![\"Tox](\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Screen-Shot-2019-04-09-at-9.05.47-AM.png\")
<\/a>In his \u2018day job,\u2019Laskey, teaches clinical toxicology as an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy at the University of St. Joseph. He also works in the emergency department at Hartford Hospital. He and Zaccaro \u00a0are partners in New London\u2019s only taproom, while Ahlcrona supplies expertise as \u2018brewing mentor\u2019 in his role as operations manager.<\/p>\n
With Laskey\u2019s educational background, which includes an ASHP-accredited pharmacy practice residency at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, followed by a clinical toxicology post-doctoral fellowship with the Georgia Poison Center, it\u2019s no wonder that the names of the brews on tap have a somewhat sinister tone. Among them are Placebo Effect, Deadly Nightshade, Belladonna, Angel Wings, and Citra Pollen \u2013 and there are more to come.<\/p>\n
Laskey describes it this way, \u201cMy partner Mike and I have been best friends for most of our lives.\u00a0 We used to play in a band during our UConn days (The Supertones) and were several time winners of the annual SUBOG battle of the bands! We also began brewing back then. Given my passion for poisons and antidotes, I started naming our beers after poisonous plants, animals, and fungus. And so Tox was born!\u201d<\/p>\n
The friends describe themselves as \u2018beer nerds\u2019 and \u2018curiosity-filled explorers\u2019 and while the path from conception to opening the brewery took some time, the hurdles they encountered never dulled their enthusiasm. Their joint love of the science and artistic process of creating the perfect beer for every occasion was aided by a Kickstarter campaign in November that raised nearly $30,000 to help them realize their dream.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe envisioned a steampunk mad science themed taproom with diverse beer offerings. We signed our lease a year ago and have been working night and day, building everything possible ourselves, to make this happen. As we began brewing on our system earlier this year, we were extremely picky and dumped batch after batch (over 750 gallons) down the drain when we felt they were not perfect. The result was an opening day with nine unique offerings that we love and are proud of,\u201d Laskey says.<\/p>\n