Back in mid-November, I received a phone call from a Scott Campbell asking if I’d consider doing a Craft Beer on The Bay feature on Ten Eyck Brewing, a new craft brewery in Queenstown. I asked Scott if he was one of the owners and he said that he was a contractor who was part of the team that built the brewery. He then told me that he was at the taproom and the brewer was with him and introduced me to Nicki Sener, the Founder and Head Brewer at Ten Eyck Brewing. After a nice talk, Nicki and I exchanged some emails and set up a time to meet. Then a week later, I headed over to Queenstown to spend some time with Nicki Sener and talk about Ten Eyck Brewing. We grabbed a couple stools in the brewhouse adjoining the taproom and got into the story behind the brewery, including its very interesting name: Ten Eyck.
So how did Nicki Sener step into the craft beer world?
With kegs on hand, Nicki was able to share her beer with a great group of friends. At the same time, Nicki was beginning to think about a change in career direction. The thought of ending years of commuting to her job in Washington D.C. led to thinking about doing something local, right in Queenstown. So she developed a business plan, got a small business loan, and somewhat unexpectedly had this same group of friends—all women—become investors.
With location being so important in business, Nicki Sener identified a location across from Chesapeake College, just off the Route 50. In 2017 she got informal approval to move forward, had the site plan approved in 2018, received the building permit in 2019 and broke ground in August of that year. Then in August 2020, Ten Eyck Brewing opened its doors and began serving craft beer to anyone who was thirsty!
Cheers!
Jefferson
The Craft Beer Guy
Email: jward@thebayonline.com
