Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex.
Hi Alex, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Roughhouse Brewing started as a creative outlet in our 20s while working corporate jobs after college. We had gotten degrees, studied hard, and got great jobs in the Austin area. We just weren’t fulfilled. We spent our evenings and weekends dreaming of opening our own taproom. My husband Davy was very involved in the local homebrewing and brewery scene. He perfected recipes while working at local breweries in his spare time, and we dreamed up what our future could look like if we quit our jobs and started something that was our own. Davy’s parents retired to a ranch in San Marcos and 2018 and we started construction almost immediately! We’ve now been open 7 years and are extremely proud of the hard work and thoughfulness we put in every day. It’s more work than our previous jobs, but much more rewarding. Not everyone is cut out for it, but I’m lucky that my partner in life and business is also my best friend and most of the time we have a ball out here living the ranch life and taking a slower approach to life.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No way! After our first year open in 2019, Covid completely changed everything. When we finally felt like things were starting to get back on track around 2021, consumer tastes started to change. We have learned that constantly evolving and keeping our finger on the pulse is such an important part of the job. I used to be more rigid in my standards and beliefs of how we might do something or the types of products we might serve, but it’s really about being a welcoming space for the community that makes us who we are, so I have learned to soften my approach and opinions and really listen to what makes a space like ours valuable to people and seeing how we can do it in our own way.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Roughhouse Brewing?
I am Co-Founder and Marketing Director at Roughhouse. I do all the social media, taproom events, graphics, HR, admin/invoicing and landscaping. I’m really proud of what my husband and I have built out here, because we are tucked away enough that you have to have heard of us and looked us up to make it out here, so every person that comes out is intentionally coming. That’s special. Even after seven years at this, it’s hard and draining, but we still believe in keeping our standards super high and creativity always flowing. One of the greatest compliments we have gotten is that every time someone comes out to visit us, there is something new to see or do. We love that and it reflects our own nature that we want to be making and doing and creating and improving. ALWAYS improving. Also, we have a cave that we are working hard on to excavate and give tours on in the near future. I think that sets us apart from other breweries, yeah?
How do you think about luck?
I believe most things in life are due to a HEAVY dose of luck and that hard work takes you the rest of the way. We are lucky to have family that owns land and is generous enough to allow us to put our brewery on it. We are lucky that our neighbor walked into the bar the first year open right after I found out I was pregnant and asked if we wanted to buy her house (and we did). We are lucky to make just enough money to live a happy life and be flexible enough to see my kids throughout the week or grab coffee with my friends or loved ones. Covid was certainly bad luck, but if it wasn’t that it would have been something else. I find more good than bad, no matter what. It’s easier that way! Staying curious, keeping a creative mind and a light and friendly attitude toward everything goes a long way and I believe has brought good luck and fortune to me and our business. Now it’s my duty to pay it forward!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.roughhousebrewing.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roughhousebrewing
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/roughhousebrewing
