Finding his true calling

Lisa and Mike Beckman behind the bar at their 238 Brewing Company on Green Bluff.

Opening a brewery on Green Bluff in the dead of winter wasn’t exactly what Mike Beckman had in mind.

But when he finally received federal license approval at the beginning of January following a 14-month grind – which he calls “the single most painful experience of my life” – he didn’t want to wait any longer.

So 238 Brewing Company, fueled by recipes Beckman has honed over five years of homebrewing and staffed by wife Lisa and daughter Taylor, has been opening on the weekends at Legacy Farm, the family Christmas tree operation.

The name comes from the Green Bluff phone prefix, reflected in an antique telephone-style logo. And it’s fair to say that Beckman is still getting things dialed in. He’s been busy brewing away on a tiny 1-barrel system, trying to keep his six taps stocked.

“I’ve lost 15 pounds since we opened. If I’m not driving a cop car, I’m making beer,” says Beckman, a sheriff’s deputy by day.

“We’re not making any money, but we’re paying the bills. It’s all that I hoped for and everything I feared, all at the same time.”

The temporary taproom, in a century-old, 200-square-foot former millhouse, is cozy with a homey charm from an assortment of mismatched furniture, a pellet stove and an array of farm photos, art pieces and beer memorabilia on the walls.

The short bar is fronted with corrugated metal trimmed in wood, a motif echoed on surrounding walls. There are no stools – which, under the state’s sometimes curious liquor laws, means minors are allowed on the premises.

“Green Bluff is a family-friendly atmosphere all around, so we’re going to stay family-friendly,” says Beckman.

It’s been standing-room only at times, with customers coming from all around through word-of-mouth. Having the bluff’s first brewery, nearby Big Barn, open on weekends this winter as well has helped.

“He sends people my way, and I send people his way,” Beckman says of Big Barn’s Craig Deitz, adding: ”I couldn’t have asked for a better mentor.”

Reflecting both the remote location and his professional sensibilities, Beckman’s beers are sessionable in strength. “This is a jaunt for somebody to come up here and have a beer,” he says. “I don’t want people to get hammered.”