This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
04/17/2018 12:00 AMNews of a new microbrewery in Chester spread fast last fall as craft beer aficionados readied for new brews and local businesses prepared to welcome a new tourist draw to the center of Chester. Since then, the only change most have seen is the “Little House Brewing Co.” sign at 16 Main Street, but the two entrepreneurs behind the business promise what’s coming will be worth the wait.
Sam Wagner and Carlisle Schaeffer purchased the 200 year old building in October 2017 and hoped to be open soon after, though an early issue with water usage at the former bakery site held things up at first. As the summer busy season approaches, the two are waiting for an updated timeline from their contractor before announcing any date more specific than spring 2018.
Once open, the brewery will operate on two levels, with a tap room on the main floor and brew space in the basement (the third floor will house the duo’s office and also Schaeffer’s apartment). The goal is to have a Cheers type of community feel.
“We’re really just hoping to return to the original idea of the tavern where it’s not just a place you go to drink beer and it’s not just a place where beer is brewed, but it’s a part of the community,” Schaeffer said.
Recent approval for a beer garden in the back will help during the warm season, and the duo has plans to make the spot a clubhouse where patrons can spend time with friends rather than just taste beer and leave.
“There’s some cool stuff to look forward to,” Wagner said.
Customers will be encouraged to bring their own food with them.
“We’re packing as much brewery into the space as possible,” Wagner said, which means there’s no space left for food prep.
As for the brewing, the brewery promises a range of styles aimed at offering something for everyone. While Little House Brewing Co. is a new venture for Schaeffer and Wagner, brewing beer is not.
Schaeffer grew up in Chester, while Wagner grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The two didn’t meet until their freshman year of college where both ran for the Vassar cross country and track and field teams and studied in the school’s science, technology, and society program.
Their team mascot was the Brewers because the founder, Matthew Vassar, was a brewer who made his fortune off of his brewery which was the largest and most successful of its time.
At Vassar, Schaeffer and Wagner were able to pore over old brewery order sheets in the library’s special collections. From there, they were able to try to recreate their own recipes based on Vassar’s proven formulas.
After graduation, while Wagner was brewing on a small scale in his own mini home brewery built in his parents laundry room, Schaeffer was learning the large scale side of brewing. Schaeffer started an apprenticeship in July 2014 at Cottrell Brewing Company in Pawcatuck where he worked his way up to full time brewer and then was promoted to head brewer.
The two kept in touch and shared recipes as well as compared East Coast beer to West Coast beer.
On visits to Schaeffer, Wagner says he soon fell in love with the small-town atmosphere and both decided the location on 16 Main Street was exactly what they were looking for in opening their own brewery.
Their first pilot brew house, or “glorified home brew system,” Wagner said, was created by the duo at Schaeffer’s grandmother’s house in Haddam. This is where the two first began testing recipes.
Schaeffer “was the full time head production brewer and I was more way down in the details on the five-gallon level,” Wagner said. “We balance each other out really well. This system is going to be a lot smaller than Cottrell, so without Carlisle it would be a much bigger learning curve for me.”
Little House Brewing Co. will have five or six different brews, which are still a secret for now.
“It’s a small system, so we’ll be producing three barrels at a time (93 gallons of beer), which is pretty small as far as breweries go, but we’re going to have a lot of flexibility in what we’re able to brew.” Shaffer said.
“We’ll be able to keep experimenting which is what really excites us,” he continued. “It gets boring if you’re just brewing the same beer over and over.”
Since there has been so much local anticipation for the opening of Little House Brewing Co., the pair is brewing up a launch event that will live up to the hype they’ve created. They’re also launching a Kickstarter campaign; those interested can find details at www.littlehousebrewing.com and at the brewery’s Facebook and Instagram pages.