New Brewhouse Debuting In Historic Pittsburgh Building

PITTSBURGH, PA — The New France Brewing Company will be the first of three breweries to operate out of the new Hazelwood Brewery on Lytle Street. New France opens for business on Wednesday.

Abstract Realm Brewing Company and the Bonafide Beer Company will follow next. The trio of breweries will operate out of the historic 20,000-square-foot Hazelwood Brewing Co. building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Hazelwood Brewing Company opened in 1905 and was successful until Prohibition caused it significant problems. The company's attempts to brew near-beer during that period proved to be a financial bust and Derby Brewing Co. took over the space for a short time.

The building sat vacant for decades until it was purchased in 2017 by the The Progress Fund, a Greensburg-based nonprofit community development corporation. Seven years later, the completely refurbished structure now marks a milestone.

"It's been a long road, but a continual road, toward fulfilling the vision of quality beer being brewed and sold in Hazelwood,"David Kahley, The Progress Fund's president and CEO, told Patch. "We're finally there."

New France Brewing Co. got its name from the fact Pittsburgh grew out of Fort Duquesne, built by the French at the confluence of the three rivers in 1754. It’s run by Tom Marshall, a local beer rep, and Nick Jones, who got to know Marshall while running 99 Bottles, a defunct Carnegie beer bar.

For Kahley, formerly with the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, New France's opening marks the conclusion of seven years of work to take a local landmark and breathe new life into it.

"It's super cool that we took an old brewery and turned it back into a brewery in the more modern sense, with a focus on craft beers," Kahley told Patch. "We want this to be a destination location for the entire Greater Pittsburgh area, as well as a local hangout for Hazelwood and Greenfield."