DRINK
SMASHING SUCCESS After making its name with beer, Devils Backbone finds another sweet spot with canned cocktails By Kevin Noonan
A
t first glance, it seems like an odd name for a craft brewery — Devils Backbone. But take a closer look and it makes perfect sense, since mountains have always played a big part in the lives and careers of Steve and Heidi Crandall. The couple got the inspiration to start the brewery while on a ski trip in the Italian Alps and savored, for the first time, a quality craft beer, a German Weisse. And when they finally decided to take the plunge and open their own brewery, they did so in the Blue Ridge mountains of Southern Virginia. As for the name Devils Backbone — that’s what the jagged section of the Blue Ridge was called by the men who surveyed that part of Virginia almost 300 years ago, a group that included Thomas Jefferson’s father, Peter. The Crandalls began their operation in Nelson County, Va. in 2008 and it was an immediate success, especially their flagship Vienna Lager, which has won several national and international awards. Other big sellers were Eight Point IPA and Schwartz Bier, a black lager. Then, in 2016, Devils Backbone was acquired by industry goliath Anheuser-Busch and lost its Brewers Association designation as a craft brewery. Last May, the Devils Backbone family suffered a devastating loss when Steve Crandall died at the age of 64 after a three-year
battle with cancer. Heidi Crandall is still involved with the company, which started small and grew quickly. Part of that growth was their leap in 2019 into the canned cocktail business, which includes their top-selling Smash series — orange, grapefruit and lemonade, all of which can be found in the Delaware market. (For more information on Devils Backbone and its products, go to DBBrewingCompany.com) Kim Oakley, the marketing director of Devils Backbone, recently sat down for a telephone interview with Out & About Magazine from her office in Southern Virginia to discuss her company’s amazing growth, the many changes it's undergone in a short amount of time, and what lies ahead. ►
Above: Devils Backbone Outpost Tap Room & Kitchen in Lexington, Virgnia. APRIL 2022 | OUTANDABOUTNOW.COM
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