Community
Smith Engineering Christmas Cheer
‘Tis the Season for Smith Engineering's Desert Reindeer Beer!
The holidays are upon us once again and Smith is happy to be spreading the cheer. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the brewing and botting of our Desert Reindeer Beer – a special treat engineered by Smith's own staff of holiday elves. Each year we look foward to this tradition, which is as fun to put together as it is to give away! Watch the video above to see our bottling party and read the article below for a more in depth look at our tradition.
All of us at Smith Engineering wish all of you a happy and safe holiday season. Cheers!
Article from the Albuquerque Journal in 2010:
Monday, December 20, 2010
Just Can't Keep Holiday Cheer Bottled Up
By Rivkela BrodskyCopyright © 2010 Albuquerque Journal Journal Staff Writer
Smith Engineering customers literally get some holiday cheer every year. Since 2002, the company has been brewing and bottling its own Desert Reindeer Beer and other labels to give to vendors and customers. "There's a lot of camaraderie in the company and it spills out to our customers," said Lawrence Lopez, vice president and director of business development and marketing for the firm. "Beer is just an example of that – it's a tradition."
The process begins every year in late October or early November when employees are invited to get involved in the process of picking beer flavors, brewing, bottling, labeling and delivering. About 36 employees participated in different parts of the process, said Dan Boivin, a principal at the company and the one who came up with the beer brewing idea. Everything, except distribution, is done after work hours, Lopez said. About a dozen Smith Engineering employees and some spouses showed up on a Saturday in late November to bottle two varieties made at Kellys Brew Pub – American Porter and Belgium Blonde. They spent about four hours bottling and sampling the beer. "It's one of the funner things on the job," Boivin said.
A different employee will design the bottle label each year. In the past the label has featured a picture of Smith Engineering founder Bob Smith's head on a cow, among others. Typically, the label features the Desert Reindeer Beer name and a biography of Smith. Both bottles this year feature those elements.
The idea fermented from a Tuesday night tradition where Smith Engineering employees would go out to a different watering hole after work, he said. "One of the things we all had in common is we all like to drink beer," Boivin said. Once employees at the company realized they could brew their own at Kellys, they decided to share their love of beer with customers. "Over the years it's gotten to where people expect it," Lopez told the Journal.
When Smith Engineering started brewing in 2002, the company made two kegs and there was enough for employees to take some home. The company now makes six kegs, Boivin said, and it has become so popular "we have to be careful to not give out too much so there's enough to go around." "Employees used to be able to take some home, but now it's just for customers," he said.
The company made about 550 bottles this year, Lopez said. Employees hand deliver the beer throughout December. Most will get a bottle each of the different brews. Bob Smith said the tradition helps strengthen the company's relationship with customers and other companies it works with. "It's doesn't hurt. The clients look forward to it," he said. Smith started the company 1989 in Albuquerque. It now has five offices – Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Roswell, Durango, Colo. and Midland, Texas – and employs 75 people. "We are very well known and respected, not just brewmeisters," he said.
Read more:
ABQJOURNAL BIZ: Just Can't Keep Holiday Cheer Bottled Up http://www.abqjournal.com/biz/2022127biz12-20-10.htm#ixzz1h13xlitM
