About The Book

A Small Business Memoir
by Jeremy Cowan
Proprietor, Shmaltz Brewing Company
with James Sullivan

How it took 13 years, Extreme Jewish Brewing, and Circus Sideshow Freaks to make Shmaltz Brewing Company an International Success

Shmaltz Brewing Company was awarded the gold medal for “Best American Craft Beer” and the overall “Best in Show” by Beverage World Magazine, 2010. Established by Jeremy Cowan in San Francisco in 1996 with the first batch of 100 cases of HE’BREW Beer® bottled, labeled, and delivered by hand, Shmaltz has sold over eight million bottles of beer to date. Along with their acclaimed line of HE’BREW Beers®, Shmaltz introduced its sideshow-inspired Coney Island Craft Lagers® in 2007. Shmaltz Brewing beers have appeared in such distinguished media outlets as The New York Times, CNN, Beer Advocate Magazine, NPR’s “Weekend Edition,” and The Onion, and are now distributed in over 30 states though more than 3000 retailers and growing.
L’Chaim!

To read the first chapter of Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah,
please see our Digital Flip Book!

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Jeremy Cowan

Jeremy Cowan is the owner and proprietor of Shmaltz Brewing Company, one of the fastest growing craft breweries in America.

Started in late-1996 in San Francisco, Shmaltz beers (HE’BREW and Coney Island Craft Lagers) are now brewed in New York and available in 38 states across the United States. Shmaltz Brewing Company was recently awarded “Best Craft Brewer In America” by Beverage World Magazine.

For more information on Jeremy Cowan, see all 327 pages of Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah.

James Sullivan

My books start with an idea — a person, place or thing — that reveals something about the bigger picture. My first book, “Jeans: A Cultural History of An American Icon,” told the story of how a simple pair of pants became cultural shorthand for the American attitude — rebellious, adventuresome, youth-seeking, rock ‘n’ roll. “The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved the Soul of America” recreated the moment when a volcanic soul singer realized his power of persuasion at the height of Black Power in America.

In my latest, “Seven Dirty Words: The Life and Crimes of George Carlin,” I take a critical perspective on the eventful life and unparalleled career of the master of American stand-up comedy. Carlin alone spanned six decades of seismic shifts in comedy. He questioned everything, including every kind of authority, the validity of the American Dream and our collective hypocrisy when it comes to “dirty” language. Above all, George Carlin tirelessly demonstrated our fundamental need for laughter.

On working with Jeremy Cowan, James Sullivan assesses, “Jeremy puts all sorts of ingredients into his delicious beers, but the first one is always chutzpah. He sold the first cases of HE’BREW out of the trunk of his grandma’s Volvo, and now it’s available across the country. Same with Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah — he self-published, and now he’s got national distribution. Beer, perseverance and comedy: a very sessionable recipe.”

I’m drawn to the unusual and the extraordinary, especially when they spring unexpectedly from the commonplace. I’ve lived in Queens and Brooklyn, New Orleans, Chicago, San Francisco and Boston. I’m a journalist (SF Chronicle, Boston Globe) and father of three nutty boys. I’m also a baseball fanatic, music nerd, Chuck Taylor’s connoisseur, dog lover and a very loud laughter. Thanks for reading.

www.jamessullivanauthor.com
twitter.com/sullivanjames