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Owen Ogletree's Brewtopia Brewsletter
September 12, 2023
Owen is founder/editor of Brewtopia.info, columnist for Southern Brew News and Beer Connoisseur Magazine, lecturer at Knoxville's Brewing & Distilling Center, founder of the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting and Classic City Brew Fest, a BJCP National Beer Judge, and judge for Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup.
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Follow our craft beer adventures...
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- Lynette Shoaf of Low Road Brewing in Hammond, Louisiana
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 By Kerri Allen
Imagine taking over your favorite brewery because you liked it so much and didn’t want to see it go away. Lynette Shoaf and her husband, Tim, did exactly this with Low Road Brewing in Hammond, Louisiana. The community's thirsty patrons have been appreciative ever since.
According to Lynette, “Low Road was originally opened in 2017 by a former homebrewer after retiring from a corporate career. My husband, Tim, and I enjoyed the atmosphere and became regulars in the taproom. We were avid home mead makers at the time, and the original Low Road owner would invite homebrewers to bring their recipes in to brew with him. The brewery would then feature the guest beer on tap for a month. This experience was our introduction to brewing beer, and we brewed with him several times over the first few years. In early 2020, the original owner wanted to retire again, and we decided to purchase the brewery. We didn't want to see the brewery close and felt we could grow the business. We signed the purchase agreement the week before COVID shut the world down. We continued working full-time jobs in the corporate world while operating the brewery once restrictions allowed us to open at partial capacity. This allowed us to keep the brewery open.”
Raise your pints to Louisiana's first female head brewer - Lynette Shoaf! In early discussions, her husband and fellow owner, Tim, would be the brewer, and Lynette would handle the front of the house and other business areas. Like any good story, this one has a twist. Lynette shares, “We quickly realized I was better at recipe creation, and I really developed a passion for brewing. I started learning as much as I could about brewing through books, professional organization resources and from other brewers. Tim stepped back from the brewery, and I became the first female head brewer in the state.”
Tim and Lynette Shoaf
Challenges Create Strength
After dealing with the pandemic and all of its challenges for businesses, Lynette and Tim have been successful in growing Low Road. Lynette recalls, “In late 2021, we changed our licensing from a brewpub to a manufacturing brewery so we could go into distribution. This has really fueled significant growth for our brand. With only a 3-bbl brewhouse, it requires a lot of brewing to keep up with taproom and distribution demand.”
Being flexible and working through challenges says much about Lynette's passion for the craft and her understanding of the business. Owning a brewery is not a walk in the park. People who do not know better probably imagine a leisurely brew day with a relaxing pint at the end. However, those familiar with professional brewing understand the huge amount of work, cleaning and maintenance involved. These are the challenges of living out the dream of making beer for the public. On this thread, Lynette comments, “Even though we eventually added some part-time brewhouse and taproom staff, I was often working 15-18 hour days between my other job and the brewery, and the stress began to take a significant toll on my health. I eventually decided to leave my job in the corporate world to focus on our brewery full-time.”
When asked about her favorite part of being involved in a brewery, Lynette responds, “I love working in an industry where the other brewery owners and staff are collaborative and supportive of each other, rather than being competitive like most other industries. Most people in craft beer seem more than happy to share knowledge and resources and work together to improve the industry.”
The Low Road Team
An Evolving Brewing Landscape
Every good job has its challenges and rewards. Lynette says that her biggest challenge “has been staying profitable in a constantly changing environment. Changing consumer habits and tastes and rising ingredient and supply costs, paired with availability issues, often create a struggle. Craft beer consumers expect our core brands to be consistent, available, and reasonably priced. When ingredient prices rise, or something isn't available, we can't always substitute something else without affecting the final product. So, you might have to raise prices, which the market will only tolerate so much. We never want to run out of one of our core products. It's much harder to bring consumers back to that product once they move on to something else. Fortunately, the majority of our beers are traditional beer styles. Our top sellers are an American lager and an Irish red ale, so current trends moving consumers back to these traditional styles actually work in our favor.”
What is rewarding after all of the challenges? Lynette states, “The greatest reward is when a patron comes into the taproom for the first time, and I get to see their reaction when they try my beer. If they have no idea who I am, and they appreciate my beer, it's a wonderful feeling. Having people genuinely enjoy something I created makes it worth the long hours, hard work and stress-filled days.”
Low Road's Brewhouse
Not All Brewers Have Beards
Women make up half the population of the world. So many industries miss opportunities to have amazing people working in them because of a “boys club” mentality. When asked why women are important to the industry, Lynette responds, “Just like any industry, a variety of people with different ideas, backgrounds and personalities are vital for growth. If everyone in the industry is the same with the same ideas, the craft beer industry stagnates. We need the creativity and variety that arise from having many different people in the industry, each challenging the others to improve."
For craft breweries to attract more women, Lynette believes that the public's perception of a craft brewer needs to change. "There have been many instances in our taproom or at a craft beer event where someone assumes Tim is the brewer," she relates. "They ask him about a particular recipe or process, and when he admits that he doesn't know and that I'm the brewer, people sometimes don't believe him. I've been referred to as 'the owner's wife' or 'the brewer's wife' on multiple occasions. The expectation that a brewer has to be a 30-something white male with a beard needs to shift.”
Community Connections
What can people expect when paying a visit to Low Road Brewing? Lynette stresses that Low Road is a brewery with a heart for the community. She adds, “One of the things we love about owning a brewery is that it gives us a great platform to support veterans. Our top-selling beer, Twenty-Two American Lager, is brewed specifically for this purpose. We donate 22% from sales of this beer to Irreverent Warriors, a nationwide program that works to improve veteran mental health and prevent veteran suicides. We also host an annual amateur wing cookoff and homebrew competition called 'Wings & Ale.' This November festival raises funds for our local VFW.” Head on down to Low Road Brewing in Hammond, Louisiana, hoist a tasty pint and help some deserving veterans in the process.
This article was first published in:
Photos Courtesy of Low Road Brewing
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- Last Chance for a spot with Brewtopia in New Orleans
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Brewtopia beer trips are hosted and organized by Owen Ogletree who is a craft beer expert, world beer traveler, beer columnist and national beer judge. These are the most affordable and enjoyable beer journeys around!
Last call for beer lovers to join our epic New Orleans group beer tour in February!
INSIDER NEW ORLEANS BEER & FOOD TOUR
We fly into MSY during the day on February 21, with a group dinner that evening at 7 PM (the rest of this day is free time). Fly home on February 26. Everyone will get a hotel room from me on February 21 for five nights, checking out on February 26.
Experience the best of the city's breweries, pubs and food! Owen has visited New Orleans almost 50 times and knows all the best spots and hidden gems! This tour involves some walking. Airfare and airport transfers are not included.
- VIP visits to all of New Orleans' best breweries.
- Sip cocktails in some of the city's most historic bars.
- Explore hidden gems in the lovely French Quarter.
- Savor exquisite food at many of the city's favorite restaurants and pubs.
- Cruise across the Mississippi River to check out an English-themed pub.
- Take our luxury charter bus across massive Lake Pontchartrain to visit breweries such as Abita, Gnarly Barley and Low Road.
- Ride the St. Charles streetcar to see the garden district and personable pubs.
- Experience live New Orleans music.
- Peruse the colorful Mardi Gras Museum.
- Walking tour of the French Market and Jackson Square.
- Befriend alligators on a Cajun boat swamp tour.
- Tour the beautiful Faubourg Brewery (AKA Dixie) to learn about its history and taste all the experimental beers.
- Tour the historic Sazerac House Distillery.
- Enjoy gumbo, grilled oysters and local beer at Acme Oyster House.
- Includes one evening of free time to explore the French Quarter on your own.
- Includes tours, group ground transportation, private charter bus and driver, guides, information, hotel, and all food and drinks for group meals and group gatherings. Breakfasts are NOT included for this trip, but many breakfast options exist close to our hotel.
- Only $1795 per person (double occupancy) - add $399 for a single room.
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- New Lambics and Imperial Stouts Available in Georgia
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 Georgia craft beer distributor Modern Hops announces exciting new Lambics and Imperial Stouts hitting Georgia retail stores, restaurants and bars right about now. Here's a taste:
 Gueuzerie Tilquin - Belgium
Available in 375 ml bottles:
Oude Airelle Sauvage Tilquin à l'Ancienne (6.5% Lambic) is a spontaneously fermented fruited lambic with a little over a pound of lingonberries per gallon.
Oude Gueuze Tilquin à l'Ancienne (7% Lambic) is a blend of one, two and three-year-old lambic refermented in the bottle for at least six months.
Meerts Tilquin aux Fruits des Bois (5.6% Lambic) is a lambic made with five different forest fruits that were fermented for a period of four months in a blend of 80% one-year-old Meerts and 20% of a blend of different two-year-old lambics.
Short Throw Brewing - Virginia
Available on draft:
Toltron Red (Hazelnut & Coffee) is an 11.6% imperial stout with hazelnut and coffee.
Toltron Green (Maple) is an 11.6% imperial stout made with Vermont maple syrup.
Toltron Yellow (Vanilla Beans) comes in as an 11.6% imperial stout fermented with vanilla beans.
Toltron Blue (Toasted Coconut). Generous additions of toasted coconut make this 11.6% imperial stout super delicious.
Modern Hops is a valued sponsor of this Brewsletter.
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- 09/16/2023 OKTOBERFEST at BOLD MONK BREWING in Atlanta. Bold Monk Brewing celebrates Oktoberfest with its release of the annual favorite Festbier. The Oktoberfest celebration takes place on the traditional beginning day of Munich's Oktoberfest on September 16. Get tickets.
- 01/20/2024 ATLANTA CASK ALE TASTING. Mark your calendars for one of Atlanta's favorite craft beer fests that's returning again to the wonderful Bold Monk Brewing. Tickets on sale now!
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- Follow Owen Ogletree and Brewtopia Events on Social Media
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UP NEXT...
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Owen takes a group of 17 lucky beer lovers to experience Munich's famed Oktoberfest and Bamberg's smoked lagers and exceptional beer culture. CLICK HERE to read about our 2024 group trips. We would love to have you along!
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