Sometimes the hardest thing for any brewery is to come up with the names for their beers. When Painted Lady Bed and Brew owner Jesse Herron started brewing last year, he became the latest to face that challenge.

“I spent probably two years leading up to brewing coming up with names of beers,” he said. “You walk into almost any brewery, and basically they’re all so clever, they’re so witty. I had a list of beer names, but then one day it just clicked. We’re the haunted brewery, it’s such a cool, paranormal, spooky spot. I don’t want to compete with the wit. Let’s go and do lines from scary movies I grew up watching as a kid, and that will be the name of the beer. That will have some connection to the beer, but they don’t have to. Wolfman’s Got Nards, it’s an amber ale, which is the color of Wolfman, kind of, sort of. Sometimes they’re a bit of a stretch, but that’s fine.”

That was just one of the highlights for Herron and Painted Lady in 2024, which we recapped for our annual Look Back/Look Ahead Series, as they officially joined the wider brewing community from their cozy spot at 1100 Bellamah Ave NW, just east of 12th Street.

“It was good, man,” Herron said of the past year. “I’ve had the small brewer license since October of 2020, so it was great to get the equipment in place and start using it. We brewed all of last year. We were doing like one batch a month or so, which was awesome.”

The reception for the beers themselves, besides the clever names, has also been positive.

“It’s been good,” Herron said. “People are enjoying the beer. Even when I hosted one of the Brewers Guild events here I think last August it might have been, I got great feedback. Beer people are liking it, overnight guests are really enjoying it. There’s only one or two that I’ve had to do major surgery to them to make them be better. I haven’t had to dump anything, knock on wood, which has been amazing. And, I’m enjoying it, which I think is most important.”

Wolfman’s Got Nards is a line from the movie The Monster Squad, while other horror films have inspired You’ve Got Red on You (Shaun of the Dead), Please Don’t Kill Me, Mr. Ghostface (Scream), and more.

“Wolfman’s Got Nards is our most popular so far,” Herron said. “I brewed that (last week), so that will premier on April 5. We’ve been doing the Scary Movie Bingo and all of our events indoors in the casita, and then April through October we’re coming back out here into the beer garden. So Saturday, April 5, we’re going to be watching my favorite movie of all time, The Monster Squad, keg that beer, tap it, and have some Scary Movie Bingo.”

Events like Scary Movie Bingo have proven to be hugely popular for Painted Lady.

“The events, we’ve discovered that’s what people come here for,” Herron said. “Instead of competing as just another brewery or taproom that’s open, especially in this area, where there’s 12 or 13 in a 1-mile radius. So to stand out with something that’s unique and fun is kind of what we’re looking into, with Scary Movie Bingo being definitely the most popular event. We started that last June with Please Don’t Kill Me, Mr. Ghostface, which is our blonde ale. We watched Scream and that was on a Thursday night and there was 50 to 60 people here, which is good for us, it fills up the place.”

Painted Lady also relies on overnight guests staying in their four suites, which are haunted by the ghosts of brothel workers and others who made use of the place in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Herron said the number of suites in use varies depending on the time of year, with April through October being the traditionally busy tourist season for Albuquerque.

“Of course, October is busy with Balloon Fiesta, so we’re slammed during that timeframe,” he said. “And, October with it being the spooky season, all though we’re spooky year round. People come in here in October and tell us they love the decorations, and we’re like it looks the same at Christmas and Easter. So it’s great.”

Thursday through Sunday, Painted Lady opens the Ghost Light Saloon (a former trolley car) for additional customers besides the overnight guests. Happy hour starts at 5 p.m., and then events usually kick off around 7.

“We’ve kind of doubled down on the events where people have kind of found us as a venue that does unique things,” Herron said. “We got this Brews and Boos event series that we started last year. We’re bringing that back for this year. There’s more Scary Movie Bingo. The third Friday of each month is our Fright Night Open Mic where we invite people come listen to real ghost stories and share their ghost stories. That is well attended.

“We have Cody Polston, who’s a prolific local author and paranormal personality who’s doing more presentations here, and book signings. But, we also teamed up with the Freudian Slips Experience, and they are going to be using us as their home for their 2025 burlesque season. We’ll have burlesque here Friday nights and Sunday brunch timeframe.”

There is also one unique guest this year, one who I knew from covering Albuquerque Isotopes games once upon a time where he worked as an official scorekeeper.

“We also have my dad (Gary), who’s randomly doing a presentation on the history of baseball in Albuquerque in April,” Herron said with a laugh, telling his father, “You should do this, it’s not spooky, but we’re history and we’re beer, and that checks at least one of those.”

Also on deck for this is the Duke City Repertory Theater using Painted Lady for their popular Bard Crawl series of live performances, and the local podcast City on the Edge will record a live episode on the history of brothels and prostitution in Albuquerque.

“That’s keeping me very busy,” Herron said. “It’s packed, we have events scheduled all the way on our calendar through October, basically. Those are all at Brews and Boos dot com.”

As for returning beers and new beers, expect a few of the former and more of the latter this year.

“I have a whole list of ones I want to brew,” Herron said. “The coffee blonde (Whatever You Do, Don’t Fall Asleep) was a fun one to do, and that was really cool because I got to team up with Slow Burn, which is right down the road. The (staff) over there were super helpful. I’m not a coffee person, I just drink Costco’s cold brew in cans every day. And they’re like, you should do this, and do this, and do this. It was fun.”

For those wondering, that beer referred to the original A Nightmare on Elm Street, which was shown for Scary Movie Bingo recently. Again, the names are often key to the process of coming up with a beer recipe.

“It’s funny, usually I come up with the name first,” Herron said. “And then it’s trying to match it with what style. Let’s see here, beers to brew … I’ve got Werewolves not Swearwolves, that’s from What We Do in the Shadows. I think I’m going to do a black IPA this summer and that’s called Mister, We are the Weirdos, and that’s from The Craft.”

Herron also told a story of running into actress Kristy Swanson at Albuquerque Comic-Con. She starred in the original movie version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, before Sarah Michelle Gellar took over the part for the cult-hit TV series.

“I told her I own this bed and brew and I make my own beer and all the names come from lines from scary movies I grew up with,” he said. “I want to brew a Buffy beer. Her and I started rattling off lines from the movie that came out 30-ish years ago. So there’s going to be a Buffy beer. She promised she would share it on her social media when it comes out, so look for a Buffy beer this summer.”

One returning beer that the Crew approved of was The Undead Surround Us, a stout that was actually the first beer Painted Lady brewed. Herron said it will be back in October or November.

“I like brewing new ones,” Herron said. “I don’t love trying to replicate stuff I’ve already done, but the Wolfman’s Got Nards has been the one exception. Honestly, I never order an amber beer, but I love this one. It’s not a style that I’m even into ever, but for some reason, I’m enjoying my own beer.”

Hey, there is nothing wrong with being proud of your own beer creation. Painted Lady has quickly emerged as one of the most unique and fun places to have a brew or two in Albuquerque, and if you have not been yet, now is the time. Check out that link above for the calendar for the Brews and Boos Series, snag a ticket (those are often free of charge, they are just to help Herron get a head count), and go have a great time getting spooky any time of the year.

A big thanks to Jesse for patiently waiting for his turn in this series, for the interview, and the pour of that coffee blonde that is quite tasty. When the Wolfman returns, we will be there.

“I’ve brewed Wolfman’s Got Nards a half-dozen times now, which is great,” Herron said with a smile. “People sit in the trolley and ask, ‘Can I get the Wolfman?’ And, I’m like, ‘The Wolfman?’ ‘Yeah, the Wolfman’s Got Nards.’ It’s fun to say it!”

Yeah, that encapsulates the vibe at Painted Lady, one that we truly need in this day and age.

Keep supporting local!

— Stoutmeister