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We are a close group of friends, veterans, and adventurers with a passion for craft beer, starting a microbrewery in Salem, Oregon.

WHOA! We can't believe the support we have received so far!

Things have been going so well and as of writing this we are at about 75% of our goal and going strong. We need all the help we can get so pledge what you can and tell everyone who might listen and together we will pull this off. Our dream of bringing excellent craft beer and our love of travel and adventure to the masses is closer than ever. Thank you all for making this happen, it has truly been a humbling experience.

You're here! You found our Kickstarter page and want to know what its all about.

It's simple really, we will cover the basics: who we are, what were asking for, what were going to do with your support, the cool stuff we have to offer in exchange!

To learn more about how Kickstarter works and how to donate check this link: http://www.kickstarter.com/help/faq/backer%20questions#BackAProj

About the Vagabond Brewing Team: 

AJ Klausen is a Salem, Oregon native who you may know from his one time run for mayor two years ago. He is a Political Science major at University of Oregon and a serial traveler. AJ runs much of the marketing and public relations projects for the business.

James Cardwell was also born and raised in Salem and is a Sociology major at Oregon State University. He is our brewmaster and recipe visionary responsible for our award winning pale ale and ever popular barrel aged stout. He is enrolled in the Siebel Institute's Associate in Brewing Technology course and is a member of the Master Brewers Association of the Americas.

Dean Howes is from the Bay Area in Northern California and is a Business Management major at Oregon State University. Dean runs the day to day operations and number crunching behind the scenes and is responsible for igniting the trio's brewing endeavors several years ago. 

Together these fine gentlemen are the Vagabond Brewing team. While AJ and James grew up together all three became friends while serving in the United States Marine Corps and have a combined nine combat tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. When they are not out backpacking, travelling or brewing test batches of beer on their custom built nano system, the team is finding ways to involve themselves in their community. A desire to better both their surroundings and the craft beer community is what drives them to start a business that can be a powerful force for positive change. 

WHAT WE ARE ASKING FOR:

We are using Kickstarter as a means to build our support community and help us launch our brewing adventure as we wait for the approval of our financing and sort through the mountains of regulatory paperwork. All the major boxes are getting checked but in order to fit things into a more workable timeline we need to do a few things. Our brewing system is going to be hand fabricated and custom built right here in Portland Oregon and needs some time to get finished. With your support we hope to raise $25,000 to make the down payment at the beginning of December so that fabrication can start while we finalize our major loan for the brewhouse and taproom. With the system on its way we can focus on starting construction of the brewery site and relax knowing our system will be ready for delivery around the time we are finished.

WHAT WE HAVE FOR YOU:

We have a wide array of merchandise and exciting rewards planned for our friends who support our Kickstarter project. 

You won't be disappointed, many of these rewards are limited edition and available only here. From pint glasses to sweatshirts to our coveted custom shirts there is something for everybody. Be it opportunities to be involved with the brewery, get excellent craft beer if you are local, and chances to create and name beers while supporting us from afar. Whatever your pleasure we can find something that interests you.

Don't see a reward tier that suits your needs or have an interest in investing directly or on a bigger scale? No problem, shoot an email to our business manager at deanhowes@vagabondbrewing.com.

Beer.Love.Adventure.

Vagabond Brewing 2012

Risks and challenges Learn about accountability on Kickstarter

As with any new venture or project there can be significant obstacles or challenges and ours is no different.

The three of us have been brewing both at home and side by side with professional brewers for several years now and are confident in our ability to produce quality craft beer. However as we take possession of our new brewing system there will be a learning curve associated with new equipment and facilities. Working closely with our brewhouse manufacturer and getting time to learn the ins and outs will be crucial and is an important component to our Kickstarter project as it gives us a head start and more time overall.

None of us has ever owned or operated our own brewery! This can be a daunting reality and one we face and evaluate every day. Almost as soon as we announced our plans to start a brewery we heard from the naysayers, we also heard from and received overwhelming support and the friendship of many prominent Oregon brewers and business owners. The support we have already received has given us the confidence to push forward and work even harder towards our dream. The brewing community is like a big family and they welcomed us in without a second thought, it has been both humbling and completely energizing. See our blog for more stories about our friends and supporters vagabondbrewing.blogspot.com.

FAQ

  • I am interested in the mug club but would like to know how it works first.

    Excellent point! Many of you have asked something similar and we certainly should elaborate. The mug club for those not familiar is a limited number of personalized mugs on display at the brewery/taproom that come with a yearly member fee typicaly around $50-100. Members are entitled to a discount on every pint during every visit (usually around $0.25-1.50, were thinking about $1.00) and special mug club days where its closer to half off. Our offering of 25 spots through Kickstarter is half of our proposed 50 and a great way to get in on the ground floor. The mug clubs we are members of typically have a waiting list of six months to several years.

    Last updated: Friday Nov 2, 3:33pm EDT
  • What is a growler?

    A growler is a reusable refillable glass jug that is very popular in the craft beer world. They are a fun way to get some delicious beer to go and we will fill these first editions in the taproom at a discounted price. Google 'beer growler' to learn more and see examples.

    Last updated: Friday Nov 16, 9:43pm EST
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