Waystone Brewing is celebrating its third anniversary this month, marking three years of growth from a small neighborhood concept into a bustling community gathering spot.
Owned by Ted and Jaylyn Morehouse, the brewery is using the milestone to reflect on the past year while looking ahead to expanded production, new beer releases and a continued focus on community.
“The most recent milestone is the expansion of the brewery’s production area,” the owners said. “We have tripled our manufacturing capacity and are looking toward small-scale distribution.”
The expansion represents a major step forward for a business that began with modest expectations.
“Our family has always enjoyed visiting breweries, and Ted has always wanted to open one,” Jaylyn Morehouse said. “After getting good at homebrewing, it was right around the time COVID happened and we decided that eventually it would be fun to open a small place somewhere close to the house where we could brew on a larger scale.”
From the start, she said, the goal was simple.
“The intent was always to open a small neighborhood brewery, and the goal was just to break even,” she said. “Now, at three years, it still remains very much a neighborhood social hub, and he’s still brewing beers that he enjoys making.”
That neighborhood atmosphere has been shaped in large part by the Midland community. Before the brewery introduced food trucks, customers helped establish one of its earliest traditions.
“Before we had food trucks, we encouraged customers to bring in a dish to share on Sundays, and it quickly became known as ‘potluck day,’” the owners said. “That eventually grew into what we now offer as Food Truck Sundays.”
Today, the brewery hosts a variety of regular groups, from tabletop gamers and fiber arts enthusiasts to after-work regulars and cycling groups.
“We have groups that are growing and consistently come in to play things like Dungeons & Dragons, meet up for fiber arts, after-work regulars, weekly bike groups that ride in,” they said. “We hope the brewery can continue being a meet-up spot.”
Community partnerships have also become part of Waystone’s identity, including a recent Earth Day collaboration with the Sibley Nature Center that supports the organization through beer sales.
Looking ahead, the Morehouses said customers can expect both new offerings and continued growth.
“Next up is our Mexican lager, which will be released later this month,” they said. “As for expanding, it’s our hope that our beer will slowly start to show up at bars and venues around town.”
Even as the brewery grows, its mission remains rooted in connection.
“We’re also just going to keep coming up with fun things to do,” they said. “So we hope everyone can follow along with our journey.”