Kicking it up a notch

Badass Backyard Brewing is shaping up to be bigger and badder than before.

Owner/brewer Charlene Honcik last month received state and federal licensing approval to begin making and selling beer out of a detached shop at her Millwood home.

She had originally planned to primarily service weddings and other events using her 10-gallon homebrew system, but the regulations for that were more complicated than she realized.

Now, after talking to other brewers around the area, Honcik says, ”It seems like the best way to go about getting our beer out there is growler fills at the brewery.

“I was thinking, there are a ton of breweries in this town, we don’t need another one. But all of the breweries around here have been really supportive. I thought, that’s cool, let’s go for it.”

Honcik this week launched a fundraising campaign on Rally.org to buy a 1-barrel system – three times her current capacity – to make beer more efficiently and consistently.

She’s hoping to have everything up and running by July 20, her 30th birthday. In the meantime, she’s brewing away on the smaller system and planning some soft openings in a couple of months.

More Millwood suds: Another brewery is in the works in Millwood, though it won’t be opening for a while.

The city council last month approved a zoning change for Mill Towne Brewery in the former Cunningham Studio photo operation at 9005 E. Frederick Ave., just west of Argonne.

Owners Shelley and Chuck Watkins plan to expand the space and open the brewery and attached Italian-themed restaurant in fall 2016.