Eric Martens has been a chemical engineer since graduating in 2008 from Kansas State University. But his career path will take a heady turn this fall when he opens Border Brewing Company in the Crossroads Arts District.
“Kansas City’s a great place right now to start a business in beer,” Martens said. “There’s a great culture for it. And we’ll be in a great neighborhood.”
Martens will occupy the dual role of entrepreneur and head brewer when his brewery and tap room opens in late October or early November at 406 E. 18th St., across from Crossroads KC at Grinders, the popular downtown pizzeria and live music venue.
“I’ve been working for an engineering firm since I graduated from college, so I’ll be leaving that job to start the brewery,” he said. “It will be something a little bit different from what I did previously, but I’ve been home-brewing for about eight years now. So the combination of the two is kind of what led me to this business.
“I like creating new (beer) recipes and optimizing existing ones. It’s something that suits me and my personality pretty well. I like the process behind it, and I like the science behind it.”
Border Brewing Company is Martens’ first small business, which he’s co-funding with his fiancée, Tracy Smith.
“I’m learning as I go, that’s for sure,” he said. “We’re in construction mode right now. We’ve tried to hit social media hard and keep people informed. We’re going to do everything we can to stay connected digitally until we open.”
Martens doesn’t know of another chemical engineer in town who operates a brewery and tap room, “but you get people from all sorts of backgrounds that are doing this— desk jobs, you name it, and they’ve ended up in the brewing business,” he said. “There are lots of worlds that can lead to the beer world.”
The world of Border Brewing Company will hold close to the tastes of customers first and foremost, Martens said.
“My goal is to make beer for the people drinking it, not for myself,” he said. “So if there’s something that people like and they want to see more of it, we’ll keep brewing that. And if they have ideas on things that they want to see brewed or different stuff that we haven’t tried, we’ll give that a shot, too. I want to have versatility in our brewing process, so that we’re constantly changing.”
The rotation of fresh beers available at Border Brewing Company will include Campfire Porter and an Imperial IPA, but it’s the Extra Pale Patio Ale that may turn out to be the place’s signature glass.
“The Patio Ale is the most popular one across the board so far,” Martens said. “It’s the beer that kind of accomplishes what we’re trying to do with this brewery and with this business. It appeals to people who are already interested in craft beer, as well as people that maybe haven’t tried it before. It’s definitely a style that’s approachable, but has some complexity and is still interesting.”
