A Golden Opportunity for Royal Scandal

, A Golden Opportunity for Royal Scandal

Check out the entire photo album from our visit on our facebook page.

When Michael Peticolas heard his beer, Royal Scandal, announced a gold medal winner at this year’s Great American Beer Festival, the first thing he thought was – there must be another beer with the same name. Upon bringing up the win during my recent visit to Peticolas Brewing Company, the uncontrollable grin that crossed Michael’s face gave me a glimpse into what it must feel like to have achieved this success.

, A Golden Opportunity for Royal Scandal“I told every person, look, we’re not winning a medal out there, we’re brand new,” Michael recalls. “When they announced gold for classic English-style Pale Ale, literally the first thing that went through my head was, please don’t tell me there’s another Royal Scandal entered in this competition! I floated down to the stage – I hardly even remember walking there. Cloud nine really has a new meaning to me.”

I would not have blamed him for jumping up and down with excitement – in the history of Dallas breweries, he’s the first with a medal from arguably the most prestigious festival in the beer world. Not to mention he’s among an elite handful of breweries that have claimed a GABF gold in their first year of business.

You could say that Michael’s win was fated – Charlie Papazian, the father of the craft beer movement and the man who draped the medal round Michael’s neck, also drank off the first keg of beer Michael ever brewed at Peticolas. And he’s inherited some pretty legit brewing skills – how many brewers can say that they gained an appreciation for craft beer from their homebrewing mothers? His friends must have also sensed the untapped potential within when they handed him their surplus brewing supplies in an attempt to convince him to make a brew of his own. Even though his first homebrew – a Belgian quad – was a flop, Michael got a taste of what could be. When he later received an opportunity to invest in a start-up brewery, Michael, who had been running his own law firm since 2005, and his wife decided instead to seize the moment and invest in themselves.

Like all labors of love, opening a brewery within Dallas city limits proved no easy task. And hurdles he did overcome – even going so far as to change the law to create a sub-district within a preexisting district so that he could manufacture alcohol. His efforts are still helping to pave a less tedious road for future Dallas microbreweries.

“Now it’s becoming a lot easier to open up a brewery in Dallas,” Michael said. “I tried to explain to the city that this is going to be a really good thing for Dallas. We’re reaping the benefits now, because there’s a lot of good beer that’s starting to flow through this city.”

, A Golden Opportunity for Royal ScandalMichael has a lot to be proud of these days – his brewery is getting national attention, he’s taken over the space next door to triple his brewing capacity and gain additional tasting room space, and he’s got his sights set on future bottling operations. In the meantime, he’s brewing up a new concoction called Wintervention – a dark winter spiced ale featuring locally sourced ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice that will be released closer to the holidays.

Instead of investing in advertising initiatives, Michael invests in his community and those who support him and his business. The strategy has paid off, as could be seen in the number of Peticolas groupies that gathered together last week at The Common Table, one of the area’s best craft beer bars, to get a glimpse at Michael’s gold medal and to drink his brews on tap. As he passed it around for all to see (and yes, I admit I tried it on), one could see that he values his community of followers as much as the win.

“I believe that I’m in the entertainment industry,” said Michael. “I believe people drink beer because they want to be entertained – you want to enjoy yourself. If someone cares enough about my beer or my brewery, I want them to want to come and have a good time. It’s about connecting with people.”

Check out the entire photo album from our visit on our facebook page.

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