{"id":71013,"date":"2022-12-13T04:36:01","date_gmt":"2022-12-13T09:36:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/?p=71013"},"modified":"2022-12-13T04:36:01","modified_gmt":"2022-12-13T09:36:01","slug":"hebrew-maker-shmaltz-brewing-relaunches-with-new-owner-a-rabbinical-student","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/hebrew-maker-shmaltz-brewing-relaunches-with-new-owner-a-rabbinical-student\/","title":{"rendered":"He\u2019Brew maker Shmaltz Brewing relaunches with new owner: a rabbinical student"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By ANDREW LAPIN<\/p>\n<p>(JTA) \u2014 It seemed like the last keg had been tapped for Shmaltz Brewing Company, until a rabbi-in-training stepped in for a Jewish renewal project.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_71014\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-scaled.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-71014\" class=\"wp-image-71014 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-300x185.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"185\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-300x185.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-1024x630.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-768x473.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-1536x945.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-2048x1260.jpg 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/185;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-71014\" class=\"wp-image-71014 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-300x185.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"185\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-300x185.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-1024x630.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-768x473.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-1536x945.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-1-2048x1260.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-71014\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Various beer bottles by Shmaltz brewery are on display in the exhibition &#8216;Beer is the wine of our country. Jewish brewing stories&#8217; at the Jewish Museum in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Sven Hoppe\/picture alliance via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Jewish craft beer label, best known for its He\u2019Brew: The Chosen Beer line of drinks, shut down last year after 25 years when its founder, Jeremy Cowan, said he wanted to focus on his other businesses. But now it\u2019s been sold to a new owner: Jesse Epstein, a 26-year-old Reform rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College who first got into home brewing during the COVID-19 pandemic and began looking for ways to work his love for beer into his rabbinical pursuits.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI started forming in the back of my mind this idea for a Jewish brewery: how to combine these two big passions,\u201d Epstein told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>When he heard that Cowan was winding down Shmaltz, Epstein jumped at the chance to acquire the closest thing the beer world had to a storied Jewish brand \u2014 even though he has two-and-a-half years left of school and is currently a rabbinic intern at Temple Sinai of Saratoga Springs, New York.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI could have waited to do this until after I was ordained and then I\u2019d have more time on my hands, but I didn\u2019t want to lose the opportunity,\u201d Epstein said, declining to say how much he paid for the brand. Cowan agreed to the proposal, and remains at the company as a minority owner and consultant.<\/p>\n<p>Founded in San Francisco in 1996 but now based in Clifton Park, New York, Shmaltz spent 25 years as the king of Jewish craft beer, with shtick-y brews like David\u2019s Slingshot Hoppy Summer Lager, a jelly donut-flavored Hanukkah ale, and a Babka Loves Rugelach stout (brewed with chocolate, cinnamon and raisins). During its run it attained some level of notoriety and robust sales, with Cowan releasing a memoir, \u201cCraft Beer Bar Mitzvah,\u201d in 2010. Last year, after announcing he would close up shop, Cowan released an Exodus Ale as a swan song.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_71015\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-scaled.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-71015\" class=\"wp-image-71015 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/200;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-71015\" class=\"wp-image-71015 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/12-12-22-Shmaltz-2-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-71015\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jesse Epstein (center), a rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College, is the new owner of Shmaltz Brewing Company. (Courtesy of Jesse Epstein)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Epstein\u2019s aims are different. As a rabbinical student wrestling with surveys showing a shrinking interest in Reform and Conservative affiliations among American Jews, he says his goal with Shmaltz is to use beer as a vehicle for rethinking the idea of a synagogue, and of Jewish communal gathering spaces.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about our Jewish values can be used to inform our food practices?\u201d he asks. \u201cHow, through beer, can we embrace the values of welcoming in the stranger, freeing the captive, opening the eyes of the blind?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The revamped Shmaltz, working for now with an all-volunteer staff, is making Jewish practice and ritual as much a part of its brand as the shtick. Its first year under Epstein\u2019s ownership will consist of a series of pop-up events in partnership with various Jewish groups, starting with a Dec. 17 Hanukkah launch party with Brooklyn Jews. (The events will mostly take place in New York, though Epstein may expand into other Northeast locations.)<\/p>\n<p>At these gatherings, Epstein says, attendees will do the kinds of activities they might normally come to synagogue for: \u201cBuild community, do justice, look at a text, but over a pint of beer.\u201d He sees Shmaltz as a peer of Jewish young-adult gathering projects such as Moishe House, OneTable and Base. But he says it will rely on a for-profit business model rather than institutional Jewish support.<\/p>\n<p>Initially Epstein will draw from Shmaltz\u2019s leftover inventory for the actual beers on hand at the pop-ups, and he is holding off on new products and distribution. But he hopes eventually to start brewing his own selections, which are decidedly more Talmudic in inspiration than the label\u2019s previous offerings: He envisions a Purim-themed beer named \u201cShushan Beer-a\u201d (a play on the first line of the Megillah, the scroll Jews read from on the holiday) and, ultimately, beers inspired by each of the weekly Torah portions. The brand\u2019s labels will now include a Jewish blessing for beer, in Hebrew and English.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, Epstein says, he would love to run Shmaltz full-time: \u201cI can really foresee it becoming my rabbinate.\u201d<\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_toolbar\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\"\/><\/noscript><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services_t=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"Tumblr\",\"Email\");var hupso_background_t=\"#EAF4FF\";var hupso_border_t=\"#66CCFF\";var hupso_toolbar_size_t=\"medium\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_url_t=\"\";var hupso_title_t=\"He%E2%80%99Brew%20maker%20Shmaltz%20Brewing%20relaunches%20with%20new%20owner%3A%20a%20rabbinical%20student\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share_toolbar.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":71014,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7138],"tags":[8790,8795,8788,12793],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71013"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71013"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71013\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71016,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71013\/revisions\/71016"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71014"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71013"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71013"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71013"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}