A growler on a table at Stoup brewery in Seattle
A growler on a table at Stoup brewery in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood.

Seattle is undergoing a craft brewing renaissance, with small beer makers such as Reuben’s, Populuxe and Schooner Exact expanding faster than yeast on a warm summer day.

There are so many amazing choices, what’s a beer connoisseur to do?

Brewtown — a new membership club set to begin in January — wants to help. The startup plans to deliver a fresh growler of beer from a local brewery every Friday or Saturday, delivering to addresses within a 25-mile radius of downtown Seattle.

Brewtown's Duncan and MIller.
Brewtown’s Ian Duncan and Ryan MIller.

Memberships cost $60 per month, or $15 per growler, with beer lovers able to choose two different “tasting tracks” and pick from three different delivery windows.

Like Uber, Lyft or Postmates, the growler club will be accompanied by a mobile app designed to make it easy to get an assortment of IPAs, porters or ales.

Ryan Miller and Ian Duncan, two programmers who met at a software company in Bellingham, are behind the hop-heavy project.

“We’re trying to find awesome ways to bring beer to people, simple as that,” Miller said. Duncan, who currently lives in South Carolina, handles most of the technical side of the business while Miller oversees operations in Seattle. Both shared a passion for beer and a desire to build products that people love. Growler delivery seemed like a natural fit.

BrewlistThough the concept of a monthly beer club is nothing new, most clubs ship bottled beer through the mail. Brewtown wants to stand apart by offering fresh, local beer straight from the keg each week.

This is made possible by the growler, a glass or ceramic beer jug that typically contains 64 ounces — about four pints.

Pike Brewing founder Charles Finkel says the growler may be the biggest phenomenon in beer after craft brewing itself.

“Growlers are hugely popular, because essentially you drink draft beer at home,” he said.

Miller and Duncan hope to capitalize on the growing craft beer industry, which is thriving in the Northwest, by providing a way for people to navigate the myriad of options.

Estimated to be worth roughly $4.3 billion to the state’s economy, craft beer is growing at a rapid pace. But the sheer number of options can be overwhelming.

At worst, beer snobs can make it even more daunting to get into the local beer scene.

“A lot of places, they’re kind of intimidating,” said self-professed “beer geeks” Neil Carlsen and Joni Fuller just outside of the Greenwood craft beer haven Chuck’s Hop Shop.

Perhaps most important is Brewtown’s ability to deliver high-quality choices each week, lest beer lovers be left with a half-gallon of swill.

Growler and beer. Photo via Kurt Schlosser
Growler and beer. Photo via Kurt Schlosser

“Then you’re stuck with a growler that you’re not going to drink,” said Fuller.

Brewtown members will be able to select from various types of beer that cater to their preferences. So someone who loves lighter beers won’t end up with 64 ounces of something too dark for their tastes.

Brewtown still has liquor licensing hoops to go through, logistics to solve, capital to raise and partnerships to solidify before the deliveries begin in January. But Miller says the initial feedback via Twitter and Reddit has been extremely positive.

“We think we’ve found a service that people really want,” he said.

With a prime location and 25 years of brewing experience, Finkel acknowledges that Pike Brewing is fortunate to not have to focus on exposure as much as a newcomer would.

But Brewtown could assist nascent brewers who are looking to get their product known.

“A guy who is just starting out, this very well may be a gateway for him to promote his product,” he said.

NearbyIn addition to giving local brewers a way to get their beer to more people, Miller hopes the built-in market of the growler club will allow brewers to create special beers that they couldn’t afford otherwise, so long as the customers are willing to be adventurous.

“That instantly makes a whole spectrum of beers possible that sold one at a time wouldn’t make sense,” Miller said.

The Brewtown mobile app is set to launch later this month and is intended to set the framework for Brewtown’s long-term aspirations.

Ideally, Miller and Duncan envision Brewtown as a platform for people to discover and share local beer that they love. The app shows local microbreweries on a map of Seattle, what they’re brewing, and some basic information on the brewery and the beer.

So, will it work?

At the intersection of two growing industries, the question will be if craft beer — combined with mobile technology — can take off.

“We’re going to offer our answer to that question,” Miller said.“And we think we’ve got a really great answer.”

Previously on GeekWire: Quick liquor: Alcohol delivery service Drizly launches in Seattle

Jack Truitt is a student in the University of Washington’s News Lab program. 

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