Feb. 5 – Daniel “DH” Harrison, Founder, Country Boy Brewing

Join us for a fun meeting with Country Boy Brewing! We’ll hear how they started and about their community outreach. And, we’ll have a tasting!

Daniel “DH” Harrison was born and raised in Scott County, Kentucky. Having attended Georgetown College, DH fell in love with Craft Beer in Japan while teaching English on an exchange program.  Upon returning to the U.S., he partnered with three other native Kentuckians to begin the first taproom model brewery in Lexington in 2012, Country Boy Brewing.

DH has been a champion for Craft Beer in Kentucky. Serving on the board of the Kentucky Guild of Brewers, he has helped develop a thriving industry with over 80 breweries in the state. DH currently resides in Scott County with his wife and two children. In addition to leading Country Boy Brewing with his partners, DH always makes time to hunt, fish, and have a pint with everyone in the three Country Boy taprooms.

Country Boy Brewing Company Info
Country Boy Brewing was founded in 2012 by native Kentuckians with a passion for great craft beer. Country Boy prides itself on making minimally processed beers with high quality, real ingredients. Their passion for great beer shines through their core brands, Cougar Bait American Blonde Ale and Shotgun Wedding Vanilla Brown Ale. Their 2017 expansion to Georgetown, KY includes the largest production brewery in the state allowed them to can their most popular new brews, in addition to several seasonal offerings.  This brand-new building has a 45,500 square foot production brewery, taproom, and offices. In 2023, Country Boy Brewing opened a third location in downtown Louisville, KY to showcase their brews to a new corner of the state. For more information, visit CountryBoyBrewing.com

Rotary in Review

COUNTRY BOY BREWING: A HOME BREWED SUCCESS!

Who doesn’t love a good beer? Kentuckians certainly do, and Daniel “DH” Harrison reminded Rotarians last week that while bourbon may get much of the spotlight, the Commonwealth’s craft beer scene has quietly built something just as meaningful, community-driven, and impactful.

DH, a Scott County native and Georgetown College graduate, is one of four Kentucky-born founders of Country Boy Brewing, which opened its doors in Lexington in 2012. What began as a passion project rooted in friendship and a love for craft beer has grown into one of Kentucky’s most recognizable brewing brands, with locations in Lexington, Georgetown, and Louisville, distribution across eight states, and a workforce of approximately 150 employees.

DH traced his love for craft beer back to an unexpected place: Japan. While teaching English abroad through a sister-city exchange program, he discovered not just beer, but the culture surrounding it, community, craftsmanship, and shared experience. “It was there that I developed a great affinity for craft beer, what it meant, the community around it, and the passion behind it,” he shared.

Returning home, DH and his partners launched what became Lexington’s first taproom-model craft brewery since the closure of Lexington Brewing Company’s original taproom. Their early business plan was humble. “Our goal was to sell thirty beers a day,” but Lexington quickly proved hungry for something new. “We realized pretty quickly we had a tiger by the tail,” DH said, crediting community support as the catalyst for growth.

One of DH’s central themes was risk. From expanding into Georgetown, now home to the largest production brewery in Kentucky, to navigating the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, Country Boy’s story is defined by calculated leaps of faith. “We always said we’d rather look back in fifteen years and say we gave it a try than spend our lives asking ‘what if,’” DH noted.

That mindset was tested during the pandemic, a period DH described as transformative. In a moment that went viral, he addressed employees using his great-grandmother’s World War II ration book as a metaphor for resilience and care. “We’re just simple beer makers,” he told staff, “but we’re going to take care of each other.” That moment reshaped his leadership philosophy. “I realized I wasn’t a CEO, I was a morale officer,” he said.

Since then, Country Boy has continued to innovate, including opening a taproom in Louisville’s Omni Hotel and partnering in PKL Lex, a large-scale indoor pickleball and golf facility. These ventures, DH explained, are about meeting new audiences where they are, without losing the brand’s soul.

At its core, DH emphasized that Country Boy is about people. “The most rewarding thing about this job is the people we get to work with every day,” he said. But just as meaningful are the stories shared by customers, first legal beers with parents, wedding toasts, life milestones, and even final moments with loved ones. “We just make beer,” DH reflected, “but it’s a liquid people build lifetime memories around. What an honor that is.”

He closed with a quote from Daniel Burhham that defines Country Boy’s future: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood.” It’s a philosophy that has served the brewery, and Kentucky’s craft beer community well.

– Dan Koett