Meet Dillon, Chad and Greg McClelland, Jimmy Disken of Goldwater Brewing Co. in Old Town, Scottsdale

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dillon, Chad and Greg McClelland, Jimmy Disken.

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
The starting point of Goldwater Brewing Co. actually dates back a few decades ago. Growing up with an avid home brewing dad, Chad & Dillon McClelland had brewing in their blood at an early age. Although at the time, it seemed that they were just grinding grains, cranking levers, adding green flower things to boiling beer soup, while making the garage smell good with dad, over the years and into their 20’s, it turned into a passion they never expected to have. Both Chad and Dillon grew to love the process of making something from nothing with patience and the guidance of their father, Greg McClelland while enjoying the final golden product of their labor.

Fast forward to having brewed many batches of craft ales and lagers with dad, mostly good ones and some bad ones, with both frustrations and increased knowledge about brewing beer, they all grew up. Chad and Dillon graduated from college and started their adult lives. Dillon received a B.A. degree in Graphic Design and landed a job as the Design Director for a leading hospitality company. From there, he started his own independent branding agency where he furthered his skills by designing high-quality logos, educating his clients on the importance of a good brand, and building quality brand identity systems for them. Chad earned a B.A. in Sociology, traveled the world, worked for a few high-end restaurants and worked as an assistant brewer at a Tempe based brewery. Treva, Chad and Dillon’s older sister, married their now partner, Jimmy Disken, who has a background in the opening, leading and managing restaurants for a popular Arizona based multi-location restaurant company.

This story really gets rolling as soon as Chad returned back from his global travels. While away, he found that he spent a majority of his time traveling to check out craft beer bars and breweries around Europe, Southeast Asia, and New Zealand also known as “boutique beer” bars. He finally realized that what he had been doing all along in the garage was what he wanted to do for his career. One of the first things Chad said at his welcome home party made the family all pretty stoked… “I want to be in the craft beer business,” he said. From that point forward, they all got behind it with their similar interests in the craft of beer.

In 2014, they got to work. Plotting out the business plan, finding a location, coming up with names, designing the brand, test brewing, and sampling commercial recipes – it all seemed to just fall right in place. Through trial and error, overcoming setbacks, construction and permit processing, Goldwater Brewing Co. was born. The Brewery and Tap Room opened on May 1st, 2015. With all four family members turned partners, all sharing the same vision for Goldwater Brewing Co., they quickly realized how well they were aligned to make a craft brewery business a success.

THE DUDES BEHIND THE BEER
Greg’s home brewing and business background are what made the initial launch of Goldwater Brewing Co. possible through his capital investments, mentorship, and the confidence to believe in his sons-turned-partners to make Goldwater the microbrewery machine it is today.

Chad’s home brewing passion and now commercial experience has allowed him to further his experience and knowledge with each batch brewed. Working in the brewhouse solo for the first two years had allowed him to understand exactly what he needed in a solid brew crew team to take the brewery to the next level. In January 2017 he recruited their new Head Brewer, Jordan Gregory, and Cellarman, Parker Duty to help further evolve Goldwater’s beer in a direction of its own.

Dillon’s branding and marketing skills have set Goldwater Brewing Co. up for success visually and literally. His philosophy when it comes to the important relationship between design and craft beer is: ”People like what they see before they taste what they like.” From graphic design, branding elements, photography, and social media output, the visual side of the business looks and feels consistent throughout all mediums giving Goldwater an industrial, handcrafted yet modern identity with value. From artfully slick can labels to the intriguing social media photos, rad merchandise, and everything in between, Dillon has taken his creative freedom with Goldwater Brewing Co. and has turned it into a recognized brand in the local craft beer scene that is constantly evolving.

Jimmy’s restaurant management knowledge and experience enabled Goldwater to get up and running quickly and he has had the tasting room operating smoothly from the beginning. Through staffing, accounting, managing, and occasional counseling, Jimmy is an operational and logistical rock star, all while providing excellent customer service and experience. Jimmy has also grown Goldwater’s wholesale distribution side of the business, with the help of their Head of Sales, Nate Steen, to where it is today – Tap handles in over 130+ bars and restaurants across the valley.

Finishing up their Fourth year of business, Goldwater Brewing Co. now employs a talented crew of individuals with the same vision and are eager to help grow the business.

THE VALUABLE TEAM
Head Brewer, Jordan Gregory has a BA in Hotel & Restaurant Management and was a former brewer at a great craft brewery based in Flagstaff, AZ. His intricate brewing skills and impeccable creativity have been a perfect match to help Goldwater achieve its unique and trendsetting culture that it is today.

Head of Sales, Nate Steen, could sell a cherry popsicle to a lady in white. Being a former sales rep for an Arizona distribution company for a few years before, he noticed the potential and took the chance on Goldwater Brewing Co., growing their wholesale distribution business quickly and effectively to make Goldwater the #1 self-distribution craft brewery in Arizona.

Cellarman and Coffee guru, Parker Duty, is eager and industrious with the passion of the craft whether it’s beer or coffee. Parker has a knack for creating something out of nothing, and it shows.

Behind the bar, you’ll find several knowledgeable beertending staff members slinging beers and sparking up a conversation to make Goldwater’s customer experience like no other.

Goldwater Brewing Co. has always been a family business, and even today that still holds true with this talented team they call family. With its always evolving and constantly improving beer recipes, quality branding, photography and designs, and the true passion to the craft of making great beer, Goldwater Brewing Co. is focused on making the best beer it can possibly make while having a damn good time doing it.

Cheers to the next chapter of Fresh Local Craft Beer!

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’d say the process thus far has had a few ups and downs, but mainly it was smooth. The biggest challenges were in the beginning stages when we set out to open an uncommon business aka a brewery in a city that didn’t have a category for them (yet). From our understanding, breweries weren’t allowed to open in Old Town, Scottsdale until we challenged the city with persistence and convincing of how important breweries could be to the local economy (as they are in other cities across the nation) From there, we were approved! The next challenges, as with starting most businesses, were in plotting out the business plan, finding a location, coming up with names, designing the brand, test brewing, and sampling commercial recipes – It all seemed to just fall right in place, but it would be naive of me to say it wasn’t challenging. Through trial and error, overcoming setbacks, construction and permit processing, Goldwater Brewing Co. was born and opened on May 1st, 2015.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Goldwater Brewing Co. – what should we know?
Our business is a collective effort from all four of our partners all using their skills and knowledge to get the job done on a daily basis. When all is said and done, we make craft beer for a living and that is pretty damn cool!

The most popular beer that we are known for is our Hop Chowda – Hazy IPA sitting at 6.4% ABV. This crushable beer is brewed with Citra, Mosaic, and El Dorado hops making it a Mango and Citrus Juice Bomb!

I’d say I’m personally proud that I was able to solely create our brand from scratch… it’s humbling to look back on it and get to say “I did that!” I’m proud of how far my partners and I were able to take this business that started as an idea from a passion my dad gave us over the last 30 years. We make what we think is good beer, and that is gratifying.

Our differentiation from other local breweries is probably that fact that we are a family run business with brewing in our blood from an early age. Growing up with an avid homebrewing dad (pretty much since birth) has given us a bit of an edge.

Here are our roles in the company – minus the mundane daily tasks of running a business:

(Greg McClelland 58) Greg’s home brewing and business background are what made the initial launch of Goldwater Brewing Co. possible through his capital investments, mentorship, and the confidence to believe in his sons-turned-partners to make Goldwater the microbrewery machine it is today.

(Chad McClelland 31) Chad’s home brewing passion and now commercial experience has allowed him to further his experience and knowledge with each batch brewed. Working in the brewhouse solo for the first two years had allowed him to understand exactly what he needed in a solid brew crew team to take the brewery to the next level. In January 2017, he recruited their new Head Brewer, Jordan Gregory, and Cellarman, Parker Duty to help further evolve Goldwater’s beer in a direction of its own.

(Dillon McClelland 29) Dillon’s branding and marketing skills have set Goldwater Brewing Co. up for success visually and literally. His philosophy when it comes to the important relationship between design and craft beer is: ”People like what they see before they taste what they like.” From graphic design, branding elements, photography, and social media output, the visual side of the business looks and feels consistent throughout all mediums giving Goldwater an industrial, handcrafted yet modern identity with value. From artfully slick can labels to the intriguing social media photos, rad merchandise, and everything in between, Dillon has taken his creative freedom with Goldwater Brewing Co. and has turned it into a recognized brand in the local craft beer scene that is constantly evolving.

(Jimmy Disken 35) Jimmy’s restaurant management knowledge and experience enabled Goldwater to get up and running quickly and he has had the tasting room operating smoothly from the beginning. Through staffing, accounting, managing, and occasional counseling, Jimmy is an operational and logistical rock star, all while providing excellent customer service and experience. Jimmy has also grown Goldwater’s wholesale distribution side of the business, with the help of their Head of Sales, Nate Steen, to where it is today – Tap handles in over 130+ bars and restaurants across the valley.

Finishing up their fourth year of business, Goldwater Brewing Co. now employs a talented crew of individuals with the same vision and are eager to help grow the business.

What are your plans for the future?
Our future plans are simple: Keep making Fresh Local Craft Beer, then make it better. We’re looking into potentially opening a few small Tap Rooms around the valley, but nothing set in stone yet.

Contact Info:

• Address: 3608 N. Scottsdale Rd. Scottsdale, Arizona 85251
• Website: goldwaterbrewing.com
• Phone: 4803507305
• Email: dillon@goldwaterbrewing.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/goldwaterbrewingco @goldwaterbrewingco
• Facebook: facebook.com/goldwaterbrewingco
• Other: untappd.com/goldwaterbrewingco

Image Credit:
Beer Photos: Dillon McClelland (Instagram @dillonxjames), Partner Photos: Alyssa McClelland (Instagram @alyssasxlens)

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