USA, NC: Cabarrus Brewing Co. getting ready for grand opening on March 18

Cabarrus Brewing Co. — Concord’s first large scale brewery operation — will be holding their grand opening Friday, March 18, IndependentTribune.com reported on March 15.

Cabarrus Brewing Co. will be open to the public 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. The brewery is located at Gibson Mill at 329 McGill Ave. NW, Concord.

In June 2015, officials with Cabarrus Brewing Co. announced they were spending more than $1 million to upfit a roughly 15,000-square foot space at Gibson Mill. There brewing company was once the finished goods warehouse for Gibson Manufacturing Co. and served as part of Cannon Mills Plant 6. The operation is large enough to produce 90,000 gallons of beer a year.

Jason McKnight is the head brewer for Cabarrus Brewing Co. and has already seen patrons respond to his product, thanks to a recent event held for United Way of Central Carolinas - Cabarrus County.

“It’s great,” McKnight said. “That’s what it is all about really is enjoying the product that you brew and that’s really the reason we do it. It’s not just for the love of the beer, but the love of the people enjoying their beer.”

Cabarrus Brewing looks to have two fill-time brewers, a full-time operations person, a full-time manager and about 20 servers, half of which will be full-time and the other half part-time.

“There’s a lot of anticipation so we’re really excited about finally getting the doors open and getting everybody here,” McKnight said.

Cabarrus Brewing Co. was actually the first brewery in Concord to announce plans to open, but will be the second to open its doors, just because of it being a larger operation.

High Branch Brewing Co. — which is also located at Gibson Mill — opened in November, but has a much smaller operation than Cabarrus Brewing Co.

High Branch has a one and a half barrel operation in their roughly 1,400-square-foot location and the total investment was around $100,000. The smaller brewery can yield roughly 4,650 gallons in the first year of production, and held its grand opening in November. Currently, the taproom can hold around 44 people, but officials have seen the success of the brewery and are already talking about expanding.

Cabarrus Brewing Co. on the other hand invested more than $1 million in their operation, which is in a roughly 15,000-square foot space capable of brewing 90,000 gallons of beer a year. Also, Cabarrus Brewing Co. is positioning itself to be a unique events location with a mezzanine that can hold around 150 people alone. The venue can hold more than 500 people, officials said.

Steve Steinbacher, one of the owners of Cabarrus Brewing Co., said they are already receiving interest in the brewery from people looking to host events there. They already have close to a dozen events locked down without even promoting the facility, including wedding and sorority parties.

“We’ve gotten a huge response to the private event space,” Steinbacher said. “It just shows you the demand and interest in a unique event space.”

Steinbacher said they will also have non-alcoholic drinks for individuals who don’t drink beer.

“It’s really just a place to come and be with your neighbors and the community as a whole,” Steinbacher said. “I think that’s what drives a lot of the craft brewing popularity and it’s not just a bar and it’s not just a place to go, it’s a place to come together and be a community.”

Cabarrus Brewing Co. has already seen the community come together with close to 200 people attending a United Way of Central Carolinas - Cabarrus County fundraiser there on March 1. Patrons who attended the ticketed event got to be among the first customers to check out Cabarrus Brewing Co.

Bill Dusch, board chair for United Way of Central Carolinas - Cabarrus County, actually had the third beer ever poured and served to a patron of the new brewery. The new brewery definitely had the seal of approval from a craft beer fan.

“The beer is excellent,” Dusch said. “I love beer, I plan my trips around going to different breweries around the country and I was so excited when High Branch opened next door. I’m just glad they are here.”

Cabarrus Brewing Co. is celebrating its grand opening this weekend, but officials are already looking at the possibility of expanding their product in the community.

Steinbacher said they have signed an agreement with the Intimidators baseball team to be the craft beer provider and sponsor at the Kannapolis stadium.

“Not just to celebrate the beer and baseball, but the history of baseball in the area — the old textile leagues,” Steinbacher said. “Our beer will be there all summer, we’ll have our own beer kiosk, we’ll do some unique things from a beer garden perspective. Even if they don’t drink the beer there … they will know who we are and we will develop a brand … with that important community asset.”

Steinbacher said they are also working with Charlotte Motor Speedway to see about opportunities for having Cabarrus Brewing Co. at events at the track. The speedway doesn’t do draft beer, Steinbacher said, which could push Cabarrus Brewing Co. to start canning their beer sooner than they expected.

Cabarrus Brewing Co. is also working with the Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau about the possibility of having a bus provided during race weeks to bring race campers to Cabarrus Brewing Co.

“To engage them, not just in the brewery, but the history of Cabarrus County,” Steinbacher said.
But for now, Steinbacher and the rest are focused on just getting ready for the grand opening.

“It’s one step at a time and right now, we want to make sure we get open to the public and make sure the beer is what everybody’s expectations are,” Steinbacher said. “Once we feel we are in control in certain phases of what we do, then we will look to expand to another phase.”

16 March, 2016