At university, Paul Fryman developed an appreciation for beer, but it was in Germany where he fell in love with microbreweries.
That passion eventuallymyda JAFB, a Wooster-based microbrewery founded in 2011 by Paul Fryman, along with his father, Jerry, and brother, Tony. It opened on Beall Avenue during the summer of 2012.
Now, more than a decade later, JAFB has been named Small Business of the Year by the Wooster Area Chamber of Commerce in the employee category under 15 years old.
“It's a great honor,” Fryman said. “I am very proud of the business we have been able to create here and the environment. It's a testament to the team (of eight employees) we have and the staff we have. “They can feel a sense of accomplishment because we have a plan and we are executing it.”
Fryman grew up in West Salem and moved in 2002 to attend Allegheny College. He studied business economics. He studied for a semester in Germany and really loved the social aspect of microbreweries there. He wanted to replicate that type of establishment and feel at home.
After graduating, “I knew I had to go somewhere where there was a surplus of breweries, so I moved to Colorado and found a position there.”
Fryman and JAFB brewers have won several awards. Today's success was born from a minimum wage job, primarily in bottle production, at Great Divide Brewing Co. in Denver.
From Denver, the well-traveled Fryman moved to Lake Placid, New York, to work as a brewery assistant at Great Adirondack Brewing. He then moved on to Snake River Brewing in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to blend hops and grains before returning to Lake Placid, this time as head brewer.
But Fryman knew he wanted to start his own company, which brought him back to Wayne County and Wooster.
“I had been in the industry for six years,” Fryman said. “I saw that the industry was getting ready to explode. I knew he needed to return to Wooster and Ohio. “I wanted to be at Wooster.”
When JAFB opened its taproom and brewery, it became part of the chamber.
“They're great,” Fryman said. “They are a very motivated group. When you go to one of the events, the amount of people there is amazing. It's good to work with them and they have helped us. “I am proud to be a member.”