Spec’ing trucks effectively boils down to having a precise idea of what the vehicle will be used for. In a Truck Chat interview with Work Truck Executive Editor Lauren Fletcher, Bob Vreeland, fleet commander for Bottle Logic Brewing, a craft brewing company located in Anaheim, Calif., and Brian Tabel, executive director of marketing for Isuzu Commercial Truck of America, discussed the steps they took to ensure the perfect end product: Izzy the Isuzu.

Where Will it Go and What Will it Do?

All of Bottle Logic’s vehicles are used for distribution in some manner, whether it be for deliveries or special events. The company knew it wanted a truck that could double as a mobile bar, which meant it would have to be refrigerated.

Bottle Logic delivers all over Southern California, and drivers have to traverse many different kinds of terrain while transporting precious cargo.

Right Place at the Right Time

Luckily enough, Isuzu is headquartered in Anaheim as well. A few employees spent time in Bottle Logic’s taproom after work, and, after noticing their branded polos, Vreeland struck up a conversation about the company’s trucks.

Eventually, Vreeland and Tabel got together to discuss the different aspects the brewery was looking for in a truck. Tabel matched up the requests to vendors he knew would be able to make the vision a reality. With Tabel’s expertise in vehicles and Vreeland’s knowledge of craft beer, the two were able to select regulators, faucets, and beer tubing to fit Bottle Logic’s needs.

“If you’re specialized in something, it’s okay to ask for help. Isuzu knows trucks, and we know beer,” said Vreeland.

Partnering Up for an Amazing End Result

Leaning on each other’s expertise to ensure you get exactly what you’re looking for will save a lot of time, money, and headaches. Now that Izzy has been built, it’s set the blueprint up for future vehicles if Bottle Logic decides to open hubs elsewhere in the future.

“Now we can use the one vehicle for sales and events. We don’t need to purchase a bunch of different trucks to meet our needs. We can just have the one for each specific location we are in,” explained Vreeland.

Tabel was driven to solve Bottle Logic’s problem of requiring two different vehicles and was able to tap (no pun intended) into his many resources with different body companies and upfitters across the country.

“Over about 60 days, I was able to find those resources, went back to [Vreeland], and laid out the game plan. It seemed pretty reasonable to him, we made some changes and built everything in a CAD drawing to determine how it would work out, and Izzy is the result. We debuted it two years ago at the Brewers Association meeting in Denver, and it was a huge hit,” Tabel said.