A new brewery will join Turtle Swamp and Sam Adams in Jamaica Plain later on this year—Liz Nicol, owner and founder of Drawdown Brewing, hopes to open her brewery in the commercial space at 3200 Washington St. this coming December.
In a slide presented to the Egleston Square Neighborhood Association on August 22, Nicol described Drawdown Brewing as “a neighborhood craft production brewery and taproom.”
Nicol, who is an Egleston Square resident and a civil engineering project manager, has more than 11 years of brewing experience and has taken several courses in brewing beer.
The brewery will occupy the entire retail space on the ground floor of 3200 Washington St., which is about 2,5000 square feet, she said. It will have about 50 indoor seats with an indoor capacity of 90 people. She also hopes to open a seasonal outdoor patio that can seat 20.
She said that beer offerings will be “malt forward,” and hopes to have between three and five “flagship” beers that will be offered year-round, as well as “rotating seasonal and specialty beers.” At any one time, Drawdown Brewing will offer between eight and 12 beers on tap. All beer will be brewed on site.
The brewery will not serve any wine or hard liquor, but will offer non-alcoholic beverages such as sodas, seltzers, water, and more. It also will not have a kitchen, but will have pre-packaged snacks available for purchase. Nicol said she will “encourage” patrons to order takeout or delivery from local restaurants.
When it first opens, the brewery is expected to be open Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon, and “will not be open later than 11pm,” Nicol said, and she hopes to host sporting event watch parties at the brewery. As the business grows, she hopes to open more days of the week.
Resident Dale Cumberbatch said “we need more businesses in Egleston Square,” as there are many vacancies right now. He asked about how many jobs Drawdown Brewing would create.
Nicol said that at first, she hopes to have between two and three people working in the beer production space, which will be more of a full time position.
The taproom workers will likely be more part-time positions, and she hopes to hire between four and five to start.
She added that all brewing will occur when the taproom is not open, and right now, anticipates brewing two days a week, likely on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
To start, Drawdown Brewing will offer “crowlers” for takeout, which is a 32 oz can. She said that she “may look into a canning line in the future” to offer more takeout options.
A question was also asked about parking, which can be tricky on the Washington St. corridor.
Nicol said that she “will be promoting foot traffic,” as well as bikes and the MBTA, as she has “no parking to offer.”
She continued, “I want this to be a brewery for this neighborhood,” a place where people can “walk down the street and meet friends.”
A question was also asked about deliveries and trash. Nicol said that there is a trash room in the parking garage, and deliveries will not be very frequent.
Tim Reardon of Egleston Square Main Street said he likes the idea of the brewery, and asked about composting opportunities.
Nicol said that used spent grain will be sent to a farm for recycling.
At this time, Nicol is seeking a Farmer Brewery permit, said attorney Jon Aieta.
Nicol added that she hopes to begin construction soon, with an anticipated December opening date. She said that no live music will be offered, but there will be three televisions for watching sporting events.
No dogs will be permitted inside the brewery, she added.
JP resident Michael Reiskind, who chairs the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council (JPNC) Public Service Committee—which is also expected to hear this proposal at an upcoming meeting—asked about smells from the brewing process.
Nicol said that the HVAC equipment is “being designed to account for operations in the space,” and the building’s landlord will also be installing additional filters.
“We want to be an active part of the business community,” Nicol said.
For more information about Drawdown Brewing, visit www.drawdownbrewing.com.