Print edition: 
CHENEY — Sitting comfortably on the customers' side of the bar he had always dreamed of, Hank Sanford looked ahead and saw the future and the past at the same time.
The past hung on the wall: Sign after sign advertising the brewpubs he visited while traveling the country for the past 22 years selling industrial air pollution control devices.
The future stood behind the bar washing pint glasses: Hank's son, Steve, a burly 29-year-old emerging brewmaster, who will someday take over Hank Is Wiser Brewery.
But if the craft beer bar, which sits in a century-old former ice cream shop on Main Street in Cheney, is going to transform from Hank's retirement dream into Steve's lifelong business, it needs to expand, father and son agree.
"After five years, we've pretty much found all the beer drinkers," Hank said as people stepped up to order and Jane, his wife, carried trays of pints away.
So, as Hank Is Wiser gets ready for an anniversary bash with 29 specialty brews on tap April 2 and 3, it is also preparing to expand its barbecue menu and open a new wing in the other commercial space in the building.
Hank and Steve had planned to make the new area a smoking section with a pool table, shuffleboard and other bar games taking up floor space in the brewery.
But a statewide ban, effective July 1, voided the smoking part of that idea. They now hope to add a covered patio to the back of the bar for smokers.
Hank planned the brewery for years, and he hunted for a building in Wichita and surrounding areas as his sales career wound down.
He found the most affordable and ideal building in Cheney, spent almost a year renovating and opened Hank Is Wiser a few hours after he officially retired.
Aside from the brewing, Hank hosts a "Bike Cakes" breakfast with pancakes made with beer the third Sunday of every month from May to September.
Hank, now 67, said he struggles a bit with the idea of expanding.
He envisioned a brewery — not "all of this 2 a.m. stuff," he said.
But, he says, it's becoming Steve's place, and food will draw more business locally and from Wichita, which is a short drive away.
Family of beers
Steve, who does most of the brewing now, processes only a few batches of beer a week.
They brew about 100 31-gallon barrels each year, making them part of an emerging trend of nanobreweries, a term that isn't well defined but generally includes small businesses and basement brewers.
The scale makes it affordable — large brewing equipment can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. And it's a brewer's delight because it allows for a lot of experimentation without risking hundreds of dollars in ingredients.
The brewery regularly serves six of its own beers, running $3.75 a pint.
The father and son have also built a lengthy list of seasonal and specialty beers.
The anniversary list includes Buffalo Trace Oak Aged Imperial Stout brewed with hints of Buffalo Trace whiskey and Utopias Oak Aged Old Ale that uses Sam Adams Utopia, which is one of the strongest and most expensive beers in the world at more than $100 for 24 oz. and 20 percent or more alcohol.
Hank said he thinks his neighborhood bar may be one of the only bars in America that serves Utopia from at least four of the years the specialty brew has been released.
It runs $12 a shot.
The brewery also stocks a fridge full of high-end specialty beers from around the world that are available at several Wichita liquor stores but are not commonly stocked in bars.
Once a guy who drank whatever beer he could afford, Steve became an assistant brewer at River City Brewing Co. while he was creating a long list of unique and curiously named brews of his own.
Hank tends to favor India Pale Ales — or IPAs — generally known for their powerful hops taste and bitterness.
Playing off the hops, Steve has named his IPA concoctions after animals that hop — Krippled Kangaroo, Tortured Toad and Wounded Wabbit.
He also creates artwork and tap handles to accompany each brew.
Like his dad, Steve has a sense of the future.
His most recent blend is Black and Tanner Birthday Beer, brewed especially for the first birthday of his son, Tanner Brewer Sanford.
"I'm already thinking about our 10-year anniversary," Steve said.
Spoiler alert: When that day comes, Steve plans to serve an aged barley wine that he's currently brewing.
Hank beams the look of a proud father while Steve explains his vision.
"Steve has become quite a brewer," Hank said. "I'm quite pleased."
