All too often you hear an entrepreneur say “it didn’t happen overnight” but this time it almost did. Last April Brian Miller was working in the IT department of Blue Cross Blue Shield when he started feeling that maybe the 9 to 5 corporate life wasn’t as glamorous as it once sounded. He’d been homebrewing for 6 years and had reached a point where friends and family were requesting more. Meanwhile, Susan Miller, Brian’s mother, was nearing retirement with Blue Cross Blue Shield but was experiencing the need for something new that didn’t include cubicles and water coolers. Brian decided to surprise Susan with a trip to San Diego to the Craft Brewers Conference where she became enamored with the people and culture of craft beer. They made the decision to leave corporate America and started planning their brewery immediately. By late fall of 2008 they were pouring beer. In the business world, that’s almost an overnight startup!
The brewery, located at 2670-7 Roselle St, is just one block off Interstate 10 on the west side of the city. The neighborhood is mostly commercial with an emphasis on small warehouse-style metal buildings. The building at 2670 hides its secret well. Except for a small folding sign near the street and an even smaller sign on the wall between a roll-up garage door and a metal door with a blacked out window, one would never know a brewery lurks within. Upon entering however, you get the odd feeling that you just opened the wrong door. It’s kind of like when Bugs Bunny walked into a tent and when he got inside it was the Taj Mahal. Your brain says you just opened the door to a rather plain commercial warehouse but your eyes say you just walked into a quaint neighborhood pub. The kind of pub where you instantly feel at home, despite having never been there before.
Despite what your brain says, your eyes are right – it really is a quaint neighborhood pub. The focal point of the pub, actually the brewery’s tap room, is a red brick bar that stretches across the back of the room. It’s not large. There’re only nine stools at the bar but nine small tables provide seating for 20-25 more. The open rafter ceiling, concrete floor and wood shelves with somebody’s beer bottle collection give it the feeling of a really cool basement bar. It would be very easy to lose track of time while sipping great craft brews here. Maybe it’s a good thing it’s only open 3 days a week! Thursdays and Fridays from 3 pm till close and Saturdays from 1 pm till close, patrons can enjoy a few pints or get growlers filled for home consumption.With Brian acting as Brewmaster and Susan as President and CEO, Bold City is truly a family affair and, as Jacksonville natives, they want the brewery to be recognized as a responsible and respected member of the local community. “It’s been very rewarding interacting with the people that come in here.” said Susan. “It’s like having a big family and always having an open house with all your friends dropping in. We want to retain that mindset.” Brian supported his mother’s sentiments and added, “We want to support the community in more ways than just brewing beer to show that we are small business owners, born and raised in Jacksonville, and we are here to stay. Go Jaguars!”
The Bold City beer selection is quite diverse with influences from Belgium, Great Britain and of course the United States. Brian tries to keep seven standard offerings that include a Killer Whale Cream Ale, Rye Pale Ale, Mad Manatee IPA, Chinook IPA, an 8% abv Red Ale and Duke’s Cold Nose Brown Ale (named after the obligatory brew house mascot Duke, a friendly brown Boxer). All but the Chinook IPA are available on draft at local establishments and all are available in the brewery tap room. Recipes are based on Brian’s homebrews except for the Chinook IPA which was Assistant Brewer Cody Cassidy’s contribution. Seasonals thus far have been an Old English Ale and Smoky Porter. “We want to have something for everyone that comes through our door.” says Brian. For that reason, he keeps popsicles in the cooler for the kids and plans to have a root beer on tap in the near future. Wine is also available by the glass for those that prefer grape over grain.
In addition to the Bold City brands, they brew an amber ale exclusively for European Street, a local restaurant chain with 4 locations in Jacksonville that places an emphasis on food and beers from around the world. The Bold City name takes on new meaning with Brian’s casks. The plan is to put on a different cask every month, only available at the brewery. The first cask was the Red Ale “dry hopped” with Peppermint Peeps for a holiday twist! The second was the Chinook IPA infused with grapefruit and honey. Brian and Cody have some pretty creative palettes and plan to really challenge the locals with some fun and exciting cask ales in 2009. Brian wouldn’t let the cat out of the bag but if you are in Jacksonville when the casks are on, you are in for a special treat!
To carry the Bold theme further, Brian has partnered with local coffee roaster, Bold Bean Coffee (no relation), to produce a series of four limited release coffee stouts in 2009 and 2010. The first combined Brian’s stout with River Keeper coffee and was hand bottled and released in June. The next release is a Pumpkin Stout scheduled for October.
Bold City started small with a modest 7 barrel system but plans to grow as the market demands. Regarding their future, “We want to grow as a center point of Jacksonville.” stated Susan. They get extra help from Brian’s father and many volunteers right now but future plans include expanding capacity and adding a small bottling line.
The next time you’re in The Bold City, stop in for a pint and grab a couple growlers. Brian and Susan will welcome you like family. Tap room hours, contact and beer info are available on their website at www.boldcitybrewery.com