“We all were already in the industry; we liked beer, and we wanted to make it,” Joseph said. “A lot of breweries are owned by people who don’t make it and are made by people who don’t own it. The fact that we are a brewery that is owned and operated by the owners lets us have control over the beer and keep it oriented around the beer.”
Sorting out details
Prior to working in the brewing industry, Burton was a scientist on an Alaskan sea vessel. Powell worked for an ecology company, and Joseph had a degree in real estate and was a self-employed carpenter and DJ.
At their joint venture, Burton handles production and brews everything; Powell takes care of administrative tasks and is the CEO; and Joseph focuses on packaging, sales and marketing.
What’s on the menu
All beers sold at the brewery are made in house. Burton said for the most part he and Powell create the recipes. The process can take between 10 days to six weeks from what Burton describes as “going from grain to glass.”
“Most of our beers are traditionally made,” Burton said. “We don’t put a lot of rice, corn syrup, cereal, gummy bears ... in our brews. We keep it pretty straightforward.”
The brewery’s top sellers are Miracle Wheat, a wheat ale with blood orange; a light lager called Aluminum Cowboy; Northeast Texas IPA; and Masterminds, a hazy IPA.
Food trucks and events such as trivia and live music are also on tap at the brewery.
The inspiration
Burton said one of their “craziest” beers is Curse of the Seven Scorpions.
“It’s a favorite of Lane’s because ... his mom is a master gardener and specializes in growing ultra hot chile peppers. I love spicy things and grew up with a Hispanic background, so I love spicy mangoes. We took an IPA base and got some mango puree and these chiles and mixed it all together.”
Put in perspective
Joseph said giving back to the community, which the co-owners established as a priority early on, is his favorite component of being a co-owner of this business.
“One percent of our gross revenue per year goes to a charity,” he said. “We like giving back.”
What’s in a name
When choosing the name for the business, Joseph said they drew from the Scorpion and Frog fable where a scorpion stings a frog while catching a ride on the frog dooming them both to death. When the frog asks the scorpion to justify his actions, the scorpion responds it's in his nature to do so.
“That's our tagline: It's our nature to brew,” Joseph said.
- 906 Jean St., Grapevine
- www.hopandsting.myshopify.com
