Pioneering Greeley taphouse a labor of love

GREELEY — For Jeff and Stephanie Crabtree, something’s always been brewing. First it was love, and then it was beer.

According to her blog, “The Hobbyless Brewer’s Wife,” they met in the 1990s when she was working at a McDonald’s and he was an in-store rollerblader, “always skating by, flirting with me for free food.”

A romance, a marriage, a new hobby, two children and two decades later, their labor of love, Crabtree Brewing Co., is a trend-setting taphouse and brewery, paving the way for others that have made Greeley a craft beer lovers’ destination.

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Like most romances, the Crabtrees’ immersion in beer started small. In September 2003, they trekked to a Denver shop to buy supplies for their new hobby, home brewing. Jeff was a student working toward a degree in business economics at the University of Northern Colorado, and, according to his website, “brewing quickly found its way into all of his school projects. Business ideas for a brewery and beer-making concepts started popping up in each assignment.”

Nine months later, Jeff, a fifth-generation entrepreneur, said to Stephanie what he describes as “the seven most magical words a man can ever offer to his wife”:

“Honey, I want to open a brewery.”

Union Colony Brewery, Greeley’s first brewpub, was closing its doors after 10 years in business, and even after an auction of its building’s contents, its brewing equipment remained. The Crabtrees “jumped on this equipment for a steal” but had to store it in their garage until Jeff could finish his degree and find a location for a brewery.

But where?

He found a spot at 625 Third St. that had housed some small businesses and opened his brewery in May 2006, but city zoning codes became an issue.

“When we first moved in, the city of Greeley didn’t know where to put us,” Jeff Crabtree recalled, “so we got put in ‘Medium Industrial’ because we were a ‘manufacturing facility.’

“Greeley was new to the craft-beer scene. Fort Collins got onto that pretty quick. They knew the tax revenue,” he said. “We were here six years by ourselves and couldn’t get the market to develop,” he said. “I’d go over to Doug O’Dell’s place or New Belgium and it was busy, but in Greeley it was crickets.

“But we just chose to walk our walk until we decided to make a move.”

That move was made possible in 2011, Crabtree said, when “we got the city code changed. My original business model didn’t incorporate a taphouse, but now if you have a taphouse of at least 1,000 square feet, you can be in ‘Medium Commercial.’

“That’s when the evolution of taphouses started to develop, and I started the trend” in Greeley, he said. “That’s what made everything open up. That’s why we have a viable market. Now we have five breweries, and it’s great.”

The Crabtrees purchased their new space at 2961 29th St. in 2012, where their taphouse is the same size as their brewhouse.   

“We do support each other,” Crabtree said. “We’re colleagues if not BFFs. My brewery always has a hand out if a brewery needs it. If somebody’s doing a beer release we will not do one at the same time. We don’t step on each other’s toes.”

Crabtree now boasts six flagship brews: a ginger beer, a strawberry blonde ale, an oatmeal stout, a West Coast-style IPA, an imperial red ale and a double dry-hopped sour ale. There are seasonal and special releases, and the taphouse hosts anniversary parties, Tuesday night bingo, Saturday game nights and discounted flights and personal pizzas on Thursdays.

“When we first opened the brewery, our boys were very little,” Crabtree said. “Now, Stephanie supports accounts receivable and I do the brewing and whatever else needs to be done.

He also has time to revel in some of the spoils of success. “We’ve seen tremendous growth,” Crabtree said. “We just got our new bottling line. After 12 years of operating an old brewing line, it’s nice to get something new that’s fast and efficient.”

The brewery sells a mixed 12-pack, with three bottles each of four beers.

“It’s also kind of refreshing, sitting around a table with professionals,” Crabtree said. “For the longest time, we hired college kids. Now I’ve got a sales director, Josh Reeser, with 25 years of experience, and for social media I’ve got Matt Brinton as director of digital engagement and brand awareness.”

Along with the success comes the inevitable ambitions.

“I’d like to expand to accommodate some additional 50-barrel fermentation tanks,” Crabtree said, “and I’d like to strengthen our market share in Denver. I don’t think I’ll ever want to retire, and I don’t think my wife would want me to follow her around all day.

“But this summer, we’re going on a vacation, just Steph and I.”

Amid all that looking ahead, however, Crabtree also enjoys looking back.

“All my employees that have come and gone, everything I’ve learned from each one of them, have given me something, and I thank every one of them,” he said. “And all my customers; it’s  fun to be able to be involved in their lives. I can look back at my time and all of the people that helped me get there.

“I wish I had a time machine — but I wouldn’t have learned everything I know today.”

If You Go:

Crabtree Brewing Co.
2961 29th St., Greeley
970-356-0516
www.crabtreebrewing.com