E-Malt.com News article: US, RI: New Coastal Extreme Brewing Co. facility opens its doors

A sold-out event at the grand opening at Coastal Extreme Brewing Co. took place on June, 17. The team behind Newport Storm Beer and Thomas Tew Rum were happy they were finally able to open their doors and invite their fans for an inside look at their new building, NewportPatch reported on June, 20.

While the new facility, located at 293 J.T. Connell Highway in Newport, has been open since January 2010, President Brent Ryan and head brewer Derek Luke said they wanted to finish the visitor’s centre and rum library, in addition to several other small projects before holding the celebration.

Coastal Extreme Brewing Co. was formerly located on Oliphant Lane in Middletown for ten years. Those who follow the Newport Storm team may remember the long lines to get into the Friday night tours, which were the only time the brewery was open to the public. At the new facility, doors are open six days a week.

“At the old brewery we had to shut down production and put everything away when we invited the public in,” the President explained. “We had about 2,000 to 3,000 visitors come through each year with a couple hundred of them being unique visitors. Now, we’ve had about 10,000 unique visitors coming through.”

Before the addition, the public wasn’t able to view the distillery for Thomas Tew Rum. Last year alone, more rum was made since they started in 2006, which was 80 barrels.

“We’re able to concentrate on a lot of our new things,” Brent Ryan added. “Because we have the space and the brewing time is quicker, it allows for us to focus on the development of new things and more beers.”

The biggest upgrade to the new facility is the bottling line. Ryan explained that one of the biggest problems with a small brewery is bottling beer. Newport Storm bottled beer was formerly brewed in Connecticut, so the team said they are excited that the brewing can now be done right here in Newport along with the barrels. The President said that the quality of the beer coming off the line is also that much better. Their newest beer, Quinn, came out exactly how they envisioned it, he said.

While the volume hasn’t increased yet, they do have a 30-barrel system now, as opposed to the 10-barrel system in the former location. What used to take 36 hours in the old facility now takes just 16 hours.

“Our expansion is a small one in comparison to other breweries but we are going to continue to grow from here,” Ryan said. “We’ve upgraded our equipment and in the long run we can expand even more if we want because we now have the space to do so.”

The visitor’s centre and tasting room at Coastal Extreme Brewing Co. is open from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. each day, except Tuesdays. Both the beer and rum are available for tasting for the first time ever. The cost for a tour and beer tasting is $7 and includes a souvenir glass. The cost for a tour and rum tasting is $9. The beer selection offered is a combination of both the year-round beers, seasonal and limited release selections. The tour deck is also open so visitors can get a birds-eye view of the facility even when there isn't a scheduled tour.



24 June, 2011