If there’s one thing Michigan City loves, it’s a good drink. With plenty of local breweries and events like the Shelf Ice Brewfest bringing crowds together for a love of company and alcohol, it takes a special something to make a name for yourself in the brewing scene. Burn ‘Em Brewing has that something.
Part of what makes Burn ‘Em successful is the bond between its co-owners, partners, and the community. While Burn ‘Em recently expanded and is seeing great success, the brewery began as a dream between friends.
“We’ve been in business for 10 years, but we were homebrewing many years before this,” said Co-Owner Steve Murray. “We really enjoyed it; it was a good, fun hobby. When I started bartending at Greenbush Brewing Company, everything started getting pushed into gear. They were expanding to a bigger system and needed brewers, so they taught me how to brew on a bigger production.”
With the skills learned at Greenbush, Murray and his partners were able to expand their home operation as well. Once they realized there was a market for their homebrews, they began looking into going into business for themselves. Murray and his brother come from a family of entrepreneurs, and that made the process much easier.
“My parents were entrepreneurs, so this was always in my blood,” said Murray. “They had a construction company. After my dad passed away, we closed the company down and ended up still having a building for sale. We took it off the market, and that became the Freyer Road location where we started Burn ‘Em.”
Murray’s dad in particular played an important role in the company getting off its feet. Murray would homebrew with his dad and his dad’s friends when he was younger before he took up the hobby himself. In honor of his dad and the skills he passed on, Burn ‘Em is named after him.
“My dad’s middle name was Burnham,” said Murray. “We were in the construction company’s building, so naming it Burn ‘Em was a tribute.”
In addition to the brewery name, Murray’s dad and his company, Michigan City Associates (MCA), are the namesake of the MCA IPA that they still brew to this day.
With the expansion to a larger, more accessible location, Murray sees Burn ‘Em as evolving beyond another taproom in the community. The new location features a larger space for equipment, more space for guests, and attached event venues that make Burn ‘Em more than just a place to get a drink.
“We're building out a bar now that we have the taproom open,” said Murray. “It's going to have its own bathrooms and its own entrance, so it will be run separately from the taproom. We'll be doing live music every Friday and Saturday night that we can throughout the summer, but it's also going to be available to rent for private parties.”
Burn ‘Em wouldn’t be as successful as it has been without support from the Michigan City community.
“My brother and I grew up in Michigan City for the first part of our lives, and I think we've built a great following in the last 10 years,” said Murray. “Michigan City has got a lot of growth going on right now, and we're happy to be a part of it. This city is going to be something big in the next few years.”
Burn Em's operating partners are Steven Murray, Blake Murray, Danny Moser, & Howie Wiesjahn.