Real Ale celebrates 30 years of pouring Texas craft beer

Real Ale Brewing Company’s sign lit up with green neon lights in Blanco, Texas.

Real Ale Brewing Co. /Courtesy of Real Ale Brewing Co.

What started as brewing beers in the cramped basement of an antique store in a small downtown square has evolved into one of Texas’ most popular craft beer brands. Real Ale Brewing Company is celebrating 30 years of serving up cold ones deep in the heart of the Texas Hill Country. 

The award-winning beer company has been a pillar in the community for decades as it continues to grow in Blanco and beyond. But Real Ale owner Brad Farbstein told MySA that the company’s journey to success in the craft beer industry did not come easily.

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“We joked that 11 years done it wrong, it was plenty of time to figure out how to do it right,” Farbstein said. 

In 1996, Phillip and Diane Conner set up a makeshift shop in the basement of Cranberry’s Antiques on the Blanco square. A year later Farbstein began helping brew and bottle beers with the Conners after graduating from the University of Texas at Austin and developing a passion for homebrewing.

“During the week, I would go out and sell the whole portfolio of beers that Microbility [Real Ale’s distributor] represented,” Farbstein said. “On the weekends, I would drive out to Blanco and I would help Phillip and Charles and Diane brew and bottle the beer, because I was much more interested in making the beer than I was in selling the beer.”

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Real Ale Brewing Company overlooks picturesque views of the Texas Hill Country in Blanco. 

Real Ale Brewing Co. /Courtesy of Real Ale Brewing Co.

Real Ale Brewing Company owner Brad Farbstein at the company’s brewery overlooking the Texas Hill Country in Blanco, Texas. 

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By 1998, Phillip Conner decided to leave the beer business due to health issues and handed the reigns to Farbstein, who used his life savings to buy the brewery and fulfill his dream. But in the late 90s and early 2000s, Farbstein quickly learned that breaking into the craft beer industry was difficult. 

“Selling craft beer was a foreign concept to most,” he said. “There was no multi-tap bars like there is today, like if there was a multi tap bar, it was maybe three taps. It was Budweiser, Miller and Coors.” 

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Over the years, Farbstein developed relationships with local businesses and event organizers to educate and market Real Ale straight to consumers across Texas. This included selling to stores like Spec’s and H-E-B, which Farbstein said is Real Ale’s largest retailer and “has been extremely supportive” of growing Texas’ craft beer industry.

“It was a lot of education, a lot of sampling, a lot of just kind of grinding it out, and trying to find retailers that were supportive of our efforts,” Farbstein said. “[H-E-B] they single handedly took us under their wing and really kind of helped us understand how to sell beer in Texas.” 

An outdoor bridge connects Real Ale Brewing Company’s brewing rooms to its taproom and manufacturing floor. 

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Real Ale’s Taproom on the second floor overlooks the brewery’s operations floor in Blanco, Texas. 

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Real Ale experienced a huge growth spurt and relocated to a new facility just outside the Blanco city limits in 2007, just as the craft beer scene began to explode. The 2010s consisted of a rapid boom in independent breweries, which quadrupled to 8,000 between 2010 and 2019.

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The decade was dominated by a surge of various India Pale Ale (IPAs), several Austin breweries and the demand for sour beers. During that time, Real Ale leaned into this trend producing new flavors and winning medals at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) for beers like the Rio Blanco Pale Ale, Hans’ Pils and Firemans #4. 

Real Ale’s Hans’ Pils and Firemans #4 won silver medals at GABF in the German-Style Pilsener and Golden or Blonde Ale categories in 2012. 

Real Ale Brewing Co. /Courtesy of Real Ale Brewing Co.

All the Real Ale beer cans ever made inside a beam of the company’s Blanco facility. 

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“We think we were very well positioned to be able to take advantage of the growth and the opportunity,” Farbstein said. “So for us, it was a huge boom like we don’t ever have any concerns about competing in the beer market.”

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Farbstein and his team also learned from experts at other homegrown craft breweries like Live Oak, Shiner and St. Arnold, a strategy he’s also adopted for mentoring future brewers at Real Ale. He described this as “healthy competition” that ultimately makes the craft beer industry stronger. 

“We don’t really see the other Austin breweries as competitors, as much as, you know, this is a David and Goliath challenge that we’re up against,” Farbstein said. “We kind of all rally together as David against the bigger manufacturers, because it’s all of our market, right? And so, a lot of what we do also is mentor younger brewers, and that’s really important to us, to share the knowledge that we’ve acquired over the last 30 years.”

Beer being brewed at high temperatures in one of several massive silver tanks at Real Ale Brewing Company in Blanco, Texas.

Real Ale Brewing Co. /Courtesy of Real Ale Brewing Co.

Real Ale Brewing Co.’s taproom is on the second floor of its Blanco facility. 

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In 2015, Real Ale unveiled its first taproom which has since become a community hub for a casual drink with friends to events with an outdoor space for live music and food vendors. Two years later, the company launched Real Spirits Distilling with a gin and two whiskeys, a venture Farbstein is excited to grow. 

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Barrels of whiskey and gin in Real Ale’s Distillery. 

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Real Ale imported the original Threadgill’s stage from Austin for live music performances at its Blanco facility. 

Real Ale Brewing Co. /Courtesy of Real Ale Brewing Co.

When Farbstein took over, Real Ale produced about 300 barrels a year. Today, the company produces nearly 40,000 barrels annually solely in Texas. Farbstein takes pride in the company’s independence as he hopes to continue brewing Real Ale’s future in the Lone Star State.  

“There’s a huge market, here in Texas, and so, for the next 30 years, we hope we can continue to grow and build community,” Farbstein said. “And help to bring the next generation of brewers and seller people and hopefully be a part of helping people realize their own personal hopes and dreams.”

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Inside Real Ale Brewing’s facility in Blanco, Texas. 

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Real Ale’s 30th anniversary celebration will be April 18 from noon to 7 p.m. at the brewery in Blanco. There will be live music, food from on-site trucks, kids’ games and activities, raffle prizes, anniversary merchandise and more. Early bird tickets start at $10 and can be purchased on the company’s website. 

Find it: 2250 N. US Hwy 281, Blanco, TX 78606