BACK OF THE YARDS — Rocio Santoyo and Rene Lemus did not plan on opening one of the city’s only Latino-owned breweries on the Southwest Side, where the two grew up.

But after Victor Santoyo, Rocio Santoyo’s husband and Lemus’ longtime friend, started brewing beer at home, the three saw potential for turning Victor Santoyo’s new interest into a business.

“I thought, ‘Why not make this into a business, especially trying to make it in the neighborhood?'” Rocio Santoyo said.

A decade later, Somos Monos Cerveceria has found a new home at Whiner Beer Co.’s brewery inside The Plant, 1400 W. 46th St., an industrial meat-packing facility that’s become a sustainable business incubator.

The shared taproom, dubbed The Jungle, brings neighbors a taste of Somos Monos and Whiner Beer Co.’s locally br

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