On this episode of Sipping and Selling, Joey Chanel sits down with Connor Begley of Father’s Brewing—her first-ever beer guest—to break down how a brand-new brewery is shaking up the beer aisle with a “clean beer” mission and a shockingly fast rise.
Connor shares the behind-the-scenes story of building an organic, transparent beer brand in a category that rarely changes—starting with lab testing 20+ beers and discovering what he claims are contaminants like microplastics, PFAs, and more—and deciding to create a cleaner alternative. Then the momentum hits: Whole Foods reached out before the bottles were even designed, followed by growth to roughly 250 distribution points, confirmations with Sprouts and BevMo, talks with Safeway and Costco, and an upcoming rollout with the AB (Anheuser-Busch) network starting in April.
They also dig into the “dream team” behind Father’s Brewing—entrepreneurs, operators, an award-winning brewer, and a performance-training connector that helped bring in NFL talent (including Eagles lineman Lane Johnson as an investor). Connor explains why community investors matter, how they approached branding (“modern Americana”), how they obsess-tested the liquid with blind tastings, and why focusing regionally first is the smarter route to scale.
Plus: the wild Super Bowl event recap—29 brand sponsors, Red Bull’s F1 car, Samsonite gifting $50K in luggage, glam bars, recovery stations, and an influencer/athlete-brand collision that generated massive reach.
If you’re into beverage strategy, distribution, founders’ stories, or the future of “clean” alcohol—this one’s loaded.
Follow Father’s Brewing + Connor, and if you want to try the beer, Connor says to DM them on Instagram. Cheers! 🍻
