Former Future Brewing Company staffing up for launch in early December

Former Future Brewing Company is on track to open its taproom at 1290 S. Broadway in early December and will make three hires before the first beer is poured.

Former Future's husband-and-wife Co-Founders James and Sarah Howat were inspired by looking back in time. "We take historical ideas -- more than just the beer -- and we reinvent them and put a modern spin on them," says Sarah, Former Future's Community Builder. James is heading up the brewing, with a microbiology degree and six years of brewing experience.

Sarah says employees will have an opportunity to grow with the brewery. "We really want to build people up in the company, and not just have them be a bartender."

Fin Art is working on the interior of the 2,700-square-foot space on Antique Row. The goal is to make it a comfortable room for the neighborhood.

"Back in the early 1900s, the taproom was a communal place," says Sarah. "We're going to have a huge community focus."

To this end, Former Future has attracted about 3,000 'Likes' on Facebook before brewing its first barrel of beer. "A lot of brewers don't take the time to build that up before they launch," notes Sarah.

Former Future is selling $175 memberships that include limited-edition bottle releases and a pair of growlers -- the only growlers that can be filled at the taproom.

"We're going to have a lab onsite," Sarah says. "James does a lot with yeast. We actually propagated the yeast in our saison from our neighbor's apple tree."