USA, IN: Space-themed brewing company Escape Velocity launches in Lafayette

Lafayette space-themed brewing company Escape Velocity has officially launched its business on Saturday, April 25. Unfortunately, the stay-at-home order has changed the owners' grand opening plans, wtfi.com reported.

"We've been calling it the 'not so grand super soft' opening because it's not even a normal soft opening, it's just curbside but it's the best we can do right now," said Jason Behenna, owner of Escape Velocity Brewing Company.

He said it has been a busy three years leading up to grand opening day.

"We tried to originally buy the old Osco at the corner of Main and Kossuth and that fell through," said Behenna.

After that, they worked on moving into the Parkside Seafood House building in Lafayette.

"After doing some rezoning and stuff like that, some different issues came up and that ended up falling through as well," said Behenna.

Finally, in 2019, they found their current building located at 405 Sagamore Parkway South, Suite A2, Lafayette, Indiana 46905 in Lincoln Square Center. Behenna said they spent the past year preparing for this grand-opening, but had to adjust after COVID-19 caused a statewide stay-at-home order.

"Now we're standing in it and no one can enjoy except for us for the time being," said Behenna.

People may not be able to enjoy the inside aesthetic of the brewery yet but Behenna said curbside pick-up orders have been pouring in.

"We've had a social media presence for the last three years, so people have known about us, they've been able to see our struggles, they've been able to kind of go along with the ride with us," said Behenna.

Escape Velocity is moving away from a traditional brewery theme with bright colors, no TV's and its vegetarian and vegan menu. Behenna believes it's bringing a new beat to the heart of brewing in Lafayette.

"The more breweries there are, the more likely it is to become a brewing destination for people coming from out of town, and the fact that we're all very collaborative helps a lot too," said Behenna.

26 April, 2020