USA, KY: Falls City Brewing Co. to open its brewery and taproom in Louisville on March 30
Falls City Brewing Co. announced on March 27 it will open its new brewery and taproom on Friday, March 30. The newly renovated facility will be dedicated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony with Mayor Greg Fischer at 11 a.m. that day, the Insider Louisville reported.
The new complex, which was built nearly a century ago, is located at 901 E. Liberty St. — nestled between NuLu and the Phoenix Hill neighborhood — and features a seven-barrel brewhouse set in a roughly 5,100-square-foot space, as well as a taproom area that is nearly 4,000 square feet, and an outdoor beer garden that tops 3,000 square feet.
For the last several years, Falls City had been part of the Over the 9/Old 502 Winery complex on 10th Street near Portland.
“Louisville’s nationally recognized craft beer scene is thriving,” said Mayor Fischer in a prepared statement. “The addition of Falls City’s new taproom and brewery in the NuLu/Phoenix Hill neighborhood makes it even easier for residents and visitors alike to experience this iconic Louisville brand. Falls City continues to make investments in our city, and we raise a pint in celebration.”
The new taproom features a bar that seats about 12, along with a community table, additional high- and low-top tables and a lounge area with a couch and two chairs.
The exposed-brick taproom area should hold up to 100 people, with merchandise sold and beer served at the bar. Growler and packaged beer sales also will be available at the taproom, which is dog-friendly.
In addition to six flat-screen TVs, there is an area designated “The Fun Zone” that offers shuffleboard and darts.
There’s also an auxiliary indoor area with additional seating that will eventually be used for private events; the space has been dubbed “Ben’s Beer Hall” in honor of Ben Schrader, who originally founded Falls City in 1905, and will seat about 50.
Falls City Brewing was revived in 2010 before being purchased by Neace Ventures. The original Falls City began in 1905, lasting until 1978; portraits from Falls City’s history hang on the walls throughout the entire space.
Outside in the beer garden will be picnic tables in an area ringed with bourbon barrels and other décor and adjacent to an off-street parking lot, along with a mural on one wall that reads, “Stand Up and Drink Good Beer.”
The adjacent parking lot provides 15 spots and is augmented by a larger parking lot with 32 spots at the east end of the complex. Free street parking is also available on Liberty and Campbell streets.
“We’re extremely excited to finally offer a public-facing taproom and brewery to serve as our home base,” said Falls City president Shane Uttich. “It’s been a long process, but our team selflessly and collectively created an experience to show what the Falls City brand represents.”
“It was challenging, but it was a lot of fun for us to design all of this,” said Falls City marketing manager Brian U’Sellis. “Since we didn’t have a professional designer, we just basically pulled inspiration from our experiences at our favorite bars and breweries to create what we feel like is the ultimate place to drink a beer. Luckily for us, we had lots of experience to pull from, too.”
In addition to 12 taps featuring seasonals and rotators to go with the “core four” Falls City brews — Pale Ale, Hipster Repellant IPA, Kentucky Common and Streetlamp Porter — the taproom also will feature a handful of Old 502 wine options as well as bourbon and basic cocktails.
Bar snacks will be available, with food trucks rotating and a possible food vendor going into an existing space sometime in the future. In addition, plans are already in the works for expanding the brewery to a 30-barrel system by 2019.
Another new feature is the addition of Golden Ale, a beer inspired by the Louisville City FC soccer team, of which Falls City is a sponsor. The beer will be available on draft in the taproom and in cans at Louisville City matches.
Special tappings will be available throughout the grand opening weekend, as well.
Falls City will soon begin to host occasional live music and other special events, and will also have space available for private events in the near future. The taproom will be open Tuesday through Sunday.
27 March, 2018
