AleCraft Opening Brewery In Bel Air

BEL AIR, MD — Home brewers and newbies to the craft beer community will have reason to raise a glass or growler this fall. AleCraft in Bel Air is expanding both its business model and physical footprint.

AleCraft Brewing Supply is moving from North Bond Street to the Preston’s Stationery building on South Main.

At its new digs, AleCraft is also adding a microbrewery and taproom to its offerings.

The front two-thirds of Preston Stationery building facing Main Street will house the business; AleCraft is leasing 4,300 square feet. It will include two separate entities, the supply shop and the brewery/taproom.

At the taproom, the brewery will sell beer by the glass and fill growlers.

"We’ll keep a few regular beers on tap but rotate our offerings," co-owner Ken Roberson said. "We plan on offering a full spectrum of craft beer starting with eight taps."

Double IPA, American IPA, Pale Ale, Kolsch, Rye Ale, Belgian Tripel, Rye Lager and a seasonal beer will be on tap when the brewery opens, he said.

Kits will be for sale in the home brew supply shop on site so that enthusiasts can reproduce what they are imbibing at the taproom once they go home.

The brewery will brew single-barrel batches of craft beer, which the owners say allows for a unique experience.

"We’ll be able to exercise a level of creativity and flexibility not available to larger breweries that have to plan their brewing to minimize recipe complexity and maximize efficiency," Roberson said.

The development of the brewery and taproom represents the growing demand for craft beer and is testament to the following AleCraft has attracted.

The new space by Preston's Stationery is several times the size of the 700-square-foot storefront where the home brew supply store opened on Office Street in 2013.

_{Pictured, AleCraft on Office Street. Photo Credit: AleCraft.}

Since AleCraft Brewing Supply began four years ago, Roberson said Bel Air has been a natural fit.

"We chose Bel Air in 2013 seeing a demand that needed to be filled," Roberson said.

He and AleCraft co-owners Brad and Eryn Streett met through a former business partner who went on to found a tech company.

"Brad and I both were employed full-time in downtown Bel Air and loved the atmosphere of Main Street," he said. "Home brewing was experiencing growth, and finding a supplier with a full line of equipment in stock locally was a challenge. We saw an opportunity in a community we enjoyed and took the risk to open the shop."

The demand was so great that within two years, the shop moved from Office Street to a larger space on Bond.

The AleCraft home brewing supply shop will remain open in its Bond Street storefront and will move to Main Street once it has been granted its use and occupancy permits near the new AleCraft Brewery.

Roberson and the Streetts have been home brewing independently for more than a decade.

"I found craft beer when my brother-in-law gave a home brew kit to my son and me," Roberson said. "Brad and Eryn attended Salisbury University and were introduced to Dogfish Head Brewery in the early days of the craft brewery movement."

The Streetts also grow hops at their Pylesville farmette, which will be used in AleCraft's annual harvest ale.

• AleCraft of Bel Air Moves to Bigger Venue

"Customers can think of us as one AleCraft with two related business endeavors," Roberson said of the brewery and shop.

Having the brewing supply shop on site provides perks in addition to allowing people to brew what they are drinking at the taproom on their own.

The shop will be stocked with top ingredients, spices and yeasts as well as brewing innovations, according to Roberson.

"Being attached to the home brew shop means we have full access to an entire library of over 100 different premium malts and hundreds of fresh hops from around the world," Roberson said.

The taproom will be for all who enjoy beer, not just home brewers, he noted.

"We’ll be a fully licensed professional brewery with a relaxing atmosphere," Roberson said. "You don’t have to be a DIY brewer to come enjoy our offerings!"

The taproom may open by mid-November; an exact date has not been set because contract work and utility permits are factors.

AleCraft Brewery and AleCraft Brewing Supply will open at 319 South Main Street in Bel Air in November. Until then, AleCraft Brewing Supply is currently located at 140 Bond Street.

Pictured, the brewery, taproom and home brew supply shop will open at 319 South Main Street. Photo Credits: AleCraft Brewery/Facebook.

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