Still riding High

While High and Dry Brewing celebrated eight years in business just a few weeks ago, the neighborhood taproom is approaching the one-year anniversary of another significant milestone.

Last June, High and Dry held a grand reopening party to commemorate its updated beer recipes and newly renovated space. The changes began in earnest when local architect Mark Baker assumed full ownership of the establishment from business partner Andrew Kalemba, who was largely the face of the business prior to his departure. From there, Kyle Gaston was promoted from bartender, a position he held since 2022, to general manager. Gaston then hired Cami O’Brien as High and Dry’s new head brewer.

“I’m very optimistic for where this could be going,” Gaston said. “… I try my best to make it so we’re all working sort of side-by-side with a shared of vision of what we’re trying to do here.”

Prior to taking the reins at High and Dry, O’Brien went through Central New Mexico Community College’s brewing program, did an internship at Sidetrack Brewing Co. and worked with the team at Boxing Bear Brewing Co. for multiple years. Her first order of business as head brewer was to revamp all the beer. So while some of the names — like the Special Shapes IPA — are familiar, the recipes will differ from the brewery’s early days.

For O’Brien, there were challenges beyond updating the beer lineup.

“Not necessarily coming up with the recipes, because the staple beers that they wanted at first were not out-of-the box beers — West Coast IPA, the pale ale and the amber. They’re pretty common beers. But I did put my own spin on it, obviously,” O’Brien said.

“But it was more the equipment back there and how it was set up. Every brewery is different. I didn’t have anyone to show me what was what. Kyle didn’t know. He knows a lot about a lot, but not about brewing. So it was a lot of trial and error. I think I literally had to fix almost everything within the first (few weeks). It’s just a lot of these things you don’t know until you’re in there. So I just had to get in there and figure it out.”

O’Brien’s process was aided significantly by the acquisition of a new brew kettle, which helped with both the overall consistency of the beers and the amount she was able to create. Still, High and Dry will remain a small operation by design, with six staples and two to four rotating seasonals. Before the transition, the brewery had as many as 12 beers available at a time.

“The idea is, we’re trying to simplify the beer offerings,” Gaston said. “I think less is more.”

One of O’Brien’s current favorite brewing endeavors is tart beers, the most recent of which was the Tropic Like It’s Hot, which contains flavors and aromas of both pineapple and passion fruit.

“We’re doing a quarterly release, essentially,” she said. “So it’s the same recipe, but I’ll do different fruits, different hops, different flavors. So each one has been unique in its own way. I don’t put anything unnatural in the beer. It’s all just grain and hops and pure fruit.”

High and Dry’s offerings aren’t limited to beer. There’s a trio of signature craft cocktails — pink lemonade, mojito and gin and tonic — that utilize spirits from Moonwalk Distilling. The brewery also has wine and nonalcoholic options that include a house-brewed hop water and a rotating kombucha from New Mexico Ferments.

Meanwhile, Gaston and Baker collaborated to give High and Dry a new look with significant renovations that included upgraded furniture, new paint, more available seating and a refurbished patio area.

“It’s nice to feel comfortable in a place,” Gaston said, “and I think that’s one of the biggest things that the remodel accomplished was making this place more comfortable to be in. Not just physically, but I don’t know — it just seems just a little bit more polished.”

Beyond that, High and Dry was always designed to be a neighborhood bar. Gaston has worked diligently to keep it as such with a robust live music program, trivia, karaoke, music bingo and on occasion, even guest speakers. Outside, the Tikka Spice food truck operates for the majority of the brewery’s business hours. The only things missing are TVs — and that’s by design, because Gaston wants to encourage community within the establishment.

“We’re just trying to make this so it’s like there’s always something to do here,” Gaston said, “and at the same time, it’s not always so busy that you can’t just be like a regular that wants to come in and read a book, too.”