Gnarly Barley

Southeastern alumni brew a successful local business

Wednesday, June 17, 2015


One local couple can look at their time at Southeastern and know their lives were put on a path of partnership that developed into a marriage and a very unique business. Zac and Cari Caramonta walked the halls as Southeastern undergraduates and today have been married for six years – and have their own brand of beer.

The Caramontas opened Gnarly Barley Brewing Company in the heart of Hammond in the spring of 2014 and have experienced growth that has surprised even them. Their success, though, is not the result of luck, but of years of planning.

Zac and Cari attended Southeastern in the mid-2000s. Cari, a Family and Consumer Science graduate, was majoring in Merchandising and minoring in Marketing. Zac was completing his General Studies degree. They both took courses in White Hall, where they caught each other’s eye between classes. 

After marrying in 2009, the couple was wide open to the world of possibilities. Searching for adventure and opportunity, they turned their eyes to the West Coast. After visiting California, the two knew that there is no place like home and decided to settle back in the area.

Zac, an avid skateboarder, loved that Hammond had a great skate park, and they settled in Ponchatoula.  Another of Zac’s hobbies was home brewing. Back home, he spent time learning more about the craft, and approached brewing like he approached any project: with a great deal of research and planning. 

“I didn’t want to just buy a beer making kit and brew something no one would want to drink, so I took my time and learned about everything – recipes, processes, equipment. It was all so interesting,” said Zac.

After much research, planning and recipe creating, Zac did his first full brew in their kitchen – and it was a success.

Cari noted, “After that, Zac said ‘I know I was put on this Earth to brew beer.’ I knew that we might have a future in this.”

Soon thereafter Zac designed and built a larger scale brewing system and moved from the kitchen to the garage. In 2011, the couple made the jump into the business world, forming an LLC and getting ready to produce beer to sell.

After working festivals and brewing small quantities, the couple knew the time was right to move to the next level. The small operation they had going in the garage was not going to be an appropriate scale on which to operate a successful business, and they wanted to ensure whatever system they started with would carry the business for a long time. 

Living in Ponchatoula, they knew they wanted to the location of the business to be close to home, and the former warehouse in Hammond turned out to be perfect for their needs. With some cleaning and renovation to fit the needs of brewing beer, Gnarly Barley was soon ready to brew.

Releasing their first beers in May 2014, growth in the past months has been far beyond expectations. Gnarly Barley currently produces three main beers: Catahoula Common, Radical Rye P.A. and Korova Milk Porter.

Each beer is an original recipe created by Zac, and all three have received acclaim both locally or regionally. Gnarly Barley beers have won awards in the region and have been listed on every regional top beer list and ranking since opening last year.

As of publication, Gnarly Barley was offered in nearly 300 bars and restaurants from Lafayette to Slidell.  Zac and Cari see strong growth for some time based on current sales trends and the feedback they are receiving. The eventually plan to offer bottled beer but see that happening off in the future.

A new business created to be a part of a fast growing industry resulted from the will of two entrepreneurs that knew success was attainable – and it all started with two Southeastern students passing each other in White Hall between classes. 

Read the full “Gnarly Barley: Home Grown Brew” story and more in the current edition of Southeastern Magazine.




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