Surly Brewery - (Malcolm Avenue & 5th Street SE)

[Le Sueur]

http://www.startribune.com/local/blogs/203080331.html
From the announcement in April:

The timeline remains tentative, Hauschild said, but "let's just say we’re hopeful we’re brewing beer at the new location in 2014.”

The new brewery is meant to expand on, rather than replace, the Brooklyn Center location, which will remain operating for the foreseeable future.

I was surprised at this as well. Consolidation would make sense, but it may be they don't have the capital to grow and consolidate all in one move.

According to the article, they can only have 1 taproom open, so as soon as the new Brewery in Minneapolis is open, they have to shut down the Brooklyn Center taproom by law.

They may have to stop using it as a tap room, but I'm guessing they will leave it intact to use for other events. Their current tour set up in Brooklyn Center starts in what is basically already a 'tap room' but this update will likely improve on the plastic chairs and tables they currently have next to the bar.

[alleycat]

The owners dad owns the warehouse in BC. It probably doesn't hurt to keep some production or warehousing there.

[mullen]

i'm curious to see what this new brewery will look like. they are supposedly releasing renderings sunday.

[Didier]

Any update on the designs? I searched the Internet but didn't find anything.

[mullen]

http://www.startribune.com/local/blogs/212785631.html

[Didier]

Thanks for posting. Not sure why that didn't come up on Google News?

Unfortunately the pictures don't really offer much of anything. The only exterior shot doesn't really give any context and looks more like it's in a marsh than an industrial area.

I'm a bit curious about the interior photos as well. The successful taprooms in Minneapolis so far are pretty low key, modest places. These photos show a fairly bland and uninviting space. It looks more like a museum cafeteria than a taproom.

Of course with Surly's size, their taproom is going to be of a different character than Fulton and the Northeast breweries. That said, I think they have to do a lot better to make this a "destination brewery."

[mattaudio]

Another HGA facepalm...

[lordmoke]

Wow. It reminds me of the University's Rarig Center. In other words, it looks like a prison. The desaturation of the renderings certainly doesn't help.

[Didier]

I was expecting something much more like the image on the top.

[mulad]

Heh, fits in perfectly with its neighbor to the north -- BNSF's Bridal Veil intermodal container facility (named for Bridal Veil Creek which runs underground through there and drains into the Mississippi at Franklin & East River Parkway).

[andrewjamesritchie]

Looks like they're aiming for a spotlight in Dwell. I think it's a good start though.

[nordeast homer]

Wow guys, you do realize that this is a brewery first, right? It needs to function as a manufacturing facility first, it was never going to be an architectural gem. I wouldn't write home about it, but it's not offensive.

[mullen]

that's true. and what is modern brewery supposed to resemble? when i think of brewery architecture i think of the grain belt complex. but that is a bygone era. i wish that exterior rendering had some color to it. the black and white is very stark and brutalist.

[minnyapple]

New Renderings posted on Biz Journal http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/b ... ge_gallery

[mister.shoes]

I dunno. I think the dark color scheme and gloomy atmosphere is interesting. It's almost angry, maybe even a bit annoyed. Unfortunately, slightly off-putting, bad-tempered, and unfriendly doesn't necessarily scream "beer party time!"




*cough*

[MNdible]

It's worthwhile doing a quick google image search for Stone Brewing out of San Diego -- it's a fairly new "destination" brewery of what I assume will be a similar scale to what Surly has in mind. Their facility, to my eye, demonstrates a bit more "personality" than what I'm seeing in the Surly renderings.

For comparison, they are currently sit at number 10 amongst the largest craft brewers in the country.

[minnyapple]

Startrib post with the pics. http://www.startribune.com/local/blogs/212785631.html

[kirby96]

Didier' comment on the Strib blog is dead on: this is a ringer for a museum cafeteria! If you are on a 2 hour tour of the brewery and need a break, it's fine for a 15 minute sojourn. But it sure doesn't look like a destination I'd go out of my way to find...

[the kid]

I dunno. I think the dark color scheme and gloomy atmosphere is interesting. It's almost angry, maybe even a bit annoyed. Unfortunately, slightly off-putting, bad-tempered, and unfriendly doesn't necessarily scream "beer party time!"

but it does scream Surly




*cough*

[Didier]

Wow guys, you do realize that this is a brewery first, right? It needs to function as a manufacturing facility first, it was never going to be an architectural gem. I wouldn't write home about it, but it's not offensive.

I don't really understand the connection you're trying to make. Nobody is begrudging the factory aspect of the building. The concern is that the renderings show a sterile room that lacks any intimacy or character. There are high expectations for the taproom aspect of this development and these pictures very much underwhelm.

Of course these are just pictures — the first pictures — and they are presented with a filter that makes everything look gloomy. I'm sure the final product will be more inviting.