Sometimes there is such a thing as coming home.  The opportunity to return home is one of the reasons Jake Miller came to Tulsa after Melissa and Zach French contacted him about opening a new brewery.  The Frenches are both full-time dentists, but Zach has homebrewed since 2001 and splits brewing duties with Miller while Melissa brings a flair for design to the brewery as the creative voice behind the taproom design.  In November 2017, Heirloom Rustic Ales opened in a former automobile repair shop in the Kendall Whittier District. With the Crosstown Expressway (formally I-244/U.S. Highway 412) behind it, the Heirloom Rustic Ales taproom stretches across a long parking lot. The…

Great ideas often originate at communal gathering places.  That is certainly the case of Cabin Boys Brewery.  The idea germinated at a cabin Jeff McIlroy and friends built on his land in Catoosa, about 15 miles east of Tulsa, Okla.  From fellowship fostered at the cabin, Austin McIlroy and Ryan Arnold realized the potential of their joint homebrewing endeavors.  Their passion and skills led to Austin and his wife Lisa and Ryan opening Cabin Boys as a placed “craft for community.” Visitors to the brewery will notice the distinct Cabin Boys logo that Lisa designed as they come to the intersection of Utica Avenue and 7th Street. There is parking…

As craft beer was already experiencing a boom on the West Coast, Eric Marshall opened a production brewery in Tulsa, Okla.  Considering the laws governing alcohol in the state, it was a potentially risky proposition given that distribution regulations heavily favored the major beer producers.  However, Marshall Brewing Company found a niche of loyal drinkers and has grown since starting production in 2008. When Oklahoma began to modernize its alcohol laws, taprooms became more popular with customers because breweries could serve beer stronger than 3.2 alcohol-by-weight.  I visited Marshall Brewing because the company took advantage of the new beer laws and had its inaugural “Dark Side of the Taproom” event…