For years, Lakeway residents Steve Jones, Stephen McCarthy and Curt Webber enjoyed home brewing on weekends and sharing the fruits of their passion with friends. On Jan. 22, the men, together with their wives, signed their first beer sales account, officially elevating their hobby to the next level.

Jones said the trio share a connection in their common interests of beer and church.

"[The name] Solid Rock Brewing has multiple meanings," Jones said. "It refers to our foundation of faith in Jesus Christ as a solid rock and [our brewery] sits on a giant piece of limestone."

In August 2011, the three friends acquired a miniature, half-barrel commercial brewing system and brewed in small batches on the weekends, he said. Using established recipes from their home brewing sessions, the group produced classic craft beer styles—English ales, IPAs and an Irish red ale which became the first beer they marketed to the public, he said.

In October, Jones, McCarthy and Webber invested in a 4-acre site on Bee Creek Road in Spicewood with a 4,000-square-foot barn that had previously been used by an iron works company, Jones said. The structure, with its high ceiling, was perfect for brewing, he said.

The families held private tastings with friends and beer aficionados to get feedback on their products, making small changes from their original recipes until the styles were ready to market, he said. Jones left his job as a beer distributor and became the company's first full-time employee in October of last year.

"Our goal is to be a local village brewery," Jones said. "[Brewing] is a labor of love. It's also a lot of fun."

The brewery's ale and stout craft beers are sold locally at H-E-B in Bee Cave, Lakeway Liquor, and Lakeway Market as well as restaurants including All Star Burger, Angel's Ice House, Briarcliff Bistro and Bacon Bar, Chi-Town, Schmidt Family Barbecue and Zinger's.