Rick Stidham was kind enough to sit down with me and discuss the beginnings of Akasha Brewing Company and add another beer adventure to my list of craft breweries I have visited. Rick started with his business partner, Jerry Nawrocki, in 2012 by purchasing used equipment to get them started—the taproom on E. Market Street opened in 2015. With 25 years of experience brewing all types of beers and humble beginnings, Akasha Brewing now routinely has 15 of their own unique beers available and has gained recognition as an award-winning craft brewery. In the video below, Rick explains how they got started and how they brought back the famous Fehr’s Beer recipe into the 21st century. Visit their website at: Akasha Brewing Company.
While talking with Rick, I had a Fehr’s lager. It is a clean and easy drinking beer that, until recently, had not been available since 1964. At one time, Fehr’s Beer was the most widely consumed beer in the city of Louisville. Frank Fehr first began brewing beer in Louisville in 1872 and by 1903 was producing over 120,000 barrels a year. The owner of the Fehr’s brand came to Rick with a proposal to resurrect the Fehr’s brand but they had a problem. The recipe only cited barley in the recipe. Well, there are hundreds of varieties of barley so they had to do a lot of research and a lot of testing before they were confident that they had it right. I wish I could have been there for the testing. I don’t know if their version is a fair representation of the old brew but I thought it was a clean and crisp lager with a fast finish. I thoroughly enjoyed the Fehr’s lager and recommend a visit to Akasha to sample at least one.
Also, I tried the Hail Mary. It is a fantastic West Coast IPA and my personal favorite of all of their offerings. I haven’t tried them all, but I am working on it. The Hail Mary is a bit sweet, so it goes down easy, but you have to be careful. It is a 7.5% ABV so that easy going down can sneak up on you. I was glad I had a driver because before I was aware, four plus a Fehr’s lager were down the hatch. I was in my happy place.
It was a beer adventure to remember. Rick Stidham was a fine host, and I am grateful for the time. Akasha Brewing Company has become a staple in Louisville, Ky and a destination that every beer lover has to visit.
If you have an event or would like to learn more about Akasha Brewing Company, please visit their website at: https://www.akashabrewing.com/#taproom-section
