“Sooner or later, everything old is new again” wrote Stephen King, in his novel The Colorado Kid in 2005. He might have well said it as he gazed upon the restoration of the Mill at Vicksburg in 2021.
From a leading producer of fine paper in the early 20th century, originally built by Lee Paper Company, eventually being abandoned at the beginning of the 21st century this massive building will soon be home to a world class destination for craft beer lovers. It’s taken many years of hard work, vision, community relationships, and cooperation from a vast number of stakeholders to restore a 420,000 square foot building and transform it into a multi-faceted facility, set to open in 2025. In addition to housing a brewery, the Mill will house a boutique hotel, conference/event space, and a museum housing beer memorabilia. The Mill is located in the village of Vicksburg (population 2,906) which is located in Kalamazoo County, MI, and sits nicely equidistant between Chicago, IL and Detroit, MI – it is about 150 miles from both.
It all started with a phone call. Chris Moore, the visionary and now owner for the Mill at Vicksburg, received from his mother Sue back in 2014. The Mill had been part of the fabric of Vicksburg for nearly a century and after paper making had left the region, it had fallen into disrepair and talk of its demolition was becoming common. The Mill had been such an important part of Chris’s life, both his father and grandfather made careers there, along with some stints for him as a young man. It was the economic engine of the community and the thought of losing this giant seemed tragic, akin to losing a part of the community identity.
After many meetings at the local, state, and federal level Chris managed to save the Mill while also preserving its integrity indefinitely, getting it added to the Federal Historic Registry. He also began forming what the future would hold for the Mill and how it could be an economic engine once again. Beer would be a big part of the Mill’s future.
Chris has a long-held passion for beer and brewing. It began in the 80s, influenced in part by the early efforts of Larry Bell in his first foray with Kalamazoo Brewing in the mid 1980s (eventually becoming the nationally renowned Bell’s Brewery and then working at Widmer Brothers Brewing in 1989, another early pioneer in America’s brewing renaissance.
In 2016 Chris and co-founder Brian Stan opened Old Stove Brewing Co. in Pike Place Market in Seattle, WA. Old Stove has since expanded to the MarketFront of Pike Place. Their brews have won awards and the connection between the legendary gastronomic offerings of Pike Place and their beer will continue at the Mill. The importance of pairing food and beer adds to a rich layer of offerings that are being developed for the project in Vicksburg. In opening Old Stove Brewing , Chris said he felt like he was ‘standing on the shoulder of giants’ referencing all the hard work, including the tough legislative efforts pioneers like Kurt Widmer made, paving the way for thousands of breweries. It didn’t stop there. Many of these early trailblazers even had to build their own brewery equipment to see their vision through. These early influences helped shape the opportunity Chris saw to leverage his passion for beer, brewing, and history while turning the Mill into something very special once again.
Chris’s deep fascination with the beer industry also includes unique and rare brewery memorabilia which he began collecting many years ago. With so much history behind the Mill at Vicksburg it was only logical that these artifacts of American brewing history would be preserved and celebrated; ideally, while enjoying a delicious brew. Leaning on reputable collectors and historians, the breweriana collection has grown substantially and will have its own museum in Vicksburg called the Cone Top Brewery Museum. The Mill is working closely with the National Association of Breweriana Advertising to collaborate on the museum.
Something as monumental as revitalizing the Mill cannot be done in a vacuum, and the Village of Vicksburg is a big part of what will make the Mill successful. Chris has wryly stated that ‘all roads lead to Vicksburg’, leaning on the broad infrastructure of transportation that allowed the vast papermaking industry in SW Michigan to thrive for nearly a century. Road and rail are abundant, but massive economic inputs of a project this size are significant. Vicksburg is a very charming and historic town, but like many downtowns across the Midwest, efforts need to be made to preserve and celebrate the architecture, commerce, and vibrancy to support future growth. Chris has assembled a team to help him support the Village’s efforts to not only preserve the history and vitality but also help prepare it for a significant economic lift the Mill will once again bring.
As chronicled elsewhere in this blog, the resurgence of brewing across America started with homebrewing. Homebrewing and craft brewing are intertwined in countless ways across the country. Larry Bell started as a homebrewer before opening his own homebrew equipment shop. On the other side of the country, the legendary Ken Grossman started Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., after finding his passion in homebrewing. The Mill will have features that celebrate homebrewing history and its future, the final scope of which will be finalized in the coming years. Homebrewers are perhaps the greatest advocates for craft brewing and a vital part of its identity. The Mill wants to recognize the grassroots history, entrepreneurialism and passion that has built, not only a national industry but a global one.
History will be part of the fabric that weaves through the ecosystem of the Mill, including of course, brewing. Over the last three decades innovative American craft brewers have created new styles and processes, while continuing to search for resources to create even more distinct brews. Going back over a century, rural brewers across the country and abroad had to utilize resources that were available locally, from grains to yeast. Chris has long felt the need to support American farming, sponsoring Cascadia Grains since 2016 and the Great Lakes Hop and Barley Conference since 2017. Vitality and diversity are critical for healthy agriculture and in turn, brewing. Further, it supports brewing innovation, a pillar of craft brewing enterprise. Brewing at the Mill will embrace brewing history, its rural roots, innovation and support the local farming community.
There is much, much more to share and celebrate about the future of the Mill at Vicksburg, particularly on the brewing side. With the Mill slated to open in a few years, stay tuned for more details about how the Mill will be a compelling destination for all those that love history, music, and of course, delicious brews.
Guest Blogger
This blog entry was written by guest blogger, Brian Bastien.
Brian Bastien
A passionate advocate of the craft beer industry, Brian’s brewery career began as a homebrewer before completing a BA at University of Western Ontario, in Economics. His 20-plus years of experience leading teams and building markets across North America includes senior roles with Moosehead, Carlsberg, and most recently as a VP with Newlands Systems, a custom brewery equipment manufacturer. While studying an International MBA at the University of Wales, he wrote a dissertation on strategic brewery brand growth across global markets. Brian is leading the brewery and distillery strategy, planning and design for The Mill’s multi-brewery facility, a vital economic driver for the redevelopment. The beverage operations will concurrently accomplish the goals of tenant attraction, job creation, and destination tourism for The Mill. Active in community roles, Brian has over ten years of leadership experience serving local non-profits, most recently serving as president and chair for the Women in Need Society in Calgary, Canada. In 2018 he finished brewery studies in Chicago at the World Brewing Academy and completed distillery studies at Siebel in 2019.