Kenmore’s beloved 192 Brewing Co. is shifting focus and will no longer operate the 192 Lake Trail Tap Room after January 31, 2026
“192 Brewing Company is transforming its focus on brewing, sales, and distribution to include popup events and festivals following new directions that allow the brand to grow creatively, remain nimble, and better serve the community beyond a single location.” – Derek Wyckoff, Founder and Owner
We recently sat down with Derek to discuss the change, what he loves about Kenmore, and his experience as a business member in Kenmore.
Q: What prompted the transition away from a brick-and-mortar location?
Derek: It became apparent that the business model was shifting as far as what is driving successful business after COVID. Public habits have changed, community habits have changed, and I feel like COVID forced us to re-engage with our neighbors and our local communities. Leaning into that made me want to spend more time in the brewery that I built. And during COVID, I made a lot of upgrades to the equipment so I could be self-sustaining. In wanting to get my product back out there, this gives me a chance to refocus on what my core endeavor was, and that was to make beer in a 192 square foot shed, and get it out far and wide, and to make Kenmore famous.
Q: Where can people visit to taste 192 beer?
Derek: So, a lot of people ask about our relationship with Copperworks next door. I can say proudly and very joyfully that Jason and I have become very good friends. We go hiking together. We’ve been camping together. He is quite the coffee aficionado, so if you need a coffee buddy to go camping with, he’s your man. He has promised to keep 192 brewing on tap constantly at Copperworks. So, you’ll always be able to get us right here at the same location. It just won’t be me running the operation.
Q: What are you most excited about and looking forward to with the transition?
Derek: Getting to go back into the brewery that I built with my bare hands. I am joyful to go back into that 192 square foot space and do what I set out originally to do and to be able to do it full force. When I built the shed, it was a part-time hobby for me. Now, this is a full-time endeavor and I’m excited about that. My new job description is to go to festivals to share the product that I make, and to go to bars and restaurants to get on tap there. In addition, the goal is maintain those relationships with the community and spread the word far and wide about Kenmore and 192 Brewing Company. So I’m very excited about that.
Q: How can we as a community support you?
Derek: Well, uh, drink beer, that’s number one. And if you go to a place that doesn’t have us on draft, that’s a favorite watering hole or a favorite place that’s a gathering for your family or your friends… ask for 192 products. Ask for the shticky blonde, ask for the Kenmore Gold.
Q: Will you still be involved with Kenmore Oktoberfest and other community functions?
Derek: Yes, we’ll be involved in the Kenmore Oktoberfest in whatever capacity we can. We’re actually looking for new opportunities for pop-ups and community events. We may be utilizing the community center to do fun events there, and any opportunity we can find to plug in.
Q: Are you working on any new recipes?
Derek: So, yes, I am super glad you asked that. The shticky blonde will always be my flagship beer, that is brewed with wild honey, and then we made the Wally Hop, but I think the thing I’m most excited about is the new hard cider/hard seltzer. As a brewery, I can’t make a cider, but I can put fruit juice in my seltzer and I’m the only one that appears to be doing that. My hard “seldar” as I am calling it takes on the color of the fruit juice that it represents, and it actually tastes like the fruit that is mentioned in the recipe.
Q: Do you have a favorite place that you like to eat or drink around Kenmore?
Derek: My favorite place is probably the patio lounge at the St. Edwards State Park. So, I run trails at St. Edwards quite frequently. It’s part of my weekly routine, and I like to wind down with a 50/50 OJ and pineapple juice from the bar. But at the end of the day, I love to go sit on that patio out there, have a pint, and watch the sunset… it is absolutely spectacular.
Q: As a business owner in Kenmore have you learned anything about yourself and the process of building a business in Kenmore?
Derek: I’ve learned that I am as tenacious as I thought I was. I always worked for somebody else and I put in a lot of hours working in hospitality. And at one point I finally decided, you know what? If I can work this hard for somebody else, I can probably succeed on my own. I think my biggest lesson was I didn’t know anything about city government before I started this. And getting to know my city council and getting to know my city staff, and the support that I have received from Kenmore has been amazing.
I think my entire goal—other than giving Kenmore a community place to gather—was to change Kenmore from a drive through town to a drive to town. And that’s been something that I think we’ve been working together on, and the more I get involved, the more I get out of it. That’s my word to every small business owner out here is just get involved. There [are] resources, there’s support. If you put in the time, you’re gonna get back the effort.
