The nervous excitement is palpable as Liam Connelly, Director of Sales & Marketing at Proper Brewing Co, energetically details the expansions for the Proper brand of businesses. Building on the achievements of the well received brew house/restaurant Avenues Proper that opened in 2013, the business is set to expand on this reputation. The construction at on Main Street is impressive in ambition and scope, so much so that even seasoned veterans might be reaching for a cold one about now.
The success of Avenues Proper mirrors national tastes trending toward smaller so called microbreweries. According to data compiled by the Brewers Association, micro breweries in the US exploded almost ten fold between 1994 and 2014; drinker’s thirsts show no sign of being quenched anytime soon either, with the number of micro brewery openings quadrupling between 2010 and 2014 alone. With demand at fever pitch then, the impending trifecta of developments opening soon at 865 South Main Street look set to be an instant hit.
Proper Brewing Co, underpins the whole build out, increasing brewing capacity eight fold and allowing brews higher than 4% ABV, the licensed limit of the Avenues location. “The original Avenues operation relies on three 5 barrel fermentation tanks, delivering 15 barrels of beer in process at any given time; in comparison the new facility adds four 20 barrel fermentation tanks and four 10 barrel fermentation tanks yielding a total capacity for 120 barrels of beer in process at any given time”, Connelly detailed.
The first results from Proper Brewing Co should be arriving any day now too, “We have already done our first batch bottling run of “Proper Beer,” our flagship English style golden ale, and all of our fermentation tanks are full. We will be kegging and bottling all of our beers over the next 2 weeks. We will be opening March 12th, but you may see some of our beers in bars a little earlier than that.” Expect to see the brews across town at various beer friendly local restaurants and bars, The Bayou and Provisions two notable business keen to secure early offerings.
Proper Emporium fronts the brewery on Main Street, offering a place to kick back in a relaxed, fun space, replete with retro bar games. Skee ball anyone? Out of the gates the pub will be limited to 4% ABV brews only, but Connelly assured me of the intent to secure one of SLC’s hottest tickets, the coveted club license, as quickly as possibly.
Housed in an adjacent building, Proper Burger completes the roster, and will focus on another national resurgence of craft foods. While the casual, counter service eatery is a substantial departure from the Avenues original restaurant, Connelly was keen to stress that quality is still a critical focus, “The beef will be fresh and never frozen. All of the components to the various styles will be made from scratch in house. Everything from pastrami to kimchi, fries/rings etc.” Proper Burger sports a full service restaurant license, meaning strong beer, wine and cocktails are also available at the restaurant.
Proper Burger Co and Proper Brewing Co will open at 865 S. Main on March 12, 2016
