The Pacific Grove saga of Sparky’s Root Beer renaissance.
By Corby Anderson
It started out as a refreshing experiment, conceived in the mind of a constant tinkerer and brewed in a backyard kettle. Once formulated, the elixir found a dedicated local customer base the old-fashioned way – handed from its creators, Kevin and Carol Knox of Pacific Grove, to local consumers, one frothy mug at a time.
The Knoxes are both second-generation Pagrovians with deep roots in the local hospitality business. They met, ironically, at Carol’s job, the Fishwife Restaurant, Kevin perhaps taken by her customer service (she’s won the prestigious Papa Vince Award, given to the top service worker in the area every year by the Monterey County Hospitality Association—as well as California State Employee of the Year, Front of House Category).
Over time, Kevin, then a restaurant manager with an eye for a future play of his own, saw a trend of micro-brew pubs bubbling up successfully around the country. With an open mind, a mail order beer-making kit, and a trusty hydrometer, Kevin began experimenting with home brewing. The results of his backyard lab proved to be popular with both the Knoxes’ friends and beer judges alike. Knox Brewing was born, and a steady stream of award-winning ales poured forth.
Kevin was inspired by the enthusiastic reception that his creations garnered, but noticed a rather large market was going untapped. “I don’t drink much, really, and I wanted to make something for the kids and my other non-drinking friends to enjoy,” he says. “Raspberry soda was first, then cranberry apple.”
He made his first batch using a living yeast.
“We had a buddy getting married, so we put the original Sparky’s into a big double champagne magnum and gave it to him as a wedding gift,” he says. “He kept the bottle, and on the first anniversary he invited us over, and when he popped the cork the carbonation had built up so much that the cork flew over the telephone pole and landed several blocks away.”
The cork’s arc could well describe the path that Sparky’s has taken since. “Sparky’s was born from a series of experiments, accidents, luck, and persistence,” Carol says. “Once we started honing in on a winning recipe, we had a built-in tasting panel right here,” she says, referring to their three daughters, who now all live in L.A. Batch #115 was the unanimous winner.
“We kind of had a feeling that we were about to make a breakthrough,” Kevin recalls, “and it was like, ‘Now we have finally achieved the flavor and taste that we wanted.’”
The quality of their product today is clear, from its velvety texture to its brilliant and uncloudy amber color, its full-flavored aroma to its balance of creaminess and caramel with vanilla, honey, and birch root spices.
Sparky’s namesake is the late family cat, a beloved assistant brewer who bestowed the new brew upon the Knoxes’ friends and family on holiday occasions, to rave reviews. When it came time to take the product to the public, the name stuck; Sparky’s made its debut at the 2000 Good Old Days Festival.
“We [the five Knoxes] all had matching t-shirts and a banner,” Carol recalls. “We sold a ton of root beer, and people really loved it.”
Seeking a regular audience, Knox Brewing found a perfect venue for its draught at the Tuesday Farmers Market in Monterey. A root-beer-float partnership with nearby Joe Smith of Carmel Creamery soon followed.
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As many home brewers have found, creating a great product and getting it out to the public en masse are two distinct battles.
“We were bottling in Carmel Valley, in 95 degree heat,” Carol says, “and we just said, ‘We need help!’”
Ultimately, the solution came when the Knoxes worked out an arrangement with Coast Range Brewing Company, formerly of Gilroy. Kevin brewed batches of Sparky’s in CRBC’s large, steel “unitanks,” and Coast Range did the bottling with its equipment, a process that greatly increased production.
But the Knoxes still needed to get their beer to more lips.
“We had the attitude that we had been at it for nine years, and we had to follow it where it led us,” Kevin says.
Providence intervened in the form of Compagno’s Deli proprietor and indy soda fan Bennett Compagno, who had made a habit out of selling unique sodas at his shop on Prescott Avenue in Monterey. He made a call to his vendor, Danny Ginsburg of Real Soda.
The rendezvous was an ominous one, straight out of a corporate espionage novel, Carol recounts. “It was a cold, dark, foggy night. We met in Compagno’s parking lot,” she says. “Danny took one sip and put the cap in his pocket. Then his eyes bugged out, and he turned up the whole 22-ounce bottle of Sparky’s and chugged it down. I thought, I guess he likes it!”
The partnership has been a boon to business: Sparky’s Root Beer is now sold across the West in markets, grocery stores, BevMo outlets, and is starting to make inroads back East. Success hasn’t gone to their heads – Kevin still delivers cases around Central California, and remains a fixture at the Farmers Market every week. And his old experimental gene remains active.
“I am tinkering with a cream soda and some other ideas, but it really takes a long time to get the ingredients just right,” he says.
“And we set the bar really high with Sparky’s,” adds Carol, “so anything we make now is going to have to be really great to make the grade.”
With that she gives her husband a knowing glance, the kind of look that implies something new is brewing.
SPARKY’S ROOT BEER is available at fine local markets and stores such as Compagno’s Deli, Star Market, Bottles and Bins, Bruno’s Market, BevMo, Save Mart and Nob Hill and dozens of fine local restaurants.649-0529 or visit http://www.sparkysrootbeer.com
Down Canyon - Words, Thoughts, Ideas, and Stories by Corby Anderson 