Georgia currently has 66 breweries and only one of them is black-owned: Down Home Brewing, which is working hard to make the beer industry a little blacker!

Chris Reeves and William Allen Moore spoke to 11 Alive about the challenges they face as trailblazers in the industry. The two men started canning beer in March 2018 at a space in Georgia's smallest production brewery.

"Starting the business was a challenge," noted Reeves. "During the whole time I’m questioning myself: 'Are you sure you want to do this? Yes.'"

"It was fun seeing people’s reactions to it, saying, 'Oh okay, this is cool.' Then you see the backstory behind it and we tell our story with our families and how this comes from a place of family," said Moore. "People get excited and can really relate to it."

Moore is a graduate of Morehouse College School of Medicine, and neither of the men have quit their day jobs while running their brewing company. Ultimately, the two hope to open a craft brewery of their own so they can quit those jobs.

Photo: GIPHY

"I think Georgia has been long overdue to have African Americans as leaders in this particular industry," said Nancy Palmer of the Georgia Craft Beer Guild. "Clearly we could use more women in this industry as well."

Chris Reeves

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