Brewery Eyes Growth After Buying Farm

The owners of , a sustainability- and "support local"-focused nanobrewery located off Lafayette Road in North Hampton, have announced they were behind the roughly $900,000 bid that earlier this month.

The small-batch company, , had its at its current location in an industrial park at 121 Lafayette Road. Carrier and Lee said in an e-mail that purchasing Hobbs Farm fits into the goal, as they'll be able to expand the hours and size of the tasting area, use the barn as an event center, install a larger brewing system and use the farmland to grow hops, grains and other ingredients for their beers.

"Throwback Brewery’s vision has always been to one day have the brewery on a farm where we could grow some of our own ingredients, provide a great total beer experience for our fans, and help to preserve farmland in our community," they said in an e-mail. "So when an opportunity presented itself to possibly acquire a historic farm right here in North Hampton (less than 1/4 mile from our current location), we had to go for it! Last weekend, we went to the property auction and walked away with the successful bid!"

The Hobbs family had owned the landmark, located at the intersection of Lafayette, Elm and Hobbs roads in North Hampton, since the 1700s, although an heir decided to put the property up for auction, according to broker Paul McInnis.

The farm features a 5,000-square-foot, 19th-century grand Victorian homestead, pictures of which are available here on McInnis' website.

Carrier and Lee said in the e-mail its possible they may eventually add food to their tasting room, and could even turn the property into a brewery bed and breakfast "down the road."

Carrier and Lee said they hope a $250,000 small business grant program will help defray some of the costs of the purchase, as well as the future expansion. The program, which is called Mission: Small Business and run by LivingSocial and Chase Bank, will award 12 small businesses each with a $250,000 grant.

The grants are awarded through an online voting system, and Carrier and Lee said they hope locals will help them reach 250 votes by Saturday, which is required in order to qualify for the grant.

To vote, go to Mission: Small Business and click on “Log In & Support” at the lower right side of the page. From there you’ll be directed to either sign in to Facebook, or if already signed in, the voting page will appear.  Just type in Throwback Brewery for the business name and our info will pop up, along with a button to click for your vote.

"We are so excited to have this opportunity to continue growing our farm- and community-oriented brewery at Hobbs Farm," wrote Carrier and Lee in the e-mail. "Please consider voting for us! And look for updates on our progress at the farm."