Devil Wind Brewing is a venture between four friends and their dream to produce world-class beer. Their plan is to brew the most outstanding local beer in Xenia, reaching out to the growing craft beer community and bring them to Greene County.
The Brewery, which will be located at 130 South Detroit Street in Xenia, hopes to help make Xenia a destination point. As Xenia undergoes a renewal of their town center, Devil Wind Brewing is ready to be part of this exciting trend in community involvement and growth.
The Four Partners:
Dave Hatfield has lived his entire life in the Dayton area, graduating from Beavercreek High School in 1986 and Wright State University in 1998 with a B.S. in Management Information Systems. He has worked since he was thirteen years old and has always enjoyed interacting with others. Currently he is employed at EVAD Technologies, providing management information systems support to a variety of clients all over the Dayton and Cincinnati Area. His work at EVAD has given him the opportunity to meet people in many different professions. He also has extensive experience in construction and has remodeled over 25 homes and built one from the ground up. His passion for craft beer began way before it was popular, touring craft breweries all over the country for over 20 years. Dave enjoys hiking and cycling on the area bike trails, and knows the appeal of having local breweries accessible by bike. He has watched with great pride as the craft brewery scene exploded in Dayton helping to build local support through various media outlets including creating the “What’s Brewing Dayton?” website and radio show. Through the generosity of local brewers, Dave has gotten a lot of insight into how successful craft breweries run and looks forward to realizing his dream of owning and operating one. Dave is a self proclaimed Hop Head- the bigger the better!
Perry Wyatt is Texas-born and has lived in Greene County since 1971. He lived in Beavercreek when it was a tiny town and watched the Xenia tornado from the roof of his parent’s home. Perry graduated from Beavercreek High School in 1984 and had several work experiences that shaped his interest in owning a business and brewing beer: chef’s assistant at the Paragon Supper Club; construction worker; laborer at Larrick’s in Dayton; musician in several bands in the area; assembler at Systems Research Labs in Beavercreek. He attended Wright State University and finished a B.S. in Management Information Systems which led to working over 20 years at Wright Patterson AFB. An avid hiker and rider of the Greene County bike trails, the original Miami Trail Brewery shaped Perry’s interest in craft beer and he hasn’t stopped dreaming of bringing craft beer brewing back to Xenia. Perry and his business partner investigate breweries everywhere they go and have helped build other breweries in downtown Dayton. As a result, all of Perry’s interests and experiences have created the opportunity to combine passion and work in brewing craft beer and owning a successful, local brewery. Perry’s favorite beers are big German lagers.
Michael Van Kirk is a native of Bellbrook, Ohio and graduated from Bellbrook High School in 2010. After graduating, he attended Wright State University and pursued a degree in Music Performance. While at WSU, Michael held several leadership positions within the music department and helped coordinate the WSU Wind Symphony’s tour to Carnegie Hall. Michael has consistently held positions working in the service industry throughout his adult life and that has played a large role in his interest in the growing craft beer industry. With 3 years of brewing experience, Michael has a diverse set of skills and knowledge about the technical aspects of brewing beer. Michael is confident that his talents combined with those of his business partners can deliver a quality, locally-owned product to the Xenia community. Michael is a fan or sours and looks forward to brewing them.
Doug Lane is a craft beer lover who is passionate about the history, and the ever-changing world of beer. Doug grew up in West Carrollton, where he graduated high school in 2010. After high school, he attended Wright State University, where he received a degree in Music Education (2014). While in college, Doug found an interest in homebrewing through his friend, Michael. This interest helped him receive a job in the beer industry. He worked in the taproom at the Dayton Beer Company, and also gained experience in the brewery as a cellarman. He also aided in cleaning and filling kegs, milling grains, and beer/wort transfer.In his four years at school, Doug learned the true value of dedication to a craft. Through constant practice, and unwavering dedication, he strove to be the absolute best he could be at his art. Doug plans to take this same type of passion for beer, and push himself to create the finest examples of commercial-style beers, while also aiming to push the limits of craft beer. Doug is a hops fan, a true lover of IPA’s.
Devil Wind recently recorded an episode of the Gem City Podcast.
The four partners began developing this brewery concept over a year ago and originally had a Huber Heights location in mind. But things didn’t work out there. Dave Hatfield and his wife were on a bike ride when they rode past the Xenia location on the bike path and thought, there should be a brewery there. And come this fall there will be!
While it may take them up to 6 months to get their licenses, they have already got their equipment on order. While looking at used equipment, they ended up deciding to go all new and will set up a 5 barrel brewing system. Finding it from an Ohio company was important to the foursome and Systech Stainless Works in Canton had just what they needed.
Devil Wind Brewing will support local businesses whenever possible, choosing to use Montgomery Insurance and Investments for all insurance purposes, Narrow Path Plumbing for drain work, as well as local farms for our hops and grains. The guys couldn’t say enough about helpful the city of Xenia and folks at Greene County have been in the launching of their business.
Devil Wind is committed to giving back to the great community of Xenia. Because of its close proximity to the Schneider House of Hope, DW Brewing will have fundraising nights to provide aide to the families who are housed there. Devil Wind will also participate in the Purple Passion 5K by releasing a special beer for the race, as well as having members of the brewery’s team participate in the race. The brewery also hopes to reach out to the local home brewing community by having brew-outs and home brewing competitions throughout the year. Devil Wind will also utilize the close proximity to Xenia Station on the Bike Trail by working with a local bicycle shop to promote the use of the trail during the year.
DW Brewing plans to utilize the rich history of Xenia and Greene County in several ways. One historical reference will be in naming our different beers. They will educate patrons from all over the area with stories from the community’s past. Ultimately, because of the Native American-inspired name, they plan to reach out to the Native American community through Blue Jacket. The historical connection will be enhanced by highlighting The Frontiersmen (A. Eckert) and the Ohio Historical Society’s maps, symbols, objects, and diagrams of the area that coincide with the amazing community and its longstanding heritage. Daniel Boone, Tecumseh, Simon Kenton, and other Ohio/Kentucky heroes will be honored at Devil Wind Brewing. They also will have multiple decor items honoring the previous Xenia brewery, Miami Trail Brewing.
Good luck to the guys of Devil Wind, can’t wait to be drinking your beer!
