Saturday Business Spotlight: Spirited Republic and Limerick Brewing
[October 11, 2025] On
Lincoln’s Courthouse Square, there are many businesses to see. For most
the day ends as the sun begins to set and the streetlights turn on.
There is one business however, that is just getting started. Live music
can be heard on the street, as well as the joyful sound of laughter and
great conversation. Spirited Republic has become the life of the Square.
Spirited is just
the face of the business, though, as there is another behind it -
Limerick Brewing. In addition to being the only brewery in all of Logan
County, it is also responsible for filling anywhere from ten to fifteen
spots on Spirited’s beer taps.
While these may
be two separate businesses, they operate well as a team, as do the three
owners. Husband and wife team Colleen and Bussy Roate and their business
partner Troy Hanger came together and opened both Spirited and Limerick
on December 2, 2015.
While the opening
of Spirited was their first mainstream attempt at brewing, it was
neither Bussy nor Hanger’s first attempt at brewing beer. The two had
been home brewing together in their garage long before Limerick was
opened. They would brew a small batch and invite friends over to taste
it. The more they practiced the better they got, and some of the recipes
they held on to. There were specifically three recipes that made the
transfer from homebrewing, with those being Courthouse Stout, Prairie
Wheat, and Stingy Bastard. Over time, life got busy and the pair stopped
brewing. Eventually, the idea of brewing came around again, but this
time they decided to take it to a higher level.
The story behind
how Limerick got its name is also a unique one. As the Roates and Hanger
were sitting down and trying to come up with a name, everything they
came up with ended up already being copyrighted. They ended up turning
to the Logan County Genealogical Society to ask if there had ever been a
brewer in Logan County. They got back to the trio and informed them that
there was. It was called Limerick Brewing and existed between the 1850’s
and 1860’s. After finding out the name was not copyrighted, they decided
to take it for themselves.
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As time passed
and their business began to take off, they slowly expanded, adding new
taps and purchasing the second room next to the bar area. Once COVID
hit, their business, like others, did take a hit. However, once the
state started allowing businesses to sell alcohol, they were able to
start selling growlers three nights a week for people to take home. It
gave them time to plan. That is when the city allowed Spirited to start
their outdoor seating, something they have been allowed to keep ever
since.
This growth has slowly but surely continued post-COVID. The trio shared
that they do not like to make big leaps all at once. Instead, they
prefer to plan and only make a business move once they are sure about
it, something they say has worked very well for them thus far. One new
thing they are trying is distributing Limerick beer to Obed and Isaac’s
in Springfield, hoping to garner interest from people there willing to
make the trip to Spirited to try more.
They have also brought others on to help with the brewing, specifically
naming Jan Gleason, their brewing assistant, and referring to her as
"indispensable."
The Roates and Hanger had some advice to give anyone looking to open
their own small business in Lincoln. They stated that city officials can
be your best friends, and that many people want to see you succeed. They
also stated that the Downtown Business Group has been great for them,
helping to give them a support network of other businesses around them.
It is not all easy, though, as they shared that you need to be ready to
put in a lot of hard work to see your business succeed.
If you are in the
mood for a fresh beer, a fresh glass of wine off the tap, or even a beer
mix, then you need to try Spirited Republic and some of their locally
brewed beers. They are located at 509B Pulaski Street in Lincoln. In
addition to parking around the Square, there is also parking behind the
building across from Scully Park. Their hours are Tuesday from 4-9 p.m.,
Wednesday and Thursday from 4-10 p.m., Friday from 4-11 p.m., Saturday
from noon to 11 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. There is street
access from Pulaski, but there is also a rear entrance across from the
entrance to Guzzardo’s. Stop in and let them know that Lincoln Daily
News sent you.
[Matt Boutcher] |
