Burnish Beer Co. hosts an Oktoberfest you won’t want to miss
SALISBURY, Md. — It’s time for part two of the Oktoberfest series, and Burnish Beer Co. is showing how the brew ends up at the bar.
Mathew Shockley, owner and brewer for Burnish Beer Co., said, “We cold-condition the beer to the point where it’s ideal for packaging. From the bright tank, we will either put it in the kegs or run it through the canning line.”
The canning line consists of a few stations. First, the cans are lined up on the belt and roll toward the bright tank dispenser. In other words, that’s where the beer fills the can. It then gets a lid and a wrap designed by Mathew Shockley before it’s weighed and packaged.
“There are so many steps involved along the way and so many hands that go into making a single batch of beer,” Shockley said. The whole process takes many helping hands. “Myself, all of my business partners, we even invite the staff to help us come up with concepts and ideas for beers. Whether it’s the flavor profile, the style or the name, in fact, we enjoy the collaborative creative process that it is.”
With 16 craft beers always on tap, Mathew Shockley said there is something for everyone.
“I like to see people’s faces light up when they try something new that they’ve never experienced before and discover, hey, I like this beer — that’s awesome.”
From the picnic tables outside to the beer and food, everything at Burnish is made in-house.
Co-owner Virgil Shockley said, “That was the mindset when we started out, and that is still the mindset we have today. You come in and enjoy yourself. The food is as good as we can make it, and the beer is as good as we can make it. And we try to improve every day, we truly do.”
It’s a good thing the Eastern Shore has lots of beer lovers.
“If you put a half barrel in on a Friday, it won’t make it till Sunday,” Virgil Shockley said.
“I never realized this many people drank this much beer. If I had, I would have done this 40 years ago, retired and be down in Costa Rica somewhere drinking little fruity drinks.”
Burnish is brewing up something special ahead of Oktoberfest.
“It is a little hoppy, but not too hoppy. It’s kind of smooth. It’s a hazy IPA, and it’s easy to drink — let me say it that way.”
Hoppy, hazy or heady, the Shockleys say they are proud of what they do.
“We are going to have a variety of different beers on tap,” Mathew Shockley said. “Celebrating beer is one of the most fun things about this business.”
The event is taking place at Burnish Beer Co. on Sept. 20.
