A Message from Us

Happy Friday, friends. At Dorćol, we’re all about sharing good brews and great experiences. Viruses, not so much.

Jokes aside, we’re taking several precautionary measures to ensure guests of Dorćol continue to have an amazing time while here.

         Aside from handwashing and sanitation rules we already follow, we’ll be relocating bitters, garnishes and straws from our bartop. We’ll be increasing our sanitation procedures on all areas of the tasting room and patio. And we are encouraging guests and employees, who feel unwell, to stay home.

         There will be no change to regular business hours on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but we will continue to monitor the situation around COVID-19.

         We’re open, and we hope you continue to support us and the bars and restaurants that carry HighWheel and Kinsman, like you have the past six years.

         If social distancing is your vibe, don’t forget to pick up your favorite HighWheel brew to while away the hours. Pick up your growlers, or HighWheel Betty cans and Kinsman bottles to enjoy at home from our tasting room at 1902 S. Flores.

— Boyan, Chris, Randy + the Team

Hop To It: Our Amber Ale Meets Apricots

This February, Randy brewed up HighWheel Small Batch #32. An Amber Ale brewed in a German Alt-style, this beer is malty, with a clean hop bitterness and has been a tap room favorite since its release.

But we turned things up a notch this March with a limited amount of the brew. Randy added apricot puree to the Amber Ale and added a few sherry soaked oak chips in the mix. The result is a malty brew with a hint of fruit and robust sherry notes that leaves you wanting more.

Come try it this Thursday, March 12 from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. while it last.

IBU: 29, ABV: 6.1 %, SRM: 13

HIRING: Assistant Brewer at Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co.

Dorćol Distilling and Brewing Company, makers of award-winning Kinsman spirits and HighWheel brews, is looking for an Assistant Brewer.  Dorćol is a small team of passionate owners / employees.  As a part of this team, the Assistant Brewer will participate in every aspect of the production of HighWheel beer including: washing kegs, milling grain, transferring and cleaning tanks, production of wort, carbonation of beer, filling kegs, and cleaning the brewery. If you possess the attributes below, we want to talk to you.  

Skills and Abilities:

·  A passion for craft beer.  An understanding of the brewing process or brewery experience is a plus.

·  Attention to detail, organized, and the ability to problem solve

·  A proven ability to simultaneously handle multiple tasks at once 

·  The ability to lift 55-pound bags of grain and 160-pound kegs of beer and work on your feet all day

·  A desire to learn the other facets of our business (distribution, bar operations, distilling) to help as a member of a small, growing team

Compensation/Benefits

· Hourly, competitive pay rate based on experience and skill set

· Paid Time Off and Paid Holidays

· Health Insurance

· Being a member of a dynamic, growing part of the San Antonio craft brewing community

How to Apply

Email your resume and cover letter to jobs@DorcolSpirits.com with "Assistant Brewer" in the subject line. 

Equal Opportunity

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran, and basis of disability or any other federal, state or local protected class.

Hop To It: Our Dark Anniversary Offerings

Tis the season for dark brews! Though we have a penchant for opaque brews like the HighWheel Porter, which can be enjoyed year-round, there’s something about pitch black ales that really warms your bones.

As we headed into December, Randy decided to brew a slew of dark beers to cap off our year. The black saison hit taps in October and a barrel-aged Porter followed in November.

This December 13, we’ll celebrate six years of Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co. with the release of two Small Batch beers. First up, an Imperial Black IPA with a flavor profile that includes a touch of caramel sweetness, a hint of coffee roast, as well as a big dose of citrus and tropical fruit. We’ll follow it up with a very limited release of the Peanut Butter Barrel-Aged Porter, which takes the barrel-aged porter and is then dry-hopped with peanut butter. The latter will only be available at Dorćol for a very limited run, so… hop to it!

Giving Back With the Black Saison

This October, we wrapped up fest season with a release dear to our hearts. Before opening Dorćol, Boyan and Chris made sure to take a trek up to Big Bend every year to take in the great outdoors. Running a business means the treks are now a little less frequent, but their love for camping and unplugging is still present.

That’s why this September we teamed up with Community Cultures Yeast Lab’s Mara and Rob to create a Black Saison made using brewer’s yeast harvested from the Ocotillo plant in Big Bend National Park.

The result of the day-long brew was the HighWheel Black Saison, a darker version of the classic Belgian farmhouse style, that doesn’t drink dark, but instead delivers notes of pear, apple, pepper and clove with a nice funkiness that defines a good saison.

To continue celebrating the park, we’re donating a portion of every pour and keg sold to benefit Friends of Big Bend. So if you’re a fan of one of Texas’s greatest places, make sure to stop by and enjoy a pour of this wonderful brew.

We're Canning Betty!

Since December 2015, fans of Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co. have asked to take their favorite beers home. Almost four years later, visitors will be able to do just that. 

With the passing of House Bill 1545, which allows breweries to sell beer directly to guests, Dorćol invested in the design of a HighWheel Betty can. Designed by Heavy Heavy Co., a San Antonio-based creative services studio, our Betty can features the now-signature blonde and showcases the ale’s drinkability. 

“To finally be able to send folks home with a sixer of Betty, our most popular beer, will have an impact on brand recognition, marketing and overall growth for us at Dorćol,” said co-founder Boyan Kalusevic. 

Cans will be available for pick up in packs of six starting the night of September 5 during our Music For Advanced Listeners residency with DJs Hello Darby (AKA Steven Darby and co-designer of the label), Nova Soul, and Caribbean snacks by The Jerk Shack. 

“San Antonians and other guests have waited for this for four long years,” said brewer and co-owner Randy Ward, “Come and get it!”

Like us on Untappd!

After three years of self-distributing HighWheel brews across San Antonio and beyond, beer drinkers can finally like our beers on Untappd!

In the platform, beer fans are able to check in and give us real-time feedback on our beers. That’s why we’re asking fans of HighWheel to jump on the bandwagon and give our venue (Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co.) and our brewery (Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co.) a follow!

We’ll keep you posted on all things HighWheel, including upcoming beers and releases and any other fun events we host at Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co.

Make sure to rate us wherever you go, and keep those 5-star reviews coming! It helps folks find our beers and helps us keep making beers you love!

A Summer Stout Release

This past January, head brewer Randy Ward released our highest ABV beer yet with the Russian Imperial Stout, modeled after dark beers crafted by the English to export to Russia in the early 18th century. Story has it that once Empress Catherine II got a taste for the imported stout, which known for its durability and endurance as it made its way across the Baltic into Russia, the brew solidified its place in history.

And after several months in a port barrel, the RIS is back for more.

Flavor notes include chocolate, roast, and coffee, as well as fig, raisin, and prune contributed by the port. 

“It starts with a port like boozy nose, but finishes on the palate complex and balanced,” Randy said.

Try it for yourself this June! We’re releasing it in the taproom on June 14 so come by for a pour and a few surprises.

70 IBU, 9% ABV, 71 SRM.

HighWheel Coq Hardi Wins Bronze at L.A. Beer Competition

The name is tongue in cheek, but this win certainly is not.

HighWheel Coq Hardi earned a bronze at this year’s Los Angeles International Commercial Beer Competition this April.

Of the 1,520 entries from 244 breweries hailing from across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, HighWheel Coq Hardi was only bested by the Beachwood BBQ-Long Beach’, Un Atout and the 2kids Brewing Company’s Rocket Powered Geese, which won gold and silver, respectively.

HighWheel Coq Hardi is one of Dorcol Distilling + Brewing’s year-round offerings, and was one of the original four beers made by head brewer and co-owner Randy Ward. Coq Hardi, named after the Walloon flag, is a traditional saison.  This food friendly beer is made with a strain of yeast from a well respected saison brewery in the Walloon region of Belgium.  

“The yeast strain, coupled with the simple malt bill and combination of two different hops, gives this beer a crisp flavor with notes of clove, pepper, and bubblegum,” said Ward.

Get a taste for this distinctive brew in our taproom at 1902 S. Flores St., Bar 1919 and SoHill Cafe.

Stop, Collaborate + Listen: Our Ranger Creek Collab!

Brewers have to stick together. That’s why we invited our friends at Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling to join us for a collaboration brew this spring.

After a San Antonio Beer Week meeting at Ranger Creek, Randy and Ranger Creek brewer Holland Lawrence chatted about brews they wanted to try their hands on. Conversations on sours…well, soured, but they turned their attention to Belgium.

Randy and Daniel teamed up with Holland and brewer’s assistant Zach Wolfe this past April to create the latest HighWheel Small Batch release, a Belgian Dubbel using a traditional Trappist strain of yeast and Belgian candy sugar. To put a twist on the classic abbey brew, Randy and Holland infused the beer with a mix of sweet and tart cherries.

Brew day involved an early morning start, breakfast tacos, lots of coffee, pizza, and “studiously watching the brew,” per Randy.

The result is a rose-hued beer with notes of fig and cherry with a nice Belgian funk on the back end.

Find it at Dorćol Distilling + Brewing Co. and select tap rooms across San Antonio.

18 IBU, 7.9% ABV, 22 SRM

Make sure to check in on Untappd and give us a 5-star review!

Sooner or Lager: We're making a Pils!

Spring has sprung at the warehouse, but while we’re enjoying the mild temperatures, Randy’s thinking ahead to those sweltering South Texas days. As such, he created our first HighWheel lager, a golden yellow Czech-style number that’ll keep you cool as the temperatures keep climbing.

This time, Randy leaned into the pils, named after the Czech city of Plzen and known for its crisp, clean finish. Using traditional Czech hops, he delivered a 5.9 percent ABV pale lager with mild bitterness, that’ll rival Betty with its refreshing and easy-drinking quality. Come try one in the tasting room starting April 26!

IBU:  30, ABV: 5.9%, color: 3.8 SRM

FeBREWary Updates

This January, we released our heftiest ale yet — our HighWheel Russian Imperial Stout.

For February, Randy took it down a notch with an American Brown Ale, released during our GroundDog Day celebration on February 2 (Groundhog Day, get it?). This was only the third-ever HighWheel American Brown Ale.

This malty beer with an American hop presence clocked in at 30 IBUs, 6.1 percent ABV , and 19 SRM. Ask for it at Piatti Eilan, all Big Hops locations, Stout House, Dignowity Meats, St. Joseph’s Hall, The Point Park & Eats and 502 Bar.

Or stop by Dorćol for a taste, and while you’re here, sample our core lineup (Betty Kölsch, Coq Hardi Saison, 56 IPA, Porter, Hefeweizen, Irish Red Ale and Extra Pale Ale), as well as our HighWheel Small Batch series (Russian Imperial Stout, and Black Kölsch).