There’s no beating around the bush here – Mzansi is a beer-drinking nation. During the alcohol bans implemented in the Covid-19 lockdown, many tried their hand at creating pineapple beer and some even maintained this hobby as a small business!
Although the industry has taken a serious hit during lockdown alcohol sales bans, making craft beer of any kind is still accessible to most. And it may prove lucrative as 77.7% of all alcohol consumed in 2015 was beer. Only a small percentage of that was made up of craft beer, but more and more craft brewers are staking their claim in the market.
If you are a craft beer enthusiast, you must have heard of Sibusiso Skosana. Skosana, a craft beer brewer from Thembisa, started his own craft brewery, 1632 Crafts, in 2018. He also holds the official title of “2021 Shebeen King”.
If you were one of the few who made pineapple beer during lockdown and want to turn your hobby into a business, or if you have a budding idea to start brewing beer, here is your guide to getting started.
First steps
“You need to identify the type of beer or brew you want to venture into,” says Skosana. “Whether it should be a cider, lager, pilsner, sorghum or flavoured beer.”
After you know what type of beer you want to brew, you have to get started on your secret recipe. All beers have the same core ingredients: hops, yeast, water and a type of grain.
Even though all beers are made from the same core ingredients, not all beers are the same.
“The craft beer industry is broad and will let you understand and know the different tastes of beers,” according to Skosana.
He likens beer brewing to preparing a chicken: Even though everybody starts with the same base ingredients, the outcome will taste very different because of individual recipes and spices used.
“It all boils down to the recipe,” he says.
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Licences and documentation
Skosana says there are certain licenses for which you need to apply if you want to brew beer.
The process of acquiring a liquor licence is complicated, as best explained by Distillique. But here are the main things you need to know:
Zoning
You cannot build a craft beer distillery just anywhere, and the rules to where you can build one differs from province to province and even within provinces. You will need to contact your local municipality to see what the regulations are in your specific area.
Licences
There is a difference between a manufacturing license and a distribution licence. So, if you have a licence to brew your beer, you are not allowed to sell your brew to the public until you have a distributor’s licence. There are also different types of distribution licences, which you can typically obtain from your provincial liquor and tourism authority.
The list of documents you will need in order to apply for these licences are extensive. Consult this Distillique page for a starting point.
Find mentors
Skosana got into beer brewing after running a project with Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela – South Africa’s first black female brewer to own a brewery, Brewster Crafts. She also owns her own brand, Tolokazibeer, and serves as a member of the Beer Association of South Africa (BASA) board of directors.
Skosana places great emphasis on how important her mentorship was to him during his brewing journey. While Nxusani-Mawela’s brewery unfortunately closed down during lockdown, she still runs Brewsters Academy where future brewers can do online courses.
According to Skosana it is not advisable for anyone to just go all in before you know what you are getting into.
The good, the bad, the ugly
The hardest part of starting your own craft beer brewery is entering the market and increasing the popularity of your product, says Skosana.
“The craft brewing industry is a niche market where each brewery must be differentiated in order to survive against mass brewers.”
Pricing is also a challenge. Skosana says crafts beers are known as expensive beers because they are mostly brewed in a micro-brewery at a small scale.
“Craft brewers face many challenges, including access to market, the cost of raw materials, ingredients and operations in a highly regulated and highly taxed industry.”
Because of the fluctuations in the alcohol industry due to Covid-19 regulations over the past year, the craft beer industry has taken a hit. If you do want to start a craft brewery, it would be advisable to wait until the market is more stable and predictable.
It’s not all bad, though.
Skosana says his favourite part about being a brewer is interacting with the brewing process, as well as interacting with his customers.
“Being part of it from start to finish,” he says. “[I love] engaging with customers at ground level in terms of their preferences and producing knowledge and education for them.”
Advice for future beer brewers
If you want to start your own beer brewery, Skosana has some sage advice for you:
- Set goals and targets.
- Never be afraid to seek advice.
- Always start small.
- Understand your products and business model.
- Be truthful to the goals you have set and report back on your failures.
- Most importantly, learn from every move – your failures will build to your success.
Find 1632 Crafts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
ALSO READ: Master brewer sees a fizzing future for African beer
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