USA, PA: Rebel Hill Brewing Co. coming to Phoenixville in February

A homebrewer has decided to open his own brewery in Phoenixville, the Reading Eagle reported on January 28.

Continuing two recent trends, longtime homebrewer Greg Kluge is opening Rebel Hill Brewing Co. in East Pikeland Township, Chester County - just outside the borough. He hopes to open by mid-February.

Kluge, who has been homebrewing for about 11 years, began contemplating opening a brewery about six years ago and got serious about two years ago and started taking courses through the Small Business Administration. As his opening day approaches, Kluge said he is feeling a range of emotions.

"I feel everything," he said. "I feel stress, fear, anxiousness, but I'm excited at the same time. I don't really feel like it's real, and I probably won't until the first beer."

The Brewery is at 420 Schuylkill Road (Route 23) in the Westside Apartments and Shops development. Kluge originally hoped to open in downtown Phoenixville, which is currently home to five other breweries, but that didn't work out.

In addition to the five breweries in Phoenixville, Sly Fox also has a brewpub in East Pikeland Township. When Rebel Hill opens, that will give the area seven breweries.

"When I was originally looking, other than Iron Hill, only Stable 12 was there as far as downtown," Kluge said. "My original idea was to do this in an industrial park or beat-up warehouse that I would re-do. It was way more money than I wanted to spend."

He found the Westside development on Craigslist, where the developers placed an ad that specifically stated they wanted a brewpub.

While the brewery might not be downtown, it is near several new apartment buildings.

"People can literally walk out of their door and come here," Kluge said. "As long as the beer is good and it's quality, people come from anywhere."

Kluge said the other breweries have been very helpful.

"It's not an industry where people are trying to not help the other guy out," he said. "As long as you make a good product, you'll be fine."

Kluge, who works full-time as a graphic designer, currently only brews on weekends. He uses a seven-barrel brewing system that is a mishmash of new parts and used parts, including a repurposed milk tank.

The brewery has eight taps, plus a hand pump for cask beers, and Kluge said he plans to brew a variety of styles.

"I love all beer," he said. "I love stouts, I love saisons. I wouldn't say we'll have a particular style, but definitely the more approachable hoppy beers will be there and seasonal stuff."

Kluge said he doesn't know if there will be any flagship beers that will be available year-round.

"While I do like drinking the same stuff that I like, I also like to try new things all the time, and I kind of wanted to have that, so it'll be a constant rotation," he said. "We'll bring things back if they're popular, but I definitely want to brew a variety."

The tasting room has seating for about 40, including 10 at an L-shaped bar. An outdoor patio area will have seating and games during warmer weather.

The brewery will not serve food, but customers are invited to bring their own. A farm-to-table cafe is currently under construction next door, and a pizzeria, a barbecue joint and a Wayback Burger are in close proximity.

"There's plenty of food options in the area," Kluge said.

28 January, 2018