Chris Jacobs is a budding brand icon who created his own niche in the craft beer world. Mashing his elevated attraction to a certain undead monster and a love for beer, the California native launched Beer Zombies in 2013.
Photo Credit: Chris Jacobs
“I get people that ask if Beer Zombies is ‘me.’ It’s not… it’s a movement, a group, a person — anyone that enjoys beer and cool merchandise.”
The BZ logo, a hop bearded zombie, has a connection to his art company, We Are Zombies. So, when snapping social media pics of the beer he was drinking while creating murals, Jacobs had the ah-ha moment. “The logo that I had already been using for the art world was a bearded zombie,” states Jacobs. He realized the beard resembled a hop and paired it perfectly.
“Zombies are kind of ubiquitous in a way that it can be used to portray a lot of different people and things. If you have ever been hanging around at the end of an all-day beer fest, I’m sure you have seen what a lot of people call ‘Beer Zombies.'”
Jacobs teamed up with a number of breweries to bring Beer Zombies to the next level. Since inception, there have been around 10 collaborations with another 5-6 on standby. As a result of craft beer adorned with his increasingly recognizable logo, the BZ legion of walkers grows every year. We found Jacobs through the popular @beerzombies Instagram page of cleverly weaved posts between beer, festivals, bottle shares and collaborations.
Right at this moment, Jacobs is now working on ironing out details for the 3rd annual Beer Zombies Craft Beer Festival. The event will take place on February 23, 2019 in Las Vegas, his hometown of more than 20 years. This festival is truly something he is passionate about. “It’s a work of love. All the beer is from independent craft breweries around the world being curated by myself… ending in a [huge] day-after bottle share,” says Jacobs.
Photo Credit: Chris Jacobs
Although this entrepreneur already doesn’t have enough hours in the day, Beer Zombies continues to have new and exciting ventures on the way, so stay tuned. But for now, live the BZ life vicariously through the founder of Beer Zombies, Jacobs’ Ultimate 6er.
“I wasn’t aware it was a craft beer, I just knew it was my dad’s after-work beer. He did construction, so in the mid ’80s it was pretty common to have at-work beers (his beer was PBR). I guess it’s two-fold important to me. One, because I could take it randomly out of his beer fridge and two, because it was my dad’s beer and I always thought that was cool… I vividly remember how bitter it was the first time I tried it. I was 15-16 at the time and a huge coffee fan. The bitterness reminded me of coffee and beer mixed and I just kept after it. I’ve been a huge IPA fan since day one.”
“If we are talking never-ending fridge supply, hands down it would be Cantillon St. Lamvinus — any year, fresh, aged, doesn’t matter to me. Not only is it an absolutely gorgeous beer, it’s also a beer that’s been used as a celebratory marker in a lot of milestones in my life over the years. My wife and I made a trip to Belgium this year and we spent a full day taking in the Cantillon Brewery and drinking as much St. Lamvinus as we could. That will be a very hard beer day to top for me, everything about it was perfect. To me, this beer hits all the right notes. You get that classic Cantillon funk that I absolutely love, mixed with a slight acidic and sweetness from the Merlot and Cab Franc grapes.”
“As of now… Faha is in my top three beers released this year. It’s a super decadent imperial pasty stout, loaded with coconut. It literally tastes like an Almond Joy and a beer had a long night together listening to Kenny G and making some sweet love. Insane body, the most coconut flavor I’ve ever had in a beer and a sweet chocolate finish. I think it was the first time in a long time where I was just blown away with how good a beer was with all the hype around it. 2018 is definitely the year social media has really taken over for creating hype in the beer scene. Sometimes it’s a false hype, but this case it was absolutely not.”
“Early on I read so much about how highly rated it was and all the accolades it received for being a pioneer in the West Coast IPA style… Early in 2013 I was at a local Total Wine wearing a sample BZ shirt I had made up… An employee asked me about the shirt and we got to talking beer. He mentioned an upcoming road trip to Russian River. I mentioned to him how I’d love to try Pliny. Fast forward two weeks and we are meeting up in a parking lot for my first ever beer trade. So not only did I get to try a beer that I thought was out of my reach, but Pliny also started me down the path of beer trading. For better or for worse!”
“I had just gotten some fresh Tree House growlers in before cans were an option. Getting a box of growlers on the west coast was super exciting. I had posted on social media Beer Zombies was having a merchandise booth for the first time at a beer fest here in the Vegas. In that picture I had the growler set up since I was pre-gaming the festival. Dustie (a good friend and now BZ employee) messaged me and mentioned he was headed out and would love to try some Tree House. We shared a bunch of beers that day and he’s been part of the BZ family pretty much ever since.”
“Another Cantillon beer that is in my all-time top 10 beers. I try and keep this stocked up at all times at my house. The particular bottle I’m referring to was drank on top of Koko Head Crater in Hawaii after climbing 1,048 stairs to the top. I was on a trip with my son to do art at a hotel in Honolulu, which meant I of course shipped a beer box to myself at the hotel. After three days of working on the mural and exploring, we decided to do the Koko Head hike. We got to the top and just took in the view of the island on a perfect day. I opened the RDG and sat back and enjoyed an amazing afternoon with my son. That topped off a rad trip to Hawaii.”
Photo Credit: Rejie Castro IG @chibrewz
“There is more to beer than just that actual liquid that is being served. Beer is part of my life, it’s something that I love and that I do for a living now. The best beers I’ve ever drank will always be associated with memories and events in life where beer was being consumed and loved.” -Chris Jacobs
Chris & Sylvia are a #craftbeercouple who love everything beer! Check them out on Instagram @chrishollands & @sylily.
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