GULF SHORES, Ala. — Some party guests remember the food, and some remember the music. At events along the Alabama coast, plenty of people remember the van. The Brew Bus, a restored 1966 Ford Econoline painted in blue and cream, turned a mobile bar service into a father-daughter business for Gulf Shores resident Sarah Catherine Avent and her father, Kenneth Cruthirds, who pour drinks from a row of taps built into the side of the vintage van.
The story was shared in June 2023, shortly after the Brew Bus served guests at a Memorial Day retirement party for Bryant Whelan at the Eastern Shore Art Center in Fairhope. Her husband, Patrick, had arranged the celebration, and the van parked out front drew attention before anyone had a drink in hand. Avent and Cruthirds stayed busy through the event, serving three beers, a vodka-and-cranberry mix and water from six taps.
A Chance Connection
The Brew Bus came to wider attention through the kind of small-world connection common along the coast. Antoinette Savoie, a family friend, had met Avent at The Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores. The festival, held on the beach each spring since 2010, has become one of the region’s signature events and a natural place for local vendors and entrepreneurs to cross paths. When Savoie learned about the business, she made an introduction by email, and a meeting later that week in Orange Beach filled in the rest of the story.
Mobile Roots and a Career in Nutrition
Avent grew up in Mobile and attended McGill-Toolen Catholic High School before graduating from The University of Alabama with a degree in food and nutrition. Her husband, John, grew up around Magnolia Springs and attended Bayside Academy in Daphne. The two knew each other in high school but did not start dating until college. They married in 2014, and at the time of the 2023 interview they had a 9-year-old son, Hamp.
After college in 2012, Avent’s first job was as a nutritionist at the Chevron refinery in Pascagoula, Mississippi, where she built the company’s first employee nutrition program from scratch, including fitness offerings, seminars and healthy meal-planning options. Two years later she moved to Symbol Solutions, an on-site care clinic serving businesses around the Gulf Coast, traveling from company to company to teach employees about healthy living.
From San Francisco to West Beach
John works as a tech designer at Discord, and in 2018 the family moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, his company went remote, and the family came to Gulf Shores to quarantine at his parents’ condo.
“We thought we’d be here for three weeks, but his job went totally remote after six months, and we’d fallen in love with the beach,” Avent said.
“I had spent time here as a child growing up but had never immersed myself in beach life. I love everything about this area: the people, the beauty, the water, and especially the sunsets.”
The family bought a house on the West Beach of Gulf Shores in 2020. West Beach stretches west from the heart of town along Highway 182, a residential corridor of homes and condominiums between the Gulf and Little Lagoon that offers a quieter side of the busy resort city. Their son attends Gulf Shores Elementary, which Avent described as amazing. “We have a great little neighborhood community here,” she said.
Their move was part of a broader pattern. During and after the pandemic, remote work allowed many families to relocate to coastal communities they had previously known only as vacation spots, and Baldwin County has been among the fastest-growing counties in Alabama for years.
Buying the Brew Bus
Cruthirds retired from Gulf Distributing in Mobile after 20 years. “He knows all the ins and outs of the beer industry,” Avent said. “I had an idea of doing a mobile bar service and researched the laws of Alabama and what you can and cannot do. John knew the couple that started Brew Bus. It was about a year old, so we bought the business and ran with it.”
The van had already been completely refurbished in California and was ready to work. Avent wanted her father involved because he understands how draft systems operate, and because the business gave the two of them a way to spend time together doing something they both enjoy.
The Econoline has its own history. Ford introduced the Econoline in the early 1960s as a compact, forward-control van, with the driver seated over the front axle and the engine tucked between the front seats. The boxy first-generation models became workhorses for tradesmen and later icons of 1960s road-trip culture, which is part of why restored examples draw so much attention today.
Before booking paying customers, the family tested the setup with a neighborhood gathering of family and friends at their house. The first paid party followed a month later. “We learn something new at every event,” Avent said.
How the Taps Work
The Brew Bus has six taps. Four are dedicated to beer, and the other two can pour almost anything the client wants using what are known as Corny kegs. Short for Cornelius kegs, these stainless steel containers, typically holding about five gallons, were originally built for the soft drink industry and are now widely used by homebrewers and mobile bars because they can be filled with nearly any beverage. The options range from champagne to margaritas to wine.
“You can combine adult beverage taps with kid’s beverages such as lemonade, sodas, and juice,” Avent said. Water and coffee are also available.
“We can be very personalized depending on the client’s taste and party theme. On Cinco de Mayo, we served Corona and Margaritas. On St. Patrick’s Day, we had Irish Coffee and Green Mimosas. Beer, wine, and specialty cocktails are really popular.”
The business handles weddings, football parties and birthday parties for both adults and children. May 2023 was its busiest month to that point, and Avent said the season generally stays busy from May through September.
The Rules of a Rolling Bar
At the time, the Brew Bus had a two-hour rental minimum, and customers were required to buy the alcohol themselves. “I can pick up the alcohol, order it for them, and return the kegs, but by law, they have to make the purchase themselves,” she said. Alcohol sales in Alabama are regulated by the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, and mobile bar services generally operate as service providers pouring beverages that the host has purchased.
Most parties call for sixtels, which hold one-sixth of a standard beer barrel, or roughly five gallons. Quarter kegs, about 7.75 gallons, are used for larger groups. For a sense of scale, a sixtel yields roughly 55 twelve-ounce pours, while a quarter keg yields around 80. “I’ve gotten pretty good at estimating how much is needed based on the number of guests and how long the party lasts,” Avent said.
For anyone planning a party with a mobile bar, a few general tips apply:
- Book early for weekends from late spring through early fall, the busiest stretch for coastal events.
- Ask exactly what the host must purchase and how kegs are ordered and returned.
- Offer nonalcoholic options such as lemonade, soda or water, especially at family events.
- Plan for heat. Shade and cold water matter on the Gulf Coast for much of the year.
- Confirm any venue rules on outside beverage service before booking.
Barre Classes, Weekends and the Brew Master
Avent also works as a fitness instructor at Neighborhood Barre in Gulf Shores. In 2023 she was teaching classes Monday through Thursday at 6 a.m., 8 a.m. and 9:15 a.m., then spending Friday through Sunday working Brew Bus events with her father.
“This started as a fun project to do with my dad. It turns out I’m pretty good at events, and I love the creative side. I like people and enjoy helping them, especially on their special occasions. It’s fun! People love the whole operation, and it’s a great photo op. It’s something that I love to do.”
She takes pride in ownership. “I love that this is my business. I own it and am proud that it’s a female-owned business. It’s fun that it’s just my dad and me, and I think it has drawn us closer. We call him the Brew Master. He’s a perfectionist and doesn’t want anything to go wrong. But if it does, he can fix it. It’s our father-daughter adventure!”
Asked how she balances family and business, Avent was upbeat. “It’s fun. We grew up pretty quickly and have figured things out that work for us. I’m very positive, and, as a family, we have a good outlook on life. Even with a hectic schedule, John, Hamp, and I spend a lot of time together, so it works. We are social people and get to meet so many new friends through Brew Bus. And it’s really great spending time with my Dad.”
For a coast that loves a good party, a vintage van with beer on tap and a father-daughter team behind it proved to be a natural fit. Those interested in booking a mobile bar for an event should contact the business directly for current availability, pricing and policies.