E-Malt.com News article: USA, AL: Huntsville’s Fractal Brewing Project, Salty Nut Brewing to close down

In late May, when AL.com asked a local retailer to pick a six-pack of Huntsville craft beers for beer drinkers who don’t like craft beer, a third of his selections were from Fractal Brewing Project. “They have some of the best beers I’ve had out of this town,” Liquor Express and Craft Beer staffer Michael Payne said, AL.com reported on July 23.

Sadly, just two months later Fractal will close permanently. The business announced the closure on July 23 via Facebook. “After a lot of thought we have decided to close Fractal Brewing Project effective July 31, 2023,” the post opened. “The project that started almost four years ago has been a wild ride. We had some great parties, provided space for the community to gather, raised money for mental health services, and made some really good beer.”

The post also addressed reasons for the closure: “The direct impact of COVID, the lingering supply chain issues, and the changes in the beer industry have all made it impossible to continue.”

According to an August 2021 Gallup Poll regarding drinking habits in the U.S., only 60 percent of respondents age 18 to 34 said they drank alcohol, compared to 70 percent of people 35 to 54. Older people are drinking less too. According to the survey, just 52 percent of ages 55 and up said they drank alcohol. In addition, the survey reported drinkers of all ages are consuming less, around 3.6 drinks a week, compared to four in 2019 and 5.1 in 2003.

The post went on to thank, “the staff that enabled the operations and provided a fun atmosphere, industry partners that provided the goods and services required to run the business, wholesale and retail partners that helped promote and serve Fractal beer, and most of all the Fractal clientele that visited our taproom.”

Fractal Brewing was founded by Larry Lowe, a 1993 Grissom High grad. During his career as an electrical engineer, Lowe had designed antennae and radar projects. He brought a similar scientific approach to Fractal. In addition to its large metal fermenters and brewhouses out on the brewery’s open floor, they maintained an in-house lab complete with microscope and Erlenmeyer flasks, for examining yeast cultures and growing yeast, to help maintain the beers’ consistency and quality.

Fractal Brewing is located at 3200 Leeman Ferry Road, formerly the home of defunct but locally pioneering Old Towne Brewing Company and, later on, Straight to Ale, which is now located at dining and entertainment development Campus No. 805.

“If there ever needs to be a historic marker for craft beer in Huntsville,” Lowe said in an interview a few months after opening Fractal in September 2019, “to me, this building embodies that.” AL.com reached out to Lowe regarding Fractal’s closure but hadn’t received a reply as of publishing this story.

Fractal’s signature beers have included the canned offerings Time Taker German-Style Pilsner and Project Invariant Amber Ale, both highlighted in AL.com’s aforementioned sixpack of Huntsville craft beers for beer drinkers who don’t like craft beer tally.

Bradley “Robo” Robison has been Fractal’s head brewer for the duration. A Marine Corps veteran and Bob Jones High School graduate, Robison cut his teeth with North Carolina’s Uptown Brewing Company. Prior to helping launch Fractal, back in Huntsville Robison brewed for Madison’s Rocket Republic and Huntsville brewpub Below the Radar, both of which have since shuttered. (The Huntsville location of Rocket Republic is currently still open.)

This hasn’t been the best week for Huntsville’s once blossoming craft-brewing scene. On Friday, July 21 Salty Nut Brewing announced via social media they’d be closing July 31, now also Fractal’s last day. Salty Nut is located in the former location of Yellowhammer Brewing, at 2404 Clinton Ave. They released their very first beer, Imperial Mustache Red, circa 2013 with an event at craft-beer-centric bar The Nook. Salty Nut’s appellation was derived from the name of founders Brent Cole and Daniel Yant’s digital band in the music-themed videogame “Rock Band.” Their beers have included HopNaughty India Pale Ale, Hawt Blonde and Russian Mail Order Stout. In addition to brewing, Salty Nut, which maintained a leafy, backyard-vibe biergarten out back, hosted events like local stand-up comedy open-mics and indie-rock shows.

Straight to Ale, along with Yellowhammer the city’s twin-towers of local beer, purchased Salty Nut in 2020, with Cole staying on as head brewer at the time. Back then, AL.com’s Lee Roop reported STA said the purchase was “an effort to support the local craft beer scene while helping an important venue in the Huntsville community flourish.” Straight to Ale owner Dan Perry said in that 2020 statement, “I am a firm believer that working together makes you stronger.”

After Salty Nut’s announcement on July 21, AL.com reached out to STA ownership but did not immediately receive a reply.



24 July, 2023