Traits you might need to possess in order to become a brewer: A love of beer. The willingness to work long hours for the perfect sip. A degree in mechanical engineering, fluid mechanics and heat transfer. That last one is optional, but it's the path Friends & Allies' head brewer, Nathan Crane, took when he studied at the University of Miami before making the switch to brewing. After attending the University of California at Davis' Master Brewers program, he gained his brewing chops working at the renowned Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey in San Marcos, CA, where he met Friends & Allies co-founder Devon Ponds. When Ponds decided to open the East Austin brewery with Ben Sabin in 2015, Crane jumped on board, and the three have since turned Friends & Allies into one of Austin's best breweries. We sat down with Crane to chat about beer trends in the Texas capital, his favorite spots around town and, oh yeah, that ImPeach beer.
When you were coming up with Friends & Allies' four core beers (Noisy Cricket, Springdale, Urban Chicken, Fresh Coast), what was your strategy?
I’m not going to make a beer that I’m not going to drink, which sounds egotistical but I’m really doing this for everybody else to enjoy. We wanted to brew styles that are fun, that sell well and that work well with the community. Obviously everybody loves IPAs, so that was just going to happen. And then I love saison. The four core beers are half Belgian, half American, because that’s how I came up doing it at the Abbey. It’s hot here, so you have to have options where people can drink multiple beers without feeling weighed down on their palate.
What's unique about brewing in Austin?
I was taught that you have seasonality when it comes to beer. But people kept asking for a dark beer [in the summer]. Think about it: Shiner Bock is ingrained in the DNA of Texas beer culture. It’s lighter in body and flavor, but it has dark malts, which is why you get that color. So I made Dark Ritual, which is our dark Belgian.
Your ImPeach saison has been getting a lot of buzz.
Texas peaches are beautiful, which is what started the whole thing. With ImPeach, we brainstormed the names a lot and we were having a really rough time with it. What rhymes with peach? A lot of names have been taken. And then it just hit me right at the end and I shouted it out and everybody loved it. It’s relevant in the style, but also in popular culture—and it’s a subject that is important for people to talk about. Beer creates community and always has. Our hope was that ImPeach would spark conversation over a beer with your friends, your allies, a stranger next to you. But the main point was to make a great beer that everyone would enjoy.
Photograph: Courtesy Friends & Allies Brewing
Where do you like to grab a drink?
On the weekends, I like to head over to Craft Pride. They have a few of our beers but also a really great selection in general. Behind Craft Pride is Via 313, which has beautiful pizza. It’s a no-brainer if I want a pizza and a beer. I love the Rocket, but I like red sauce so I get this conundrum in my head, and sometimes I’ll do half white and half red. If you ask nicely, sometimes they’ll do it.
Do you have a hangover brunch spot?
One of my favorite brunch places is Hillside Farmacy. Then I need to be outside and doing stuff—walking the Greenbelt with some beers, because a hair of the dog is best but you have to work yourself back to that. The Urban Chicken or the Noisy Cricket—something light and not heavy. Everyone asks me what my favorite beer of ours is, and it’s like your kids, man, they’re all great.
What new Friends & Allies beers can people look forward to this fall?
We have a Belgian quadrupel coming out in the near future—we got bourbon barrels in for this (secondhand used, so they’re not going to impart so much bourbon). It’s going to be a beautiful thing. It’s going to be on tap without the barrels before that, and it'll probably be out at the beginning of September, because you want to hit that fall period and let it last until the end of January/beginning of February.
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