Photos by L.G. Patterson

Logboat Brewing Co. has been a staple in Columbia since opening its doors in 2014, offering unique, delicious craft beer and cider to the mid-Missouri area. After finishing its expansion earlier this year, Logboat launched a new venture, the Car Bar, or bar on wheels, with its first events in July.

Chelsea Jernigan, the offsite event coordinator for Logboat, says this all started from a brainstorming session. “We knew we wanted a small footprint that could bridge a lot of gaps,” she says. “We liked the idea of a mobile truck bar.”

Once the opportunity came to turn an old truck into a new adventure, they just couldn’t say no. “The Car Bar came to be because of a great opportunity to get an old chip delivery truck,” Jernigan says. “I was already doing offsite events, and this landed in our laps, so we decided to go for it once there was space and time to collaborate across departments for the build-out.”

While the Car Bar is still very new, with more promos in the works, Jernigan says they have been able to park at a couple of events to work out all the kinks. “We left with a lot shorter of a to-do list than I thought there would be.”

Jernigan says Tony Perri, the operations manager at Logboat, built the truck in a way that made the launch a smooth process. “Tony did a great job covering bases, figuring out what issues we might run into and solving them preemptively.” One of the problems they avoided was running out of storage as “he built floor-to-ceiling huge racks, so we are able to store everything on the truck instead of running back and forth and having to get everything,” she says.

Since opening the bar on wheels, Jernigan says the community has been just as excited as they are, showing support in many ways, including on social media. “It’s the only thing like it,” she says. “Getting the congratulatory responses has been solidifying our decision to do this, people saying, ‘Oh wow, I never even thought that this could be a thing.’”

Jernigan says at times that thought even crossed their minds, asking themselves how they would make this work, but in the end, “(they) took a leap and it turned out cooler than we thought it would.” The leap led them to work several events in the summer alone, setting up shop around town and showing off the incredible design on the outside. The stunning wrap was designed by Sarah Snowgren, the creative director at Logboat. “If you look closely at the wrap, it’s not just a black and gray background,” Jernigan says. Part of it is the astronaut helmet seen in many of Logboat’s designs and the other part is the Waves logo. “The work she (Snowgren) did on it is so detailed and beautiful,” Jernigan says.

But that design wasn’t the only option. Jernigan says the design process took months as they oscillated between several different ideas. “At one point the truck was going to be Kelly green, and then they looked at chrome,” Jernigan says. “She spent months narrowing down this design and filling in the details and the blanks.”

Now that the bar on wheels is moving and grooving, on the inside and outside, Jernigan has had time to reflect on how it is working in the taproom versus being an offsite bartender and server. “I love event bartending,” she says. “It’s a lot different speed than working the taproom. It’s a slower speed, you really get to interact with different guests, and you get to join in on people’s celebrations in a way that you don’t get to in the taproom.”

Even before this Car Bar came to be, Jernigan says being able to be a part of people’s events around town has been a big part of why she loves to work offsite. “It is a really strong pull toward events for me in general,” she says. “I love watching my hard work flourish in front of my eyes; it’s pretty fun.”

As a whole, Logboat hopes this new bar on wheels will help them get out into the community more and be a part of local gatherings. “We want the community to know that investing in the community around us is even more accessible now. We now have the ability to join in on more events and are making plenty of beer to do so,” Jernigan says.

The most exciting part for her and her team is getting to be a part of all different kinds of events and spark conversation about their new adventure while being a part of a positive experience. “This truck can join in on any sort of celebration or get-together and create a really fun atmosphere and conversation about what we’re building.”

No matter the event you are planning, Jernigan says the Car Bar has the “capabilities to be huge.” The bar has eight draft lines that can serve beer and cider as well as a separate line for Turtle Power, which Jernigan says is Logboat’s popular batch cocktail that they typically serve in the taproom. “We can go as full of a bar as beer, cider, wine, liquor and soda; I have space for all of it.”

For a typical event, Jernigan says she will need two to three weeks total to prepare for the event, which includes time to gather the permits through the state and come up with the menu. Jernigan usually brings three to four beers and a cider if the customers prefer, and wine and liquor if requested.

Along with the alcohol capabilities, Jernigan says the space within the Car Bar is very comfortable with the bar portion sitting at 16 feet long and the serving window at four feet long. The space can hold two bartenders serving simultaneously without running out of room. “The two of us can serve side by side and keep the line moving pretty quickly,” she says. “There is a lot of room in there, it is awesome.”

As for the future of the Car Bar, Jernigan says “the possibilities are endless.” She says with the quantity of beer available she could do two events a day, every day of the week. “There is no limit,” she says.

Her goal is to have two events per week during the busy months and grow from there. While the Car Bar is Jernigan’s full-time job, she says it wouldn’t be possible without the collaborative efforts across the board.

Whether you are planning a corporate event, a private birthday party, an anniversary party, a celebration of life, a wedding or any other type of gathering, you can now enjoy the luxuries of Logboat and their delicious flavors wherever you might be celebrating. To reserve the bar on wheels, there is a $1,200 minimum, which includes the truck rental and labor. Jernigan says if you want to book the Car Bar, you can go to logboatbrewing.com/temp-events and fill out the form or email Jernigan at cjernigan@logboatbrewing.com.