Short Story Brewing: Brewing With The Family

Oct 1, 2019 | Entrepreneurs, Positively West Virginia

Aaron Rote, the co-owner of Short Story Brewing, located in Rivesville, West Virginia, talked with The Positively West Virginia Podcast host, Jim Matuga, about his business, his vision and his advice to young entrepreneurs.


How many gallons of beer are you brewing?

“About 2,400 gallons of beer. That sounds like a lot but we are probably what you call a small/medium size brewery,” said Rote.

What is your 30-second pitch for Short Story Brewing?

“Short Story is a small family-owned business that really appreciates the art of craft beer making across the spectrum of beer styles, but we also see ourselves as a central part of our community,” said Rote.

Can you talk about your beer variety?

“One of our most popular varieties is Ready, Steady, Go which is a Citra Pale Ale. It is a nice kind of easy-drinking pale ale with a little bit of a citrus flavor. We have also recently brewed our first barrel-aged stout; we used barrels from Smooth Ambler in Lewisburg. We just released our first two sour beers, so we are kind of responding to how the market is changing a little bit,” said Rote.

What’s the long-term vision for your company? 

“I think our short-term vision is to become more efficient, to save some time and money so that long-term if we ever want to expand or open up another tap room somewhere else we will be completely prepared for that,” said Rote.

Rote was a guest on The Positively West Virginia Podcast. Listen to his full podcast here.

PWV QUICK BITS | SHORT STORY BREWING

  • RECOMMENDED BOOK: Rote likes to use examples from others when drawing up business plans.
  • RECOMMENDED RESOURCE: Ekos
  • PIECE OF ADVICE: “Go and talk to as many people as you can in a related field,” advised Rote.

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