E118: Lessons from 25 Years in Hospitality with Erik Shewmaker of Field Day Brewing
From The True Craft Podcast by Small Batch Standard
September 26, 2025 · 47 min · Episode 118
About this episode
Erik Shewmaker discusses his 25 years in hospitality and the launch of Field Day Brewing.
In this episode, we sit down with Erik Shewmaker, co-founder of Field Day Brewing and longtime restaurateur. Erik shares how a quarter of a century in hospitality shaped the launch of Field Day in 2023, the challenges of navigating Iowa distribution laws, the early adoption of THC beverages, and everything in-between! Highlights include: How a restaurant-first mindset changes how a brewery inherently operates What breweries can learn from scaling in the restaurant industry Why THC beverages are reshaping the hospitality space (despite it being a relatively new offering) This episode unscores the importance of breweries not taking guests for granted and ensuring hospitality is at the forefront of every decision. As Erik puts it, “If we’re just order takers instead of order makers, we’re really doing guests a disservice.” With 25 years in hospitality, Erik’s perspective is one you won’t want to miss!
People in this episode
Guest: Erik Shewmaker
Topics covered
- hospitality
- brewing
- THC beverages
- restaurant industry
- Iowa distribution laws
Keywords
- hospitality
- brewing
- THC beverages
- restaurant industry
- Iowa distribution laws
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Field Day Brewing
Places: Iowa
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