Cape Cod Beer celebrates 20th anniversary with new ale and year-long festivities

Twenty years ago, Todd and Beth Marcus embarked on making their dreams come true: running their own brewery and distributing beer across Cape Cod.

When things began looking grim for the HyPort Brewing Company in Hyannis at the end of 2003, the Marcuses took a leap of faith. The couple pitched their idea of using Hyport’s equipment to brew their own beer to owner William Walsh, and he agreed.

Two decades later, Hyport is no longer with us, and Cape Cod Beer has grown from a two-man operation to a 20-man operation on Phinney’s Lane, celebrating two decades of making beers that feel like “a vacation in every pint.”

“There was less than 1,000 breweries in the United States when we started,” Beth said. “So we always had this thought that we could do it … But to get from thinking that you might be able to do it and to actually do it (is) a big leap.”

In celebration of the 20th birthday, the team at Cape Cod Beer is hosting a year-long celebration, kicking off on April 25 with the release of a 20th-anniversary beer, Cape Cod Ale, and the first of many parties on April 27.

“We wouldn't be here without all the people that have supported us along the way and we have to somehow express that,” Todd said. “(It’s) a way to say cheers to everybody that's been there for us through thick and thin.”

Cape Cod Beer celebrates 20th birthday: Here’s how it started

The story of Cape Cod Beer really begins in the late '80s when Todd and his friends decided to take up the hobby of homebrewing.

“We made our first batch and it looked absolutely disgusting and probably tasted disgusting but we thought it was the best thing in the world,” he said. “We made our own beer.”

From there, the homebrewing hobby became somewhat of a passion as they worked on refining their craft. Time passed and in 1995, Todd received an invite to a brewers-only dinner at Redbones Barbecue in Somerville.

In the now-famous story, Todd recalls walking down into the Redbones basement and being greeted with a room full of plaid-shirt-clad men with ponytails smoking cigars and drinking barley wines and strong ales.

“I felt like I found my people that night,” he said.

Once he left, Todd knew he’d found his passion, quitting his engineering job the next day and setting off to find work in the industry.

Over the next few years, Todd hopped from brewery to brewery, working at Long Trail Brewing Company in Vermont, Sunday River Brewing Company in Maine and the former John Harvard’s Brew House in Pennsylvania before landing on the Cape in 1998 at the Cape Cod Brewhouse (which would eventually become the Hyport Brewing Company.)

At Hyannisport, Todd oversaw the brewing operations at the 500-square-foot brewery attached to the restaurant; while he worked on fulfilling the beer orders, the restaurant struggled to keep its footing. He found himself without a job right before Christmas in 2003 and Beth found herself in the same position.

“We made a deal with them that said, ‘Look, we'll keep making beer for you if you let us use your equipment to kind of start our own thing,’” Todd said. “We had written a business plan to start Cape Cod Beer out of that location.”

In the beginning, the pair ran the business out of the Hyport’s brewery and Beth’s minivan as Todd delivered their two beers — Channel Marker Red (now Cape Cod Red) and Shark Teeth IPA (now Cape Cod IPA) — to their 10 accounts, which they still hold today.

“There weren't any sharks on Cape Cod when we called it sharks teeth and by the time we changed the name, there still weren’t sharks,” Beth joked.

Twenty years later, the entire operation has changed but their love and dedication remain the same.

“We're very proud of what we've created and we're very thankful to all the people that have worked here and all the people in our community that have supported us,” Todd said.

Cape Cod Beer grew to creating around 35 beers and pouring 1.4 million pints per year, according to the Marcuses, plus fulfilling orders for over 600 accounts.

Open year-round, the brewery acts as a third space for many people on the Cape, according to Beth, hosting weekly events, pumping out new brews and supporting fellow community members through their charitable donations and partnerships.

“There was a reason it wasn't called the Marcus Family Brewing Company or the Todd Marcus Brewing Company because (it felt) bigger than that,” Beth said. “I think it wasn’t until about 10 years in that we could lift our heads up and be like, ‘Oh, my God! We've actually done it. We've created this thing.'”

Year-long celebrations ahead for 20 years of Cape Cod Beer

With 20 years under their belt, it’s time to celebrate Cape Cod Beer in all its glory.

While the party of April 27 is only the beginning of celebrations to come, it promises to be an exciting start to the anniversary year. Beginning at noon, bands will be playing inside the brewery’s new band shell for a day of brews, food and good fun.

Tickets are $10 and can be purchased in advance online (www.capecodbeer.com/) or at the door.

When it comes to encapsulating this milestone in a beer, the Cape Cod Ale is light and hoppy, according to Cape Cod Beer’s website, and packaged in a brown hipster bottle fitted with a nostalgic Cape Cod postcard-esque label designed in collaboration with Shawnna Lyons-Dambeck.

And if you look closely, you’ll see Chris Siderwicz’s red baron plane flying the Cape Cod Beer banner in the sky — a nod to one of Beth’s favorite Cape Cod Beer accomplishments.

“We felt like there had to be something that we did that was memorable (and) was kind of a nod to Cape Cod (and) that allowed us to express our gratitude towards the community that has supported us for so long,” Todd said.

Outside of the April celebrations, the brewery is planning on completing renovations to its taproom, creating a brand-new beer garden, throwing an even bigger birthday party in the summer and so much more.

Cape Cod Beer is located at 1336 Phinneys Lane in Hyannis. To keep up with celebrations throughout the year, follow Cape Cod Beer on Instagram (@CapeCodBeer) or visit their website www.capecodbeer.com/.

Frankie Rowley covers entertainment and things to do. Contact her at frowley@capecodonline.com.

Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Cape Cod Times subscription. Here are our subscription plans.

This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod Beer is turning 20 and celebrating all year. How to join in.