A while back the Crew felt the tremor of a tectonic shift in ownership and management at Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery. We knew there had been a major quake, but out of respect, we kept a tight lid on the seismic activity until someone was ready to chat about the major change.

Over the course of several weeks and events, I was able to catch up with owners Jason and Angela Kirkman, as well as lead brewer and distiller Michael Chavez, to talk about what that major change entailed, as well as everything else happening at Tumbleroot’s three locations.

Turns out there was a lot going on.

“2023 was an interesting year, a time of transition, for sure,” Kirkman said.

Trending struggles for many breweries and restaurants in 2023 included rising prices and establishments everywhere still having trouble keeping staff on hand.

Luckily, Tumbleroot was able to skirt a few of the rougher trends by making some big changes, both in and out of the brewhouse.

One way was to stop selling beer in cans altogether.

“That’s helped us reduce packaging costs a great deal, allowing us to remain competitive, and focus on keg sales, which continue to grow,” Kirkman explained.

It has also allowed them to focus their packaging efforts on their craft spirit products, meaning canned cocktails, but mostly package spirits like their Navy Strength gin, straight Bourbon whiskey, and Agave Spirit.

And, thanks to recent reciprocity laws, the spirits business has been better than ever. Thanks to HB255, Tumbleroot has been able reach up into brand-new branches of the market, getting local products into the hands of current liquor license holders. And, no, that doesn’t mean that they made liquor any easier to get a hold of, to all the negative naysayers out there. It just means local restaurants can add the ability to sell locally produced spirits for an extra $500 a year. And, no one hates local, except for maybe the naysayers.

The biggest challenge of 2023 has been keeping up with the newfound demand.

Kirkman said they’ve had to remain flexible, keeping the brewhouse agile and the schedule organized as they navigated the changing market, jumping on the trending spirits that were selling, and keeping the spirit production lag down to a minimum. Craft spirits don’t just happen overnight, as it turns out.

And, all the while, keeping the beer taps full and flowing across the board at three taprooms.

“Michael was nailing it, figuring out how to keep the quality high, and decrease fermentation times, because we’re getting like really long fermentation times,” Kirkman said.

“It forced us to create a system to predict when our products are going to be available again, as opposed to saying, well, it’s in the tank!” Chavez recalled.

Being creative about how they used their space and equipment was a huge part of 2023 for the Tumbleroot team, but figuring out where to focus time and energy was another.

I asked if it was true, that people were drinking less beer these days and more spirits. And, if Tumbleroot’s biggest seller is any indication, than perhaps, the answer is … maybe?

“Based on what’s going out the door, I would say Agave Spirit is our biggest seller,” Chavez said.

Tumbleroot’s ’23 wouldn’t be the success it was without the staff at each location and all the hard work they do, pouring beers, mixing drinks, and generally maintaining a unique and fun atmosphere for locals and visitors, beer drinkers, cocktail enthusiasts, and music lovers alike.

Keeping the staff happy, trained, paid a decent wage, and, well, just keeping them at Tumbleroot, during these weird post-apoCOVIDalyptic times has been a challenge. But, it is one that Kirkman had figured out how to solve with a little help from the state.

“I think investing in our staff has paid off,” Kirkman said. “We took advantage of the JTIP Program (Job Training Incentive Program) where we’ll be paid back for the money we put into training our staff, which is huge. So thank you to the State for that.”

Though a lot of core staff remained intact, there was quite a bit of shake up in the upper layers of the company.

After five years with brewery/distillery/music venue, one of the two co-founding Jasons, Jason Fitzpatrick, has moved on. He’s left the business for a more full-time position at his other job with Brewer Oil.

Among the several slight aftershocks, Kirkman’s wife Angela has adopted more of a hands-on role in the business.

“She’s come in and really done a lot of great things to kind of pay attention to parts of the business that weren’t doing as well,” Kirkman said.

Kirkman himself has taken a slight step away from the brewhouse and more of a leap towards a new role as general business manager.

Lead brewer Michael Chavez has embraced a new role and all the plethora of responsibilities that go along with it as well.

“(Chavez) has really jumped in and gone from lead brewer to head of production,” Kirkman said, “so huge step for all of us here.”

Up until last year, the music venue on Agua Fria street was mostly managed by Fitzpatrick, and so it’s forced everyone to take a hard look at the space, the food program, and the events both musical and community related. Luckily, not much needed to change.

Though, on the whole, folks seem to be going out less and less these days, for Tumbleroot, the shows have maintained rock-solid attendance.

“There’s actually been an upswing (in attendance),” Kirkman said. “I think people are still wanting experiences. So we have a lot of people showing up and telling us, ‘You’re the best live music venue in town,’ or ‘Tumbleroot is the live music place to go.’ And, not to honk our own horn, but that kind of thing, that’s pretty cool.”

Kirkman attributes it to doing a better job of marketing. And, though Fitzpatrick is no longer in the picture, Kirkman indicated that Tumbleroot has no plans of slowing down. The show(s) must go on after all.

In the brewhouse, Chavez is excited for the patio opening up soon, because the newly-extended patio bar means more taps to fill, and that means more beers to brew.

“It’s going to be a whole new thing, as far as the beer flow goes,” he said. “We’ve got a bunch of new beers coming out. We’re ready for all those extra taps to be online and there’s more and more to come.”

His biggest goal for 2024 is to get the staff trained up, which they were able to increase by two new full-time employees in 2023.

“(Matthew) Kumagai’s really stepped up, and is coming into his own,” Chavez said of his assistant, who is now much more comfortable taking on new tasks in the brewhouse.

With a less ‘green’ staff, Chavez can hand off more of the day-to-day procedures, and trust them to keep the spirits machine chugging along, so he can focus on beer, which is more his jam.

Right now he’s having a lot of fun playing around with what he calls fill-in-the-blank beers.

For instance, they just put a kettle sour with Belgian yeast into barrels, and added a little funk with Brettanomyces, which should be ready in a few months. It sounds interesting, but you know, good interesting, though I don’t know if a beer can get any more Mad Libs than that.

They also just released a very oat-y and orange-y citrus beer called Zest Intentions, which I could not classify if I tried, beyond maybe a wit-style ale and a possible cure for scurvy. That being said, I really enjoyed it. We just need some sunny weather to match its disposition.

During the interview I was graciously tasted on a Tripel that was just released that very day. It was sweet, smooth, not over ester-y, and “dangerously delicious,” to quote Chavez.

Pretty soon you’ll be able to get yourself a pour of a new recipe for an American Brown, a lower ABV, more crushable version of their award-winning Double Brown, so be on the lookout for that.

And, I’m told a new version of Funk Farm is on its way as well. (Update: It has been tapped.)

These beers, and all of Tumbleroots beers, are currently easier to enjoy and afford with Tumbleroot’s new Mug Club, where your membership gets you a ceramic mug and discounts at each of the three establishments, access to members-only release parties, private cocktail classes, and birthday beers. The mug itself is handmade ceramic pottery, more than a nod to their most recently opened taproom, the Tumbleroot Pottery Pub, where the Kirkmans just joyfully celebrated its one-year anniversary.

At the anniversary a few weeks ago, I spoke with Angela Kirkman, the brains and bravery behind the pottery pub concept of marrying beer, spirits, and clay.

DSBC: How did the idea come about?

Angela Kirkman: I guess it’s an idea, 30 years in the making. So, Jason and I got together 30 years ago, and we started brewing beer together. And, it became clear very quickly that he was way better at it than I was, so I just became his professional taster. And, I started doing pottery about the same time, and I fell in love with pottery, immediately. And so, my favorite thing to do is to sit and play with clay while we’re sipping on a beverage, so I thought, well, maybe other people will like it. And, we had no idea because I’ve never heard of a pottery pub before. But, yeah, people seem to like it.”

DSBC: And, what’s been your favorite part about this unique space since it’s been open?

Angela Kirkman: Being able to work with Jason, because for like six years I’ve had Paseo Pottery and he’s had Tumbleroot, and we haven’t had an opportunity to work together. So this is giving us that opportunity. So I get to see him more often.

One year in, and one of Santa Fe’s most unique taprooms has been doing very well.

“It’s awesome,” Jason said a week later. “I mean, this spring break. This year is a lot higher than last year. I don’t know whether that’s reflective of more people knowing about us. You’ve got people who are like, ‘We came here last year for spring break,’ who are now coming back. They know about the place now. It’s been maxed all week, which is great.”

In 2024, Tumbleroot isn’t looking to break into tons of new markets, or open any new taprooms anytime soon. They’re just vibing, playing with clay, making fun products (a lot of them!), and enjoying themselves in the process. And though Chavez said it still sometimes feels like, “We’re just riding the universe on a thread,” I can see that things have gotten better all around. There’s visibly less stress when I ask about workload and the dreaded supply chain. And, there are more smiles all around for sure.

Even still, as a small business deeply rooted in New Mexico soil, they remain cautiously optimistic, as they continue to weather the difficult seasons of Santa Fe.

Speaking of seasons, it’s getting to be that time of year, when I feel that special tingle in the air, maybe not in the mornings, no, not then, not when we’re still scraping ice off cars, but in the afternoon. It’s the feel of that phantasmal tug on the sleeve of the coat that’s becoming too warm to wear. Patio season is upon us, even if we have a couple more helpings of winter to endure.

And, just to make it an official declaration that our dreary discontent will soon be over, Tumbleroot’s patio opens this Wednesday! And, I will be there, rain, shine, or whatever the New Mexico weather gods have in store.

A special thank you to the Kirkmans and Michael Chavez for taking the time out of their busy schedules to chat with us in the Crew. And, thank you to the whole Tumbleroot team, for creating these fun gathering spaces, for music, art, and where cool people with fresh ideas can come together over a great beverage. I look forward to many patio sessions to come at one of the biggest epicenters of cultural vibration in the City Different.

Cheers!

— Luke