Down Home Brewing Company is not just another craft brewery. It is a family-owned and operated brewery founded by Chris Reeves along with William Allen Moore. It is the first brewing company in Georgia owned by African Americans.
Down Home Brewing began canning beer in early 2018, but the concept started way before. “Home-brewing has always been a passion of mine. I started experimenting with different recipes back in 2010, and would have family and friends taste the batches. I received an overwhelming response of how good everything tasted, and asked if I ever thought about putting any out in the market. With the support of family and friends, I took the risk to put Down Home Brewing on the map,” says Reeves.
Reeves wanted to build a company people could relate to. The logo for Down Home, which was self-funded with investment from family members, is an image of Reeves’s late grandfather, Herschel Thompson, who was a local sharecropper and church deacon.
“We are an experience, and we aim to be a part of your life. People can relate to our story behind Down Home Brewing. My grandfather Hershel Thompson was my inspiration for Down Home. He was a respected and spiritual man in the community and instilled the core values that DHB stands by: family, respect and ambition. He was laid to rest in 1998, but brought back to life in 2010 as the face of Down Home Brewing. Each beer is a new adventure. We want you to enjoy life and what it has to offer. No matter what you’re doing or where you’re going in life, you will never forget where you came from; you will never forget ‘home’,” says Reeves.
As with any new business, it has taken time to get followers. “A major challenge we face is awareness and getting our brand out there. We’re coming up to our one-year anniversary and we’re slowly starting to pick up steam. We let our beers do the talking. We have a good following, and it will only get better as we go further down the road,” shares Reeves.
The goal is to make the product stand out. “We currently have two in the market, but will have five staple beers once we get our brick and mortar. They are all light and refreshing and will increase in complexity and flavor as we begin to get more in depth with craft beer. We carefully selected each product, so that we have a beer for everyone. Whether you’re just getting into craft beer or are a beer aficionado, we have something for you,” says Reeves.
The company is already thinking ahead. “We’re currently contract brewing through another brewery. We are in the process of searching for a brick and mortar to call our own. Hopefully, we will find one before the end of the year or the beginning of the next, so we can begin the development phases of the brewery,” says Reeves.
