By Nick Haseloff
Most breweries focus only on producing beer, but one small brewery in Hendersonville is looking to strengthen their community and give shelter to animals in need while crafting unique and modern brews.
Patrons mingle at the bar at Sanctuary Brewing in downtown Hendersonville. The brewery opened its doors two years ago with the mission of animal advocacy and community empowerment.
Photo by Nick Haseloff
Sanctuary Brewing Company opened its doors two years ago, and from the start, the owners decided to create an atmosphere that was different from many breweries in the area. Lisa McDonald and Joe Dinan are co-owners of the brewery and said that they knew from the start that they were going to accomplish more than just brewing beer.
“We have this unique social responsibility and this community-driven focus,” McDonald said. “It started out with animal advocacy and then grew from there.”
Lisa McDonald
Co-Founder and Co-Owner of Sanctuary Brewing
McDonald and Dinan said they moved to Western North Carolina from Chicago and created a animal sanctuary on the three acres they lived on. They started with just a few dogs but their farm quickly grew to 13 animals of all shapes and sizes.
“The farm is only a couple miles from the brewery so it’s nice to be able to go back and forth and check on the chickens or play with our pig,” McDonald said.
The animal sanctuary they created earned its 501(c)(3) status as a non-profit organization recently and McDonald said she looks forward to what the future has to bring. They plan to develop their animal care efforts alongside their brewery.
“This new designation is really good news for us and means that we can expand our animal care even further,” McDonald said.
When Dinan and McDonald set out to open their brewery in 2015, they wanted to form a business that could support their animal care efforts and vice versa. They named the brewery Sanctuary as an homage to their message.
“Since the day we opened, we’ve kind of looked towards the community instead of towards ourselves,” McDonald said.
The brewery is host to an animal adoption event every week and a multitude of other events that center around the community throughout the year she said. Some of the events include yoga with cats, live music, benefits for local non-profits, trivia nights and a weekly community meal that is provided free of charge.
“The whole idea of Sanctuary goes a step further, as this is a safe haven for people that might not be accepted in other places,” McDonald said. “We’re very open minded. I didn’t think this town would ever have a place like this. I think it’s easy to gravitate to this place because it creates a sense of warmth and happiness and kindness.”
Events focused on people hosted at the brewery center around people that are marginalized or need help getting back on their feet. The philanthropic nature of the brewery makes it unlike many of its peers.
“The brewery here has become much more than a place to come in for a couple beers,” Dinan said. “It’s a meeting spot, it’s a spot for families to come, it’s a place for people ages 8 to 80 to come.”
Dinan and McDonald attribute their altruistic approach to business to their success in the community. They said many of the patrons of the brewery are regulars and often participate in the events they host.
“There are a lot of breweries that make good beer,” said Troy Colbert, blogger, beer fanatic and frequent patron of Sanctuary Brewing Company. “What sets Sanctuary Brewing Company apart is that they make fantastic beer and through their animal rights activism and their strong community ties have an eye on making the world a better place. They have made Hendersonville a better place to live.”
Dinan, who acts as head brewer, said the beer they brew is made to suit many different tastes and works off of seasonal flavors and ingredients.
“About half of the beer is something seasonal or a staple and the other half is just stuff I’m interested in brewing,” Dinan said. “I’m just trying to put out a consistently good product that is pushing the envelope of the scene.”
Dinan said the brewery tries to support the community in their brewing as well. When possible, the brewery purchases fresh ingredients from local farmers.
“We try and go local as often as possible but it can be tricky,” Dinan said. “Sometimes you want to brew a beer with something that’s out of season locally. But when we can, we try and get our ingredients from around us.”
Sanctuary Brewing Company also supports other local breweries in the community. Black Star Line Brewing opened shop last month in Hendersonville and Founder L.A. McCrae said the help they received was pivotal in their success.
“Joe and Lisa have been a huge help in starting up Black Star Line,” McCrae said. “They’ve really devoted a lot of themselves to helping us get started.”
Dinan attributes most of his success in brewing to time he spent in other breweries learning the trade. He said the best thing new breweries can do is to get as much experience as possible before they start.
“It’s stressful as hell opening up a brewery,” Dinan said. “And the more you can prepare yourself for that first year, by working at another place or learning in a program, the better chance you’ll have.”
Dinan and McDonald said that they don’t think there will be a limit to the number of breweries that the economy can support in Western North Carolina.
“Nobody ever talks about coffee house saturation or roastery saturation and there’s probably triple if not quadruple what there is in coffee compared to breweries,” McDonald said.
They are thrilled to see new breweries popping up in the surrounding area and welcome newcomers in Hendersonville as well.
“Our doors are always open. So if anybody ever has a question, if they want to come in here and intern, if they want to come in here and learn or need advice, we’re here,” Dinan said.