Madhouse Brewery set to come on line soon

Newton’s first brewery is nearly ready.

Mason Groben, operator of Jasper Winery, is busy putting the finishing touches on his next project, Madhouse Brewery. Housed in a former Maytag testing room for washing machines, Groben is working in a 3,500 square foot area leased from Iowa Telecom that will contain copper kettles, fermentation tanks and a bottling line.

Groben said the entire beer-making process will basically be handled by him, working on the Jasper Winery’s downtime in the fall and winter.

“We’re going to start the brewing process in January and I hope to have product on the shelves by February,” Groben said.

He orders hops for the beer from the Pacific northwest now, but Groben said he had a friend who plans to plant about an acre of hops locally, contributing to Iowa’s value-added agriculture

It’s about three weeks from start to finish, and Groben said the first to be brewed will be a pale ale he has named “Pastime,” an homage to Maytag’s first washing machine. An American style wheat beer will follow soon after, and Groben plans for seasonal beers further in the future, such as a bock or a winter ale. Half of the brew will be utilized for bottles and half in kegs.

Groben said he was grateful to the Iowa Legislature and to Senator Dennis Black, who led the charge for changes in rules that made the brewery possible.

The new law signed by Gov. Culver in May, allows a person employed by a class A native wine permittee to also be employed by a native brewery so long as the person does not have an ownership interest in either licensed premises. Groben got involved in making wine several years ago when his parents, Paul and Jean Groben started Jasper Winery here in Jasper County. The winery has since moved to Des Moines, but Mason Groben continues to be involved in Jasper Winery. With 20 investors on board, Madhouse should be well-prepared for the future.