We started as a nano brewery along the west bank of Hickory Creek in Will County, IL. Now we are a micro brewery in town. We're dedicated to bringing fine craft beer to our community.
After retiring in 2014 from a 28-year career in the oil refining industry, I needed something to occupy my time. I have several hobbies – cycling, sports cars, making beer, etc. Which one would I be happy spending the rest of my life doing?
Well, all of them, actually. But beer is the only one of my hobbies where I can actually create something that brings happiness to others. So in 2015, I decided to share my 20+ years of home brewing experience with other beer lovers by opening a nano-brewery (a very small commercial brewery that uses less than a 3-barrel system).
After periodically taking over the kitchen and most of the laundry room with my brewing equipment, my lovely bride suggested I clean out the old milk house at the front of our property and move my operation there.
The milk house, which is approximately 150 years old, is one of the few remaining structures from the former Reynolds-Gillet-Storm farmstead, a “split” farm which was located on the west bank of Hickory Creek in New Lenox Township. It’s also one of the few milk houses in New Lenox Township constructed from brick masonry. This made it ideal for my purpose – once I cleaned out all of the firewood and junk stored there and remodeled it.
After 6 months, the building was transformed. A new water source was installed (No actual creek water is used in the brewing process.) A new drainage system went in, gas lines and a new electric service were also installed.
Then the brewing equipment was built and our first brew was born!
We also grow some of our own hops on our property – Cascade, Willamette, and Centennial varieties. We use the remaining old silo from the former farmstead as a support structure for the hop vines, and we put the grandkids to work in August to help harvest them.
We also have black walnut, wild pear, crab apple, and mulberry trees on our property, which provide interesting flavors to some of our beers (if we can manage to harvest them before the birds and squirrels get to them).
Hickory Creek Brewing is currently in the process of applying for applicable state and federal licenses, so we are not yet open to the public. When we open for business, we hope to sell our beers at local brew pubs and restaurants, and maybe do a little contract brewing on the side. In time, we hope to expand to larger premises with a tasting room so that you can sample our brews directly from the source!
Keep checking back with us for further developments!
Sincerely,
Gary Meyer
Owner, Brewmaster, and Chief Bottle Washer
