouse produces 20 BBLs (620 gallons) of delicious beer at a time. We have 140 BBLs of fermentation capacity and 140 BBLs of aging capacity (brite tanks) that allow us to age our beer until the peak of flavor and clarity. This is critical because we don’t use anything to clarify our beer except time. No centrifuge. No filters. Just patience... and it’s so worth the wait.
The Good Stuff
We choose Midwest products and companies whenever we can. Cargill, our main barley supplier, sources malt not only from the Heartland, but also from the UK, Belgium, Canada, and Germany, allowing us to make the traditional European styles we love so much.
We get our hops from a number of different suppliers but are increasingly sourcing from Midwest suppliers and growers. We are excited about the growth of hop yards in Iowa and we look to move more in that direction as more varietals come available in coming years.
Finally, there is the water. Ours comes from the groundwaters under the Skunk River (it’s nicer than it sounds, we promise) in south central Iowa. Before brewing, we run it through a carbon filter to remove all chlorinated products and organics, while leaving behind the natural minerals and inorganics. Then we add minerals specific to each beer to mimic the water composition that the style was traditionally brewed with.