Sometimes, all a brewery really needs to do is just stick to a comfortable routine, providing maximum value for customers with good service, quality beers, and a consistent lineup of events throughout the week.

It’s not splashy or anything groundbreaking, but it works, particularly for the good folks at Brew Lab 101. I caught up with owner Scott Salvas last Friday at the original location at 3301 Southern Blvd SE in Rio Rancho to see how they survived a quiet second half of 2024 that seemed to stretch across the industry, and to learn what they have planned for the rest of 2025.

“Overall, things have been really good,” Salvas said. “We hit a new major milestone financially, so that’s great. That (included) the addition of the Northeast Heights taproom. I would say, though, honestly, probably like everybody (else in the brewing industry) the latter half of last year was a little bit softer than we expected. Inflation caught up with everybody at that point, looming presidential election, times were uncertain so people don’t spend as much money. The summer was less exciting than we were hoping for.

“This year has come roaring back for us. Rio Rancho is back to where we normally expect to see it. The Northeast Heights location has really picked up, 20 to 40 percent over the last couple months. That’s been really exciting. I think people figured out we’re there. I always tell people, it takes about a year for commitment, especially in that little shopping plaza, a hidden gem. I think that’s the selling point now, it’s a hidden gem if you can find us.”

That Northeast Heights taproom is in the Scottsdale Shopping Center near the corner of Eubank and Candelaria in the former ReSource Brewing location. Much like the original Brew Lab, it relies on a strong lineup of events that take place every week, from the Singo Music Bingo to more traditional trivia, open mic, and karaoke.

“We’re definitely very event heavy, which honestly I think is necessary in this business, especially in leaner times during inflation you have to compete a little harder,” Salvas said. “I tell folks, breweries are not just competing with other breweries, we’re competing with everybody, every restaurant, every bar. It’s all friendly competition, which is great.”

Salvas said it is all about providing a great value for customers, from the beer to the service to letting people know that their favorite event(s) will be there for them the same night every week.

“What’s important for us, it’s hitting on that point of value,” he said. “It’s that packaged deal. When you come to Brew Lab, you know what you’re going to get. Like on a Monday, you’re going to get Singo Music Bingo, you’re going to get great beer and great service. People can count on that kind of stuff. I think that’s really important right now, keep the regulars happy as well as bring in new folks.”

The main Brew Lab location also has the benefit of the expansive back patio area, which came about as a result of pandemic restrictions in 2020-21, but has now evolved into a major component of the entire operation.

“I think this will be the third year of full operation, beyond the pandemic that was temporary operation, which forced the whole thing to happen,” Salvas said. “That’s been a good sales/revenue mechanism for us, not only when we need the overflow, for example when we had that lobster truck show up, every seat was needed. It’s also a nice little space we can rent out. This is kind of getting into the time, May/June is a strong time (where) a lot of people want to do graduation parties back there, things like that. It’s a nice revenue generator for us.”

Brew Lab also hosts movie nights on the patio, and once a month on the final Friday they host a country night featuring Back in the Saddle, a 90s country band.

“It allows us to have a different vibe going back there compared to the taproom,” Salvas said. “Keep things chill here for the happy hour crowd.”

On the beer side of things, Brew Lab has a renewed focus on wholesale, sending out beer and cider to other bars and restaurants. Part of that comes from having an experienced head brewer at the helm. Austin Giorgetta moved over from Rio Bravo last year, succeeding Tevin Grey, who wanted more production-and-packaging brewery experience and found it at Ex Novo.

“Austin is kicking butt in the brewery,” Salvas said. “He’s been with us for about a year now. I feel like he’s really taken command of the brewery, and really is producing fantastic beer. This (Laboratory Rhapsody) pilsner is entirely his. We haven’t done that sort of recipe before. I’m really happy with how things are going.

“We’re still continuing to grow. We’re actually looking to get some more equipment, and just see what else is out there. Trying to do a little more wholesaling is kind of our focus right now.”

Cider had been the driving force behind past wholesale efforts, but the beer is starting to catch up.

“Cider is still fantastic,” Salvas said. “Cider is like a third of our sales (on site). For wholesale we tend to lead with cider, because there’s a lot of great beer out there. We also get some beer on tap at different locations, too. It’s looking to increase that really in terms of growth this year in 2025, (since) we’re not looking for another location, per se, at the moment. Getting the brand out there more, brand awareness, and using the offsite locations or wholesale to drive more traffic back to the taproom would be great.”

The aforementioned German-style pilsner is the newest addition to the seasonal lineup at Brew Lab, and another lighter, crushable beer may soon follow.

“We’re talking about doing a Japanese rice lager,” Salvas said. “We haven’t done that style before, figured it could be fun. We’re doing the collab with Ex Novo for the United in Beer. I think that’s going to released at the end of May. That’s going to be really fun. We’re excited to go in there and brew with them.”

They will also be brewing up this year’s batch of Singularity Imperial Stout, which will then go into bourbon barrels to age into its usual beastly self, with a planned December release.

“If anything, because we continue to grow and be successful, a lot of it is focused on keeping our mainstays and our standards and not running out of them,” Salvas said. “People freak out if you run out of your Mexican lager or IPA. We’re working on wholesale. It’s organic, growing slowly. We’re trying to do more wholesale where we can meet their demand and keep up with our own needs here.”

Nowadays, we will take just about any slice of positivity we can get from breweries, and clearly Brew Lab 101 is feeling pretty darned good right now. A big thanks to Scott for squeezing in an interview in between his and my totally opposite work schedules.

Keep supporting local!

— Stoutmeister