By Lauren Mandrell
Assistant A&E Editor
Business is brewing for one local company nestled off the beaten path 30 miles from campus.
The Turtle Anarchy Brewing Company has been open a little more than a year as family business that can make any student feel instantly at home. Located across from subdivisions in Franklin, it’s hard not to get to know the employees.
The brewery is a beautiful large room with four tanks that are constantly crafting its satisfying product.
The three brothers — Mark, Andrew and David Kamp — own the business and have been home brewing for much longer than Turtle Anarchy’s initial opening. The brothers began when the two oldest, Mark and Andrew, moved down to Middle Tennessee to go to the university. The youngest joined the other two when he moved down for college, too.
Andrew is a current student, finishing up his sixth year with a business management degree, while David recently graduated with a digital animation degree.
There is clearly a lot of passion and love poured into their family business.
“When we came up with the name Turtle Anarchy it was kind of our take on the craft brewing revolution,” David said. “It’s a really slow revolution, and it’s winning people over one pint at a time.”
The brothers even have a wide variety of names for their products, such as Another Way to Rye and Aurumglass.
Students don’t have to look far to try a taste with the Murfreesboro, Franklin and Nashville Mellow Mushroom serving the brews on draft. Of course, a better experience might be had in their taproom, just bring your own snacks.
Their fans might have to wait a little longer for a higher gravity content as the business is still trying to obtain a license for it.
The beers are also not bottled yet, mostly due to the need of higher production and affordability. To compromise, the brothers might plan to go the route that others, such as Oskar Blues, have gone with canning.
“There’s a lot of benefits to cans over bottles,” Mark said. “For the consumer, they cool down faster in the fridge, and you can bring them anywhere glass can’t go because you can’t break a can and stab somebody.”
Mark, the oldest, is the brains behind the beer. His passion is obvious, and he can answer any consumer’s questions.
“I always knew I wanted to open my own business. It was just figuring out what that was,” Mark said.
Students can stop by during business hours on Thursday through Saturday from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. in Franklin at 216 Noah Drive.
Be sure to try their newest flavor, Smoked Porter when it’s released. This local beer will do anything but disappoint.
