Three young men with a love for “dank” beer and the atmosphere of Bellingham opened Aslan Brewing Company last week on Monday, May 19.
Located in the York District on the 1330 block of North Forest Street, the Aslan Brewing Company is a bar, microbrewery, and restaurant where big and small groups can gather to enjoy sliders, waffle fries, burgers, and of course, the organic beer that is brewed right inside the restaurant. Going off the idea that everyone likes the king of the jungle, the Aslan Brewing Company sports a logo of the head of a lion.
Aslan Brewing Company’s mission is to distribute organic ales, lagers, and soda created using local resources. The new brewery is committed to using only the best organic hops and grains in the Pacific Northwest, such as citra and cascade hops. While the food is not all organic, the ingredients are provided locally as well. Inexpensive sales methods are used by the Aslan team that are for the benefit of the community. The owners also think that their environmentally conscious practices such as composting, recycling, and biodegradable to-go bags and cups are a part of the company’s values and responsibilities as a sustainable business.
The Aslan Brewery owners include Jack Lamb, the CEO and co-founder, Frank Trosset, the head-brewer and co-founder, and Pat Haynes, the general manager and brewer. The menu is limited but filling, and the executive chef responsible for Aslan’s food is Jordan Barrows.
Lamb and his team moved into their restaurant building near downtown in September after having been brewing in their friend’s warehouse. They were also majorly responsible for the renovations and construction, saying that they could only make the brewery possible if they did it themselves.
Lamb grew up in Seattle but considers the entirety of the Pacific Northwest his home. Spending four years as a young adult in Southern California, and five months in Prague, Lamb studied economics, entrepreneurship, and for his bright future in brewing: the way people think and why they drink. Once Lamb moved to Bellingham, he became inspired by the people here and wanted to provide a sustainable brew that everyone in the community could enjoy, which became the Aslan Brewing Company. Referring to tasty beers with the company’s signature word, “dank”, Lamb says that he is “here because of the weird” and hopes to create some of the cleanest and most unique brews in the market.
The head-brewer, co-owner, and Idaho native, Trosset, got his experience from beginning to brew in his parent’s basement and spent time in Florida for school. Fellow brewer and co-owner, Haynes, began experimenting in his own apartments. Haynes was born in San Diego, moved to Sandpoint, Idaho at the age of 6, and landed in Spokane, Wash. several years later. He was 19 when he got his first bar job while living in Honduras. Washington’s mountains soon lured Haynes back in and he started working for Mckay’s Taphouse and Chuckanut Brewery after moving to Bellingham. Gathering the knowledge and expertise he felt he needed as a brewer, Haynes was recruited by the Aslan Brewing Company and now sits in a general manager position.
Waitress and friend of the owners, Amy Kaye, says that the Aslan Brewery team came up with their business idea two winters ago, which is when the name “Aslan” and the lion logo were conjured up. Having been friends with Haynes for 7 years and also his roommate, Kaye is supporting Aslan to get the brewery up and running.
“I’ve been friends with them from the beginning so when they started planning this summer, I was there to help them out,” said Kaye. Concerning the low prices and responsible sales techniques, Kaye says that the owners don’t profit as much as most restaurant owners would expect.
“I talked to Jack about this and he was saying that it’s just the difference between him being super successful and successful,” said Kaye, “He’d rather provide a cheaper product to enjoy than hiking the price up and profiting more off of it.”
Aslan Brewery Company is open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and also sells their beer at several nearby locations including Avenue Bread, Bayou on the Bay, and Archer Ale House.
Mentioning that Bellingham is the perfect place to be for the company, Lamb said that Bellingham appreciates beer, local, organic, and everything that is Aslan.
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