Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales is living up to its name this year, or at least the jolly and the artisan parts.
The Dexter-based craft brewery is quickly filling up its new production facility and watching sales go up at its restaurants in Ann Arbor and Traverse City. The 9-year-old firm has also been doing some collaborative brewing with
Maui Brewing Co. The result is Sobrehumano Palena 'Olo, a red ale brewed with liliko'i and Michigan cherries.
"It's usually a lot of fun because you get to learn something from a different brewer," says Ron Jeffries, founder of
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales.
The brewery executed its move into a larger facility in February. Its 70,000 square feet of space (up from 10,000 square feet in its last location) has a 20,000 square-foot office that Jeffries is looking to turn into a pub later this year. It also has 50,000 square feet of production space that is helping quench the thirst for Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales' award-winning lineup.
"It's filling up alarmingly fast," Jeffries says. "We're going to have to figure something out next year."
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales produced 10,000 barrels of its brews last year and is on track to sell as many as 13,000 barrels this year. That number can keep going up because its new facility provides it with the capability of doubling production.
More production space has also allowed the brewery to double its production staffing to 15, after hiring seven people. It is currently looking to hire five more to do beer delivery, general labor and brewery work. The brewery also employs another 200 people at its restaurants, which have watched their sales increase significantly over the last year.
Source: Ron Jeffries, founder of Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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