Page 9 - BusinessWest December 9, 2024

Draught Choice
That phrase certainly applies to what they call their Community Line, which features collaborations with a rotating list of mission-aligned non- profit organizations and raises money for a variety of causes. Proceeds from these collaborative beers go directly to the charitable organizations with whom they are partnering.
“We know that one of the things that makes beer special is its ability to bring people together,” Real said. “With our Community Line, we really believe that we can show that craft beer can also be a force for good.”
Such is the case with the partner- ship with the interfaith community to help families in Pittsfield pay for heat- ing oil.
“When we found out about this program, it really home because we lived without heat for a few winters,” said Dell’Aquila, adding that Hot Plate has a beer on tap called Kardia, a habanero chocolate stout; $1 for every pint sold, as well as proceeds from each four-pack sold, are donated to the program.
“This year, our goal is $20,000, which will meet the needs of the entire community,” he told Business- West, noting that, in Greek, Kardia translates into ‘heart and hearth.’ “It’s a recipe that’s based on Mexican hot chocolate, so it’s a nod to Sarah’s ancestry; it’s a fundraising beer, so you’re drinking for good, so to speak; and it’s helping households in the community directly. So it’s a way
to bring all those multiple layers of impact full circle.”
Hot Plate is also a force for good when it comes to sourcing of its ingre- dients, with a hard focus on buying local when possible, both to support local businesses and make their own supply chain more eco-friendly.
“I’ve tried to partner with a lot of local people, or more craft maltsters, if you will, where I can go to the farm to get their grain and meet that farm- er,” Real said. “It’s pricier, so there’s
a balance between going to big grain as opposed to Valley Malt in Hadley, which is one of our providers.
“You can’t have a fully local beer because Valley Malt, unfortunately, cannot sustain every brewery in West- ern Mass.,” she went on. “So there has to be a balance, and it’s important to understand how we partner with them, and what are the best recipes for partnering with them.”
“A lot of the sexy new hops are coming from New Zealand,” she went on. “And I just think about how fresh that is when they’re making that plane ride — that huge carbon foot- print, just to go down the drain.”
Other initiatives in this broad realm include recipes that don’t require large amounts of hops, which cannot be reused, thus reducing waste, as well as ‘dry hopping,’ the use of dried, pelletized hops in New
BusinessWest
“I’ve tried to partner with a lot of local people, or more craft maltsters, if you will, where I can go to the farm to get their grain and meet that farmer. It’s pricier, so there’s a balance between going to big grain as opposed to Valley Malt in Hadley, which is one of our providers.”
treats.
Real and Dell’Aquila will use their
own taproom, as well as social-media channels, to educate the public about the importance of conservation, buying local when possible, and the fact that it takes four square feet of grain to make one pint of beer.
That’s just one example of how they’re not just brewing, but brewing with a purpose, and a strong desire to be what few brewers can become: change agents. BW
England IPAs and other offerings, fur- ther reducing waste.
Also, in addition to having local farmers pick up spent grain, which
would otherwise go in the trash, Hot Plate has experimented with drying out spent grain, milling it down into flour, and making products such as dog
You talk. We listen.
Before we can help you grow your business,
we need to get to know your business. Learning about your company and what makes it unique helps us develop solutions that make sense for your business, not just any business.
So talk to us today. We’re here to help. Always.
COMMERCIAL LENDING SOLUTIONS
n Equipment Financing n Working Capital
Financing
n Commercial Real Estate Loans
n Construction Loans
n Cash Management Services
florencebank.com/commercial-lending
Member FDIC | Member DIF
<< FEATURE >>
DECEMBER 9, 2024 9