When you're sipping on a cold one, you probably aren't thinking about how much energy went into brewing that beer. Now, thanks to some help from Focus on Energy, Capital Brewery has made some significant strides in their energy efficiency.
"We really think that craft breweries in general can do things like this, that other breweries, larger breweries might not be able to do."
Capital Brewery is one business that Focus on Energy has partnered with for their Business Incentive Program.
"Focus on Energy is targeting breweries across the state of Wisconsin this year because they're very energy intensive businesses. So from heating the water, to when they're making that beer, when they're brewing that beer, to the lights in the facility, as well as heating the buildings," explains Focus on Energy's Sarah Platt.
So what have the two done to better the brewery's energy efficiency?
"The two big projects they did here were the solar panels, so getting that power from the sun, but also the heat exchanger, replacing that with a more energy efficient heat recovery system."
This has led to the brewery saving more than $2,000 a year on utility bills.
"Going forward, it's really the right thing to do because it shows that we are true stewards of the environment, that we are proactive with environmental issues, that we support sustainability, and that it's part of our green effort," says Capital Brewery President, Scott Wiener.
Both Focus on Energy and Capital Brewery say they hope to see more businesses look into the program, shaping the future of our carbon footprints.
"We continuously want to help businesses use energy smarter," says Platt, "So yes, it is about lowering that utility bill but it's also being environmentally friendly and conscious as well and really making smart decisions that will take us kind of into the next generation as well."