Revolver Brewing has a lot to be proud of these days. Not only has the father-son–founded craft brewery in Granbury, Texas, turned five, but they’ve just brewed 18,000 gallons of “Harvey Relief Golden Ale” with all profits going to The Texas Rebuilding Fund in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. The beer has been flying off the shelves at grocery stores and has been a popular choice at participating bars and restaurants. Ron and Rhett Keisler are thrilled to be giving back to the Houston area where they lived for almost 20 years. “When times are rough, Texans come together to support a good cause,” says Rhett. “We’ve experienced Hurricane Alicia, so our hearts go out to these people and the tough days ahead in rebuilding.”

Ron worked for Marathon Oil for 30 years, a job that moved him and his family all over the world. The family moved to Sugar Land, a suburb of Houston, in 1982, when Highway 6 was just a two-lane road.  Rhett attended Clements High School and later received his MBA from the University of Texas in Austin. He, too, traveled the country and the world, working in finance, while his parents retired in Granbury, outside of Fort Worth. While working in Toronto, Rhett got a taste of the beer-brewing industry—he met the family that started Steam Whistle Brewing there—and he vowed that if he ever made it back to Texas, he’d entertain the idea of starting his own. He did indeed return, and joined his dad back in the oil business. The pair enjoyed working together, but it was a rough time to enter the industry: “Oil was $100 a barrel, and we didn’t want to make a bad deal. After a year and a half, it was clear we were spinning our wheels,” says Rhett.

That brewery dream suddenly seemed like a real possibility.

“I started looking at breweries in Texas. We were the second-largest beer-consuming state in the country behind California, and yet, we were ranked 48th in the number of breweries per capita. I attended the first North Texas Beer Festival and saw that there was a greater need for Texas craft beer.”

Rhett decided it was time to approach his dad about building a brewery together. But he did his homework first and put together a bona fide pitch and business plan. Ron decided to go all in, and it turned out to be a great way for father and son to work together.

Rhett and Ron knew early that they needed to find a skilled brewer. So Rhett put an ad on some professional forums and got an email from Grant Wood, a 16-year veteran brewer for Samuel Adams.  Grant, a Texas boy himself, had brewed for Lone Star in the ’80s and ’90s. Rhett met him in New York over—surprise—beers, and they instantly clicked. “We talked about brewing full-flavored beers that were still very drinkable. He’s a chef at heart, so he really understood the idea about brewing a balanced beer with interesting ingredients.

Meanwhile, the Keislers had already bought a property and were building out a brewery in Granbury. They hired Wood, and the magic began to happen. “A farmer down the road who raised bees showed up one day and offered us a five-gallon bucket of crystallized honey he couldn’t sell. Wood said, ‘Sure, I’ll do something with it.’” The flagship beer of Revolver Brewing was about to be born.

Wood had been to a dinner party recently where he brought a blood orange sorbet with honey drizzled on it. He loved the flavor combination, so he decided to re-create that experience in their Blood & Honey beer, an American wheat ale. They put it in home-brew kegs, hauled it to a festival, and had a 50-foot-deep line at their booth. “It got such a big buzz that when we finally launched, word had already gotten out,” says Rhett. They brewed during the day, then jumped in Grant’s car at night and ran to beer buyers at bars all over North Texas. Time after time, people said yes. Revolver brewing now consists of a five-core beer lineup that highlights ingredients such as agave nectar, flaked maize, lemon, lime, and blood orange peel. They expect to brew 35,000-40,000 barrels this year, and it’s available at restaurants, bars, grocery, and liquor stores as well as in smaller beer shops.

As for their name and logo, Rhett says they were looking for an iconic name—something that represented the Texan values of self-reliance and self-determination. They hit upon the 1847 Colt Revolver for use in their logo, a gun designed by a Texas ranger named Samuel Walker, who worked with the gun maker Samuel Colt. “The black powder pistol was something you could use to defend yourself and feed your family in the old days,” says Rhett. But he also adds that the metaphor works in the context of their business and work ethic. “We believe in making every round count. We don’t take any shortcuts. We buy the best ingredients, have an experienced brewer, and work hard. The black-and-white starkness of the logo infers ‘What you see is what you get.’” In the case of this Texan family, it’s quality beers and a longstanding commitment to their roots.

For more info on Revolver Brewing click here.