Photo by James Calder 2012 is pushing full steam ahead for the beer in D.C. Our once fledgling scene is evolving into one of the premier beer destinations in the country and shows no signs of slowing anytime soon.
Neighborhood Restaurant Group, famous for their beer mecca ChurchKey, recently hired Megan Parisi, formerly the head lead brewer at Cambridge Brewing Company in Massachusetts. CBC’s small footprint in the Boston burbs is not representative of the world-class beer they have produced under Parisi. Her credentials speak volumes and include the General Certificate in Brewing and Packaging from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling in London, the Professional Brewer’s Certificate from UC Davis, and the Master of Beer Styles sensory course at Siebel and has won multiple medals at the Great American Beer Festival.
Oh yeah — this Masshole can attest to her beers being delicious.
Working with NRG’s beer director Greg Engert, the focus of the new full-production brewery—which will include a brewpub for some post Nats game drinks—will be barrel-aged sour ales. Their facility will include a coolship, which is a traditional way to simultaneously cool the beer down after boil and allow wild yeasts from the air to impart complex flavors that make sour and “funked” beers so intriguing. Currently, there are very few coolships in the U.S., and these beers are highly sought after by those who love wild beers. While this brewery at the Yards is only starting to take shape and has no concrete timeframe, some of the most important pieces are now in place to give more beer options to the city.
While NRG has gained Parisi for their brewery, they recently lost Churchkey’s assistant beer director Nahem Simon as he has assumed beer director duties at Jack Rose Dining Saloon. His arduous maintenance of the revered Churchkey draft system was no small feat, and now it looks like he will be able to take his knowledge of draft line upkeep and place the beers in Jack Rose as he sees fit.
D.C.’s first production brewery in half a century, DC Brau, has finally been able to get their cans back into the city. The Public Citizen and Corruption are available in bars and restaurants throughout the District, and stores should have them very soon. Meanwhile, 3 Stars has continued collaborations and is set to release the B.W. Rye #3, a saison rye made with Oliver ales. Their own facility is close to being ready and should be in operation within two or three months.
Thor Cheston, formerly of Brassiere Beck and DC’s own beer knight, will be opening up a brewpub with Nathan Zeender and focus on Belgian-inspired ales and lambics. Their hope is to have their location in the Shaw neighborhood ready at some point in 2013. Hellbender and Low Brau are also making plays to hit the beer scene running soon much like Baying Hound has done up in Maryland. Finally, Cabinet Artisanal Ales, who took over the Shenandoah brewing facilities in Alexandria last year in order to brew beer for Philadelphia’s Farmer’s Cabinet, is working on getting their tasting room ready in order to bring some innovative barrel-aged beers to the area.
Finally, with all these new breweries coming to the city, the national beer community will be even more focused on this year’s SAVOR and week-long celebration of American craft beer. While many breweries would love to participate in the second largest beer event in the country, a drawing is help for participants in order to make it as fair as possible. Locally, Port City and DC Brau made the oh-so-coveted list. However, as DCBeer reported, next year our hometown fermenters may have to travel to SAVOR as there is a strong possibility that it will be held as D.C. will be hosting the 2013 Craft Brewers Conference.
More breweries, brewpubs, and events coming in 2012. Not a bad second-tier city to live in.
