Lost Cabin opens to community support

Lost Cabin Brewery and Taproom has opened in Hill City, and along with it comes a whole host of music, food, fun and of course beer.
Co-founder Jesse Scheitler said the response from  the community so far has been great, with several partnerships growing between Lost Cabin and other businesses in town.
“There’s a lot of bars around here that carry our products so we’re certainly thankful to be in the community,” he said.
Scheitler is “pleasantly surprised’ at the support from residents and estimates about 70-80 percent of the people coming into Lost Cabin are from Hill City.
The brewery is housed in the space formerly occupied by InsideOut next to the Mickelson Trail.
That location is strategic, as the brewery is not just a place to have beer, it’s also a gathering spot for cyclists, yogis, rock climbers and other like-minded outdoor groups that want to unwind after a day of activity.
“Historically it’s worked out really well for us to be next to a trail and next to a bike shop,” Scheitler said. He said the taproom in Rapid City is across from the trail system in town and shares a space with Black Hills Bicycles.
“Our brand has always been geared toward outdoor recreation, hiking, biking and climbing. Being closer to the Hills and being a part of that community here is really nice,” Scheitler said.
The outdoor space for Lost Cabin Hill City is tranquil and chill and hosts yoga every Sunday.
“One of our bartenders is a yoga instructor,” Scheitler said, adding the classes have been well received.
Lost Cabin also has concerts featuring regional original singer songwriters.
Despite some initial pushback Lost Cabin also has a rotating food truck available, serving locally created food from Mexican to Thai to Nepalese.
“The city was great. I know there was a vocal minority and some hesitation on the food truck side of things, but Dani and the city was a breeze to work with,” Scheitler said.
However, Lost Cabin is all about the beer.
“We believe in doing one thing well, and that’s making beer. We have no intention of being a restaurant,” Scheitler said.
The Hill City location has 15 rotating taps, with a wide variety available. Its most popular is Bruce Banner, a pale ale; another favorite is a light lager called “Beer” which Scheitler calls a “lawn mower beer.”
“We have dark beers, sour beers, our Lord Grizzly scotch ale ... it kind of depends on the mood, depends on the weather, depends on the person,” Scheitler said.
Lost Cabin has something for even those not into beer. It serves sodas, sparkling waters, electrolyte drinks and kombucha. It also has light snacks like jerky and pretzels.
The plans are to stay open year-round.
“‘Please be open year-round,’” Scheitler said. “That’s the message we heard loud from the community.”
Scheitler says during the off-season Lost Cabin Hill City plans on having events “to bring unique experience to Hill City.”
There is a style of event  like pop-up shops, health and wellness events and even craft shows that Scheitler hopes to bring to the Heart of the Hills.
“It’s never our intention to come in here and be these out of town guys who are coming in for a quick dollar,” Scheitler said. “We really want to be a part of the community.”
Lost Cabin does a lot of work with nonprofits in Rapid City.
“We have every intention of bringing that up here. I know there’s a big need for a new ambulance facility, so we hope to do some charity work in this area,” Scheitler said.
All the Lost Cabin staff have paid volunteer time in addition to their time off.
“They can work with the charity of their choice, but we’ll pay them as if they were here,” Scheitler said. “That gives them some freedom to work with something near and dear to their heart.”
 More information about food truck schedules, concerts or yoga can be found on the Lost Cabin website at lostcabin.beer.