Seattle’s newest brewery, Old Stove Brewing Company, is set to open this Saturday, April 16. To start, Old Stove’s taproom will be located right in Pike Place Market, on First Avenue between Pike & Pine. Then, in 2017 the taproom will be one of four businesses moving into the new Pike Place MarketFront expansion.

Old Stove brings established industry experience to the brew house, with Scott Barron, formerly of Fish Brewing Company, Ram Brewing, and Pacific Rim Brewery, acting as Head Brewer.

Press Release:

SEATTLE (April 12, 2016) – Old Stove Brewing Company announced today its grand opening in Pike Place Market on Saturday, April 16 at 11 a.m. The new taproom on First Avenue between Pike and Pine Street is supported by a brand new production facility one floor below in the Market’s maze of shops, cafes and restaurants. Eight beers will be on tap on Saturday, including an IPA, Northwest Wheat, Pale Ale, Pilsner, Saison, Stout, Double IPA and a Brown Ale. Two more, a Session IPA and a Cascadian Dark Ale, are on deck for the week after the opening, said Old Stove Brewing Co-Founder Brian Stan.

Old Stove will donate two dollars from every beer sold on April 16 to benefit the Pike Up! campaign to build the new Pike Place MarketFront, opening spring 2017. Market fans can learn more about the MarketFront at PikeUp.org.

While the focus will surely be on the brews, the new taproom and brewing facility offer much more than meets the eye—like an “I SPY” game in the taproom’s 25-foot mural featuring 20 items hidden in its circa 1905 barroom scene.  Families with kids, or anyone enjoying passing time over a pint, can look for the baseball, mouse, morel mushroom and toothbrush, among other items.

The taproom will be a place where people can get to know each other at 16-foot-long community tables made from red oak timber from Co-Founder Chris Moore’s family’s woods in Vicksburg, MI. “It’s a great way to foster a way to for people to get to know each other over a beer,” Moore said. “The community seating is a really nice element, as seen in Munich and in beer halls and all over the world.”

Moore has a deep interest in history and has curated a collection of vintage neon beer and brewery signs, some of which will be featured at Old Stove. When not studying the mural or making new friends, beer fans can check out three museum-style display cases exhibiting 40 beer cans each from the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s, representing long-gone breweries and canning models (flat top vs. cone top) from states across the country.

In another corner of the room, a cast iron, nickel plated Kalamazoo stove (circa 1905) from the Kalamazoo Stove Company (1902-1952) will be a place for folks to gather. Bartenders will pull beers from various antique stove handles from now-defunct stove makers.

In addition to stoves, stove handles and old beer cans, Moore also collects old brewery neon signs. A nine-foot-long window behind the bar will give guests a behind the scenes view into the cold storage area where the blue neon from a vintage Hamm’s Brewing Company sign casts a cold blue hue over the stainless steel kegs. One floor below the taproom, a fully transparent window wall is the only thing that separates onlookers to the actual brewery. Visitors can watch the brewers’ activities and as the sign at the iconic Market entrance says, they can also “Meet the Producer.”

Co-founders Chris Moore and Brian Stan have previously worked in the craft beer industry for Seattle and Portland based breweries, and have also worked together for many years. Their current partnership is built on a shared knowledge and passion for the craft of brewing. The pair have described opening their first brewery in Pike Place Market as a “dream come true.”

Moore was born and raised in a village just outside of Kalamazoo, Michigan—a Midwest powerhouse of microbrew production in its own right. He first became interested in craft beer when he visited Larry Bell at the Kalamazoo Brewing Co. in 1986. Moore has called Seattle home since 1995 and has visited the Market on an almost daily basis for the last 20 years. He considers Pike Place Market to be a Seattle version of the tight knit community he hails from. The name “Old Stove” is a tribute to one of the finest products to ever come out of Kalamazoo, the classic parlor stove.

“Kalamazoo stoves aren’t just heaters, they are functional pieces of art that were created by a company that used to deliver a superb product and an unprecedented level of customer service,” Moore explained. “People gathered around their old stoves for warmth, sure, but also to share stories and a drink with family and friends. That is exactly the kind of atmosphere we want to create at Old Stove.”

Stan started out as a homebrewer and later transitioned into commercial brewing while working alongside Old Stove’s Head Brewer, Scott Barron. Barron has previously brewed for Fish Brewing Company, Ram Brewing, and the former Pacific Rim Brewery. Stan and Barron are now reunited under the Old Stove flag and have been perfecting their beer lineup for more than a year. Stan is also a CPA, husband, and father of two who looks forward the family-friendly atmosphere he and Moore have created in the taproom.

Moore and Stan have led an impressive team of industry consultants and experts to meticulously plan and build out their taproom and production facilities in order to optimize space with clever design features and efficiencies. The duo worked closely with architect Greg Bjarko, whose firm BjarkoSerra has designed many other popular restaurant and bar locations throughout the greater Seattle area.

“We’ve gotten a great response from the community so far,” said Stan. “We’ve been warmly welcomed from so many of our friends and neighbors, including Pike Brewing and Cloudburst Brewing. This industry is unique in that it lends itself to collaboration rather than competition. It’s such an honor to be a part of this growing, downtown craft brewing district.”

“Working with the various entities of the Pike Place Market to take this venture from concept to reality has been an amazing experience,” Moore said. “The Market is the soul of the City of Seattle, and we are so happy to be producing beer right here in Pike Place Market for locals and visitors alike to enjoy.”

In 2017, Old Stove Brewing will join Honest Biscuits, Indi Chocolate and JarrBar in the new Pike Place MarketFront expansion. The building is currently under construction on Western Avenue.

As part of an incubation strategy of the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority (PDA), the four businesses have the opportunity to become established and develop their products and audiences in a smaller space before moving into the MarketFront.

“All of our MarketFront businesses are slated to move over to the new development and each will be producing their product on site, in an effort to truly extend the ‘Meet the Producer’ spirit of Pike Place Market,” said Ben Franz-Knight, PDA Executive Director. “It’s tremendously exciting for us to have the opportunity to provide space for businesses to expand and bring new and longtime fans to the Market and to the MarketFront.”

Event Details

WHAT: Grand Opening of Old Stove Brewing Co. in Pike Place Market. The opening benefits the Pike Up! campaign for the new Pike Place MarketFront.

WHEN: April 16, 2016; operating hours are 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.

WHERE: 1525 First Avenue

Pike Place Market is Seattle’s original farmers market, founded in 1907, and is one of the oldest continuously operating public markets in the U.S. The market operates within a nine-acre historic district and is a bustling neighborhood of hundreds of vendors, residents and businesses, including farmers, craftspeople, independent shops, buskers, and residents, many of whom are low-income seniors, and five social service agencies. www.pikeplacemarket.org

The Pike Place Market Preservation & Development Authority (PDA) is a not-for-profit, public corporation chartered by the City of Seattle in 1973 to manage the properties in the nine-acre Market Historic District. The PDA is required to preserve, rehabilitate and protect the Market’s buildings, increase opportunities for farm and food retailing in the Market, incubate and support small and marginal businesses, and provide services and affordable housing for low-income people.