Chillax Tap & Co. in Wentzville offers craft brews and community

Name: Chillax Tap & Co. in Wentzville offers craft brews and community
Item: Chillax Tap & Co.
Author: Cheryl Baehr

The craft beer specialty store and taproom opened earlier this year, shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic began to impact the region.

by Cheryl Baehr

August 18, 2020

8:30 AM

Courtesy Big Forrest Productions

Archie Harmon’s road to opening Chillax Tap & Co. began back in college – so it’s no surprise he wasn’t going to let the COVID-19 pandemic crush his dreams.

“It’s been a lot, especially opening two weeks before covid, but we believe in the concept,” Harmon says. “We’re managing the best we can.”

Harmon and his wife, Ashley, opened Chillax on March 3^rd, just a couple of weeks before the area all but shut down in an effort to curb the virus. For Harmon, the Wentzville bottle shop and taproom is a representation of his love of craft beer that began when he was a student at the University of Florida. There, he quickly discovered that the cheaper, mass-produced beer most of his peers drank was inferior to craft brews that were available. The realization led him to start homebrewing.

“This was twenty years ago, and no one else was really doing it,” Harmon says. “I started reading books about it and thought, “You mean to tell me that I can make beer and not continue to pay a lot for it and make big batches that people can enjoy?” People enjoyed it, and like anything, I got better and better at it the more I did it.”

Though Harmon could not deny his love of brewing beer, he thought of it as more of a hobby than a career path. He finished up school with a PhD in speech pathology and embarked on a successful career, all the while homebrewing as a way to blow off steam and relax.

About three or four years ago, Harmon felt that it was time to finally turn his passion into a business. With Ashley’s full support, he began shopping around for real estate near their home in Wentzville, finally settling on an old Pizza Hut building. The pair got to work around Thanksgiving on 2019, converting the blighted spot into a modern tap room.

Courtesy Big Forrest Productions

When Chillax opened in early March, the Harmons received a warm reception from the community, which he'd already sensed was eager to support a local, independent business that would bring the craft beer experience to the area. Harmon is quick to emphasize that Chillax is not a bar. “I don’t like the “B-A-R” word, Harmon laughs.” Instead, he describes Chillax as a community gathering place, somewhere that people can come as they are and meet up to with friends, family, and even pets. “Bring your 7-year-old,” Harmons says. “We have board games and root beer and Capri Sun. We love seeing families here together playing Jenga or Monopoly. And our patio is pet-friendly.”

Beer, of course, is the unifying principle of Chillax, and Harmon has curated an impressive selection of bottles and draft beers that highlight craft brewers from around the country. He is also eager to highlight regional breweries and sees Chillax as being a place where people can get together to have friendly conversations about craft beer.

Courtesy City of Wentzville

Though Chillax does not serve food, Harmon sees that as an opportunity to again foster community. He encourages his patrons to bring in their own snacks and welcomes them to order delivery to the tap room. He’s even invited local food trucks to Chillax to serve guests as well.

Harmon is also eager to see Chillax used as a gathering place for community groups. He points to a local cycling club that uses the tap room as a meetup spot and even hosts yoga sessions on Wednesday. Last Friday, he was excited to finally be offering live music for his guests and sees the sky as the limit for what is possible with the space.

Courtesy City of Wentzville

An operable garage door leads to a wrought iron fenced patio.

Courtesy Big Forrest Productions

Now that he’s focused on Chillax, Harmon is homebrewing less than ever, but he feels that those experiences have helped him create a beer-lovers haven. That includes creating a curated selection of the craft beers he knows his guests will love, making sure he has something for every taste and creating the space for conversation. Still, he can’t help but laugh at the irony of what opening Chillax has changed what he does in his spare time.

“Right now, I’m actually drinking less beer and brewing less than ever. I don’t have time now that I’ve transferred over to the business side, but that’s fine. I like to think the home brew experience helps me. We’re happy with what we have and think Chillax Tap & Co. fits a need that Wentzville didn’t have met before this.”