The beer enthusiasts behind Blackwater Draw, a local brewpub, are adding a distribution arm with a new location.
Unlike the current brewpub, the new brewery will not serve food — it will only bottle beer. Chris Weingart, Class of 2005 and owner of Blackwater Draw, said the brewpub has strong local ties. He and his partner cultivated their passion for beer while working at O’Bannon’s, and the business is Aggie owned and operated. 
As homage to these local roots, Weingart said he and his partner named the place after the headwater source of the Brazos River.
 “We felt like the closer you work to the source of a product, the fresher and better it was and is,” Weingart said. “So when we came to actually name it, that’s one of the ones that seemed to stick out, roll of the tongue real well, and it seemed to fit our business personality real well.”
Weingart said the brewery is going to hold up to 10,000 barrels — 30 times larger than the brewpub. To put that into perspective, Weingart said a keg is a half barrel and the tanks at the brewpub are 70 barrels big.
“One barrel takes usually about a day,” Weingart said. “We’re averaging right under a barrel a day. On game days we go through two, up to three barrels if we’re busy.”
Juan Rodriguez, psychology Ph.D. candidate and Blackwater kitchen manager,  said he will monitor the fermentation process at the new brewery. His job will entail making sure yeast converts the sugar to alcohol. This keeps “off” flavors from being produced or carbonated too young, he said. If this problem happens in packaging, in the certain temperatures the yeast will swell in the cans.
 “It can start to referment in the can and if it wasn’t originally planned for that to occur, the yeast can cause some increased pressures in the can and it will rupture and there will be beer everywhere,” Rodriguez said.
Blackwater Draw will open sometime in October or the beginning of November.