KENTWOOD, Mich. — One Beer at a Time is making the most of waste created by pandemic shut-downs, making a new --and limited-- line of spirits from out-of-date beer.
What should have been the biggest brand-placement yet for the company that owns and operates of both Brewery Vivant and Broad Leaf Brewery + Spirits, turned into a huge potential loss when the pandemic hit.
Grand Lager, put out by Vivant, was to be on tap at Comerica Park— serving thousands of thirsty fans on a near-daily basis through baseball season.
Their production crew kicked it into high-gear making 500 kegs of beer to handle the upcoming load.
That was February of 2020; cue the reminder of what the food and beverage industry went through— and is still recovering from— not to mention all the waste created that year.
But instead of take the hit— One Beer at a Time decided to get creative, avoid wasting so much time and resources, and bring the batch back to life, so to speak.
Undead Spirits is a new line of spirits distilled from the remains of the 2020 Grand Lager kegs. They've made three flavors; Pink Grapefruit, Orange- Mango, and Citron-Lemon.
Each bottle features a glass skull blown in to the interior— a nod to the death of that ill-fated batch and the resurrection this line represents.
"Fortunately or unfortunately, we have gotten good at making lemonade when we get stuck with lemons” says Kris Spaulding, President of One Beer At A Time. “We had not planned to get into spirits when we first opened, but now this decision has launched a whole new division within our Company. It will be fun to see where this takes us.”
While Broad Leaf will be opening a new spot in Grand Rapids this fall to offer their regular line of Gin, Vodka, and Rum— this limited-edition line is a one-time deal to be released on Friday, August 12th at Broad Leaf's Kentwood location.
You can grab a bottle for $39.
