USA, FL: Tequesta Brewing Company seeking approval for a brewery in Palm Beach Gardens

An application to the Palm Beach Gardens Planning and Zoning Department filed last November shows that a Houston company is seeking approval for a Twisted Trunk microbrewery, New Times Broward-Palm Beach reported on February 17.

Twisted Trunk -- the brewery from Santa Rosa, California? Yes, but it's not the same brewery.

In Florida, Twisted Trunk is a fictitious name created by Gardens Brewing, LLC, whose manager is Matthew Webster, who is also the brewmaster for Tequesta Brewing Company.

The application is asking to locate a 5,773 square-foot brewery. Also being requested is an additional 692 square feet for outdoor seating to include 18 tables and 36 chairs, but with no service provided by the establishment. No additional building area is being proposed.

Last September, Palm Beach Gardens adopted an ordinance to allow breweries within city limits as conditional use proper, but Tequesta is requesting an amendment to the city's land development regulations to allow a brewery in that area.

When contacted, Webster couldn't talk much about the project until it progresses more, whether it might be a new facility or simply a brewpub, only saying, "There are a lot of hurdles to jump through." Understandably, business owners usually prefer not to talk about new projects until they become more finalized. It kind of falls in line with the phrase, "Don't talk about it, be about it." We should know more in a couple of months.

Growing up surrounded by breweries in Colorado, he took his experience with him to South Florida at a time when the brewing industry was virtually non-existent and eventually opened Tequesta Brewing in 2011. "For a long time, South Florida hasn't really been known as the best spot for craft beer," Matt said in 2011. "By with what we're doing here, we're trying to prove that you can find good, local beer -- and that the craft scene is alive and well. Especially here, at Tequesta."

19 February, 2014