Two Locals Brewing, Philadelphia’s first Black-owned brewery, moves closer to getting its own home

Two Locals Brewing Co., which hit the radar in 2020 as one of the Philadelphia brewers of the Black is Beautiful national beer collaboration, is a step closer to its goal of a brick-and-mortar brewery and tap house.

Brothers Richard and Mengistu Koilor, as the first Black owners of a brewery in Philadelphia, are now brewing out of Mainstay Independent Brewing, which operates at FCM Hospitality’s Craft Hall in Northern Liberties. Besides Craft Hall, FCM owns a slate of restaurants, including Morgan’s Pier, Harper’s Garden, Rosy’s Taco Bar, and Juno, as well as the Parks on Tap pop-up beer gardens.

Two Locals’ first two beers — Nubian, a brown ale (5.7% ABV), and Prolific, a hazy IPA (6.4%) — are now available at Craft Hall, via bottle shops, and through their website, www.twolocalsbrewing.com/s/order. A third — Who You Wit?, a Belgian-style witbier (5.7%) — is due in May.

The pandemic forced the Koilors to curtail their sampling sessions at such venues as the Fitler Club. The business deal with FCM moved quickly after the Koilors met FCM founder Avram Hornik in fall 2020. Early in 2021, Hornik introduced the Koilors to Mainstay brewer/operator Brian O’Brien. Hornik supports local businesses that are looking to expand, as he did with Lost Bread Co. and Mainstay at Craft Hall. A similar incubation arrangement, and its exposure, is expected to help Two Locals.

“Avram has the resources we need to get our business further,” said Richard, 30, a graduate of St. Joseph’s Prep and St. Joseph’s University, who does accounting for a tech company. Mengistu, 40, graduated from the Haverford School and Morehouse College and is in financial-service data management.

“It’s been tough for us to find financial support through loans, said Mengistu. “It could be because of the time and the effect COVID has had. There is a higher risk for start-up businesses. And from hearing other stories, we also think our race plays a role in us getting approved for the loan we need.” Black people are disproportionately turned down for small-business loans.

Although they still work at their careers full-time, “beer is our 5-to-9,” said Richard, who got the brothers started in 2016 when he bought a one-gallon home-brew kit and brewed an Irish red ale. Unlike many rookie efforts, “the beer came out pretty good,” he said. They started brewing together in Mengistu’s back yard and then in Richard’s kitchen. They joined the Philadelphia Homebrew Club to bond and get tips.

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“The more we got into the brewing industry, the more we saw the lack of Black brewers and Black breweries,” said Richard . “Often times, we were the only Black people sitting in a brewery. Black people drink beer, too, but craft beer is not marketed towards them.”

Efforts are underway to boost the visibility of Black brewers, who make up less than 1% of brewers in America, though Black people account for 13% of the population, according to the Brewers Association.

In 2020, the Koilors collaborated with the Black-owned Harris Family Brewery, of Harrisburg, and Double Eagle Malt, of Huntingdon Valley, on Black is Beautiful beer, which was based on a recipe from Weathered Souls Brewing in San Antonio and sold locally at Love City Brewing. The result: More than $9,000 was donated to support Black Lives Matter.

That beer sold out in two days. When they get their own space, the Koilors said they would make it once a year and donate all proceeds to help fight racial and social injustice.

Beyond their own brewery and taproom, the Koilors want to be able to send people from their community to school for beer certificates and/or degrees.

“We hope that other Black-owned breweries join us and aren’t far behind,” Richard said. “We would love to see our story inspire others and add to the diversity of our beer community.”