Brewery Image of Owner Mike Kelty Holding a Freshly Brewed IPA | Nano 108 Brewery

Nano 108’s Veteran-Founded Story: Small Batch, Big Mission

ByBlake

Nano 108 Brewing Co. opened in Colorado Springs in November 2013, and it wasn’t built on luck. It was built on military discipline. You can feel that the moment you walk into their taproom on Waynoka Road. Veteran-founded and still standing after 400-plus small batches, they’ve turned precision into pour after pour while giving back to teachers, veterans, and the community. There’s a lot more to this story than just great beer.

Key Takeaways

  • Nano 108 Brewing Co. is a veteran-founded brewery on Waynoka Road in Colorado Springs, a city where nearly one in five residents has served.
  • The brewery applies military-style precision and discipline to small batch brewing, treating every recipe with focused, mission-driven intentionality.
  • Since opening in November 2013, Nano 108 has brewed over 400 batches, demonstrating more than eleven years of consistent, resilient operation.
  • Every pour contributes funds to veteran causes, reinforcing the brewery’s commitment to giving back beyond simply crafting quality beer.
  • The taproom serves as a community hub, offering free space to local organizations, teacher discounts, and food truck partnerships every week.

Colorado Springs: A Military City With a Craft Beer Soul

Colorado Springs isn’t just a military town — it’s a way of life. You feel it everywhere. At Fort Carson, Peterson, Schriever — the mission never stops. Nearly one in five residents here has served. That’s not a statistic; that’s your neighbor, your barista, your coach. And when veterans return home, places like Nano 108 Brewing Co. — a veteran-founded taproom tucked away on Waynoka Road — offer exactly the kind of grounded, welcoming space that feels like a second home.

The Mission: Precision, Creativity, and Community

When you’ve spent years executing missions where every detail matters, you don’t leave that mindset at the gate. At Nano 108, that precision flows directly into every small batch we brew. Same discipline, different battlefield.

Our nano 108 brewery story isn’t just about beer — it’s about purpose. Every recipe gets the same focus a mission brief demands. Nothing sloppy, nothing rushed.

As a brewery in Colorado Springs that the military community can call its own, we exist to serve something bigger. When you support veteran-owned businesses in Colorado, you’re fueling real community. That means everything to us. Since opening in November 2013, we’ve brewed over 400 batches of beer, rarely repeating an exact recipe in our relentless pursuit of flavor and craft.

13 Years of Brewing: What It Takes to Survive as a Local Brewery

Surviving eleven years as a local brewery isn’t luck — it’s a daily decision to keep going. Since 2013, we’ve pushed through brewer changes, renovated our taproom, and reworked recipes that weren’t landing. You adapt or you close — simple as that.

Some nights, I wondered if we’d make it. But then a neighbor walks in, orders their usual, and reminds you why you started. That loyalty carries real weight. Military life taught me one thing clearly: resilience isn’t dramatic, it’s quiet and consistent.

Eleven years later, we’re still here — still brewing, still serving, still earning your trust one pint at a time. You can find us at our 2402 Waynoka Rd location in Colorado Springs, Tuesday through Sunday, ready to pour whatever comes next.

How Nano 108 Gives Back to the Colorado Springs Community

Eleven years in, I realized surviving wasn’t enough — I wanted Nano 108 to actually mean something to Colorado Springs. So I started small.

Teachers get discounts every Sunday, because they show up for our kids every single day. Local organizations can use our space for free, because community needs a home. I partnered with food trucks to keep things neighborhood-rooted. We show up to local events, not for marketing, but because we belong here.

You can also book a private event at the brewery, giving local groups and families a space to gather right in the heart of Colorado Springs. Every pour funds veteran causes. This brewery isn’t just mine — it’s yours. That’s the mission behind every single batch I brew.

Conclusion

When you choose Nano 108, you’re choosing more than a cold, local beer. You’re backing a veteran who traded his uniform for a brewery and other business ventures, but never left his mission behind. Colorado Springs has always been a military city, but it’s also become something more — a community that rallies around purpose-driven people. Every small batch brewed here tells that story. And with over 400 Google Reviews and a 4.6-star rating, it’s clear this community has taken notice.

So pull up a barstool, let the taproom find you, and raise a pint to something worth drinking for. You’ve earned it, and so has he. Come find us at Nano 108 Brewery — we’ll have one ready when you walk through the door.