Emily Hutto 12/1/24 Emily Hutto 12/1/24

That Was Rad: #Riverbend10

That Was Rad is a series that tells the stories of projects and campaigns that we’ve crafted for our RadCraft partners. Next up: #Riverbend10

That Was Rad is a series that tells the stories of projects and campaigns that we’ve crafted for our RadCraft partners. This installment was inspired when Laura Lodge asked me (Emily Hutto) about the most complex project we’ve done to-date when I was the Featured Contributor for the November 2023 Resource Group Session.

My answer is Riverbend 10.

Riverbend Malt House is the first craft maltster in the Southeast that’s among a short list of those to credit for the Craft Maltsters Guild and the craft malt movement’s momentum in general. They came to us a few years back looking for communications support celebrating their 10 year harvest with a video storytelling campaign.

“Their story is massive,” I told the resource group. “And somewhat abstract to the general consumer. There was an education element; And there was a long- format and long-term storytelling element that we were just jumping in on, them having been in business for more than a decade already. We had to learn their brand on the fly, and integrate what they had already done with what we were doing, and have a lot of conversations to collaborate.”

Then I point out the budget. Video production is extremely expensive in relation to the typical craft malt house and beer or spirits brand marketing budget, but it’s also so important for a small brand because it efficiently tells that story in such an engaging, visual format.

So how do you craft a video campaign for a well established but abstract brand on a budget?

“Tell me you shot it on your cell phone,” said Laura.

Yep. I loaded up my dog in my trusty Subaru camper named Dolores and drove to North Carolina to ask brewers and homebrew supply shop owners why they chose to invest in local malt.

I had help from the talented Kevin Green, who accompanied me to interview some of Riverbend's earliest adopters and most enthusiastic supporters: Asheville Brewers Supply, DSSOLVR, Fonta Flora Brewery, and Fullsteam Brewery. Thank them for going down memory lane with us.

More thanks are in order to the creatives Shelby Martin and Julia Weiman, who edited these interviews into the ebullient short film that became a focal point for the #Riverbend10 campaign. The breweries in the film and twelve others crafted 10 Year Harvest beers to celebrate. Each beer in this stylistically diverse lineup was made with the Riverbend specialty 10 Year Anniversary Malt: Sunset Wheat. A couple homebrew supply shops even offered it in limited stock.

We debuted Riverbend 10 on YouTube as a finale to this campaign in April of 2022. The Riverbend team has looped the film on an iPad as part of their expo setup at several conferences since.

Watch Riverbend 10 here.

We’re very proud of all of its 11 minutes and 4 seconds; and glad to have spent the countless hours, engaged in the compelling conversations, and tackled the troubleshooting that took place behind the scenes.

There was one other complexity I didn’t mention to this resource group— when Dolores broke down and I had to stay in Asheville another week while three different mechanics failed to get her moving again. Stuck in Asheville is far from the worst place to be, and thanks to the Riverbend team I spent it in rad places with lovely people. The most memorable of those days was one touring the French Broad Chocolate Factory then drinking lagers while I read a book on the patio at Zillicoah Beer Co.

Storytelling is at the heart of our work at RadCraft. I am honored that the Riverbend team selected us to help them tell theirs. Cheers to that, and cheers to them!

Emily Hutto 4/19/23 Emily Hutto 4/19/23

That Was Rad: The Empourium #POURtrait

Introducing That Was Rad, a series that tells the stories of projects that we’ve had the professional privilege to be a part of. First up: #POURtrait photos at The Empourium.

Hey y’all! It’s Em Hutto. While I type, I’m sipping a beautiful dark lager called The Nightman Cometh brewed by our friends at The Empourium Brewing Co. and sporting my favorite pair of yoga pants— also created by The Empourium. I’m here to launch a new series that tells the stories of projects that we’ve had the professional privilege to be a part of.

Introducing That Was Rad.

We stay busy celebrating the work of our partners, but it’s rare that we pause to celebrate our own. Some wise folks have advised us to do so lately… so here we go.

We’re kicking it off by showcasing our work with The Empourium Brewing Co., who just celebrated their fourth anniversary last weekend!

We’re proud to say that we’ve worked with this standout brewing company in Denver’s Berkeley neighborhood since their start. Co-Owners Greg and Sara Fetzer told us that when they opened their own brewery, we’d be one of their first marketing calls. Sure enough, they called and the rest is history.

Included in that history is the #POURtrait concept that we teamed up on to showcase the eximious mural by Drew Button that shines on the west wall of their tasting room. Our friends hired Drew to paint a mural that would anchor their space as a community hub. To capture this ethos, he pulled in vibrant colors of red and yellow, with each fragment spilling across the background as a golden grain, a sliver of fruit, a chunk of passion, a new idea—all together to create an explosion of potential bursting into the unknown. If there was a “Top Ten Brewery Murals” list out there (maybe we should create one), The Emporium’s would make the list every year.

So what is a #POURtrait?

It’s a selfie or a photoshoot in front of The Empourium’s gorgeous mural, preferably with a beer in hand. Back in February 2020, we activated this hashtag with a photo contest for the most creative submission. We also invited beer photographer extraordinaire Holly Gerard out to create an album of The Empourium’s guests posing in front of it during a First Friday celebration. This event was a blast, and we saw the hashtag appear on Instagram for weeks to come.

Check out some of Holly’s photos here, and in this Instagram post!

Over their four years in business, Greg and Sara have indeed anchored the Tennyson Street, Berkeley neighborhood, Denver, and Colorado beer scenes in their hospitable, dog-friendly space that serves truly world-class beers. First Friday celebrations have continued, as well as their annual Freshtober Fest that’s become a can’t-miss autumn event in the Mile High City. They collaborate with their neighbors, they give back to causes that they’re passionate about, and they have a lot of fun doing what they do.

Oh, and they make pristine, repeatable beers that win awards, too! In 2022, their Atari’s Lantern jasmine rice lager earned a bronze medal in the American-Style Lager category at the World Beer Cup®!

At RadCraft one of our mantras is great beer, better people. It’s an honor to work with a company that exemplifies these simple but powerful four words. Cheers to that, and cheers to them!