CALIFORNIA, USA — A northern California brewery and a water technology company have found a unique way to make a statement about recycling water while a third of the U.S. is in a drought.
Devil's Canyon Brewery, located in California, has teamed up with wastewater technology company Epic Cleantec to create Epic OneWater Brew, a beer that uses the wastewater from a 40-floor San Franciso apartment building.
How it works
Epic Cleantec treats 7,500 gallons of water from the building's showers, sinks and washing machines. Devil's Canyon Brewery then takes that treated water and creates a Kölsch-style ale.
The goal is to raise awareness about the untapped potential water sources at a time when several parts of the country are dealing with a drought.
"When I first entered the industry, a lot of people said that the public is just not ready for recycled water, that public perception is too difficult for people to overcome," said Aaron Tartakovsky, CEO of Epic Cleantec. "And I think what our beer project has showed is the public is a lot more ready for recycled water than we give them credit for."
According to CNN, Epic Cleantec started this beer project in late 2022. While Epic Cleantec’s system isn’t intended to produce water for drinking, regulations currently allow potable reuse of wastewater in many U.S. states, including California and Texas, CNN reported in August 2023.