The craft brewing business and the cannabis industry is more closely related than some may think — at least according to recent entrant Dale Katechis, founder of Colorado craft brewer Oskar Blues and investing partner at Veritas Fine Cannabis, writes Marijuana Business Daily.
(Recall cannabis companies jumping into beer is also a thing. From a late June Cannabis Daily: Broken Coast adds booze to its portfolio.)
Easy as your IPAs
Katechis is a longtime fan of weed — he confirmed that the silver circle printed each can of Dale’s Pale Ale marks the best spot to transform it into a pipe — but he said it’s his experience in craft brewing that really aligns with what’s needed in cannabis right now: simple, accessible education.
“There’s wide-open space to go attract consumers who want to learn more,” he told MJ Biz. “Just like we did in the early days of trying to educate people on what an IPA was, when pale ales were a tough battle for them.”
Grassroots marketing
Katechis also said he’s eager to apply the authentic, grassroots marketing strategies he used in beer and apply it to cannabis — wherever that’s possible, of course.
“We were always kind of hijacking events, because we never had the big cheque to be the sponsor,” he said. “So we would just throw some beers in our truck and hang out in the parking lot and create a culture and a vibe around that. There’s a lot for us to learn about what’s going to be next for cannabis and what we’re allowed to do.”
What’s next
Even though the vibe at Veritas reminds Katechis of the atmosphere at Oskar in the early days, there aren’t any plans for a Dale’s Infused Ale quite yet. Instead, he said they’re laser-focused on premium bud products for the time being.
“We don’t want to be everything to everyone,” he said. “We’re a high-end luxury flower company that wants to focus on quality, and to focus on quality is expensive.
