For 20 years we have been cantilevering over the edge of death, near death without a safety harness or deep desire to copy other people’s definition of success. If you were to write a history of Iron Horse Brewery it would mirror some of the other microbreweries that rapidly grew in the late aughts to keep up with the demands of the marketplace but that is where the similarities would end. We are commemorating this 20th year in business with our usual snarky events and giveaways including gilded tickets in a select few 6 packs of Irish Death found at grocery stores. This gilded ticket will win you some vintage swag circa 2004 with a 2024 twist. Like all good celebrations we will include stories of our successes but mostly our failures because we embrace our failures like we embrace our inevitable death. Here is the beginning of our story telling from the mind of Greg Parker.
“Iron Horse Brewery has some mysterious beginnings. For starters, the origin of the name remains a mystery that went to the grave with the founder, Jim Quilter. We don’t really know. Does Iron Horse refer to the trail that cuts through our town and region? Does it refer to motorcycles, trains, bikes? We may never know. Just as mysterious are the origins of the beer left behind, or birthed by the founder, Quilter’s Irish Death. What is it and where did it come from? As it goes, the passing of time, energies, and beings become possibilities for others. In 2006, when the fledgling Iron Horse was prepared to die, it got a second life by coming into the care of a young and arrogant boy of 26 and his dad who believed there was something bigger possible from this arrogance and expiring brewery. Gary and Greg faced a choice. Take on the brewery as it is, or wait for the asset sale. Was it care, goodwill or pragmatism that drove them to meet Jim Quilter’s asking price? Probably all of the above, but perhaps it was yet another mystery, it just felt right. What was the greater force at work? Greg, nor Gary knew there was potential in Irish Death in 2006. They knew people asked for it at the home brew shop and that Jim rarely brewed it. Greg knew he loved making beer and the fun and challenge of a business. Since Greg is writing this narrative, he has suddenly decided he can no longer speak to what Gary knew. Greg has heard Gary joke that his college dropout son needed something to do with his life and he was willing to support it. Greg believes this is pointing at Gary’s essential nature: he sees potential in people and he puts wind in their sails to get them to realize that potential. And continuing his pattern, he noticed Greg’s friend who was helping with the move across states to pursue this brewery, also had potential. Ross was then invited to become a part of this journey.”
Stay tuned for more Iron Horse Brewery history in part two of 20 years near death. Ross, Gary, and more will be invited to share their stories and keep this history of death alive.
