E-Malt.com News article: USA, FL: 26 Degree Brewing Co. to open in Pompano Beach by mid-September

"Brewing beer was always a hobby," says Greg Lieberman at his Pompano Beach-based brewery. "I never thought that one day I would actually open a brewery," New Times Broward-Palm Beach reported on August 5.

Lieberman is one of three men behind 26 Degree Brewing, a Pompano Beach-based facility cofounded by Lieberman's childhood friend Yonathan Ghersi and Oscar Olikowicz. Together the trio — which named the business for the latitude parallel that runs through South Florida — are planning to open by mid-September.

Lieberman says the Pompano Beach Community Redevelopment Agency was instrumental in helping 26 Degree Brewing find its home at 2600 E. Atlantic Blvd. in Pompano Beach. The business partners considered locations in cities like Miami's Wynwood district and Delray Beach before settling on Pompano Beach. When it opens in September it will become the city's second brewery to begin operating.

Thanks to the 21,000-square-feet of space, 26 Degree Brewing currently stands as one of South Florida's largest brewing operations, located in a building that was formerly home to a Winn-Dixie and — most recently — a Bealls Outlet store.

The brewery will be running on a 30-barrel system with an oversized mash tun, something that will give Lieberman and his partners the ability to produce high-alcohol-content beers. They've also installed a reverse-osmosis water filtration system to deliver quality control, allowing them to build custom water profiles for each beer.

"We want to take this one step at a time and take a really slow, organic approach to growth," says Ghersi. "Each style we brew here will have a totally customized brewing process, and before we do any major distribution, we want to be sure the product leaving this facility is consistent and the best it can be."

Hopefully that will include Lieberman's personal favorite, Ziko's Range, an imperial stout.

The official opening date has yet to be set. 26 Degree Brewing Co. will be located at 2600 E. Atlantic Blvd. in Pompano Beach.


07 August, 2015