photo provided

Ed Westbrook, 25, works on the grain conveying system at his new beer brewery, Westbrook Brewing Co., which is family-owned and operated in Mount Pleasant.

Ed Westbrook, a 25-year-old, hopes to throw his hat into the growing ring of beer microbreweries by opening the only brewery east of the Cooper.

Westbrook Brewing Company is set to start delivering its beer on Monday to bars in the lowcountry and a few in Beaufort County and Columbia.

Westbrook, who attended Furman and got his MBA from Clemson, started brewing beer in college after a study abroad experience in Europe opened his eyes to the possibilities of brewing his own beer.

"I came back my senior year in college, tried some American craft beers, and heard about home brewing. So I bought a starter kit and brewed my first batch.

"It wasn't great, but it gave me the confidence to improve and maybe even make a great beer some day," he said.

Now, with financial help from his father, Westbrook hopes to do just that, starting with three signature Belgian-style beers: a white thai beer that trades the usual coriander-and-orange-peel recipe of Belgian white beers for ginger and lemongrass instead; an amber-colored Belgian pale ale with a nutty malt flavor; and an India Pale Ale (IPA) beer in the west coast style with American hops and flavor.

Westbrook said Belgian beer gives him more room for flavor and style experimentation, which is what he is all about.

"They're really fun, I think, because there are really no rules when you're brewing Belgian-style stuff," he said. "That spirit of experimentation is what I hope to bring to this state."

Westbrook beers will be available only on tap for at least six months, Westbrook said, while he will look into producing cans and bottles in the future.

Westbrook will hold a beer tasting event at Charleston Beer Exchange on Dec. 20 from 4-6 p.m. and at Closed For Business on Dec. 23 from 6-10 p.m.

Follow the Mount Pleasant-based Westbrook Brewing Company's events and news online at their website by visiting http://westbrookbrewing.com/blog.

(Chris McCandlish can be reached at news@moultrienews.com.)