Fair Isle Brewing Begins Renovations on First Brewery and Tasting Room

SEATTLE — Andrew Pogue and Geoffrey Barker, co-creators of Fair Isle Brewing, have begun renovations on their first brick-and-mortar brewery and tasting room. Located in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, the space is slated to open summer 2019. A new article by guest blogger Holly Regan provides a first look, as three old buildings are being transformed from an auto-body and machine shop into a 7,500-square-foot facility for production, distribution and enjoyment of Fair Isle’s beer.

In addition to bottling, kegging and packaging beer, Pogue and Barker are investing heavily in the tasting room, which will include an indoor/outdoor beer garden to shelter patrons in all seasons. One of the most innovative transformations will be the kitchen and dining area, featuring a rotating cast of pop-up restaurants helmed by local chefs – taking the concept of brewery food trucks and kicking it up a notch.

The focus on the tasting room and dining experience is partially a reflection of the fact that Farmhouse beer is less suited to the wide-distribution model than other types of beer.

“Farmhouse beer is a very fast-growing segment in the national market, and it is currently very underrepresented in Washington state,” Barker says. “This is the kind of beer we love, and we think others will love it, too.”

A Missing Piece in Seattle’s Beer Scene

Pogue and Barker see Fair Isle Brewing filling a unique and underserved niche in Seattle’s thriving craft beer scene. The Farmhouse style requires time, effort and exposure to the natural environment to produce; it resists classification, since it can vary so widely in terms of style, flavor and intensity. Each brew is unique, which also uniquely suits it to food pairings.

“Our beers take longer to produce, and so much gets taken off the top with the distribution model that it’s very difficult for us to make any money on the kind of volume we can produce,” Barker explains. “So we’re investing in the tasting room to create a place people want to come to, not only for the beer, but because it’s a cool environment.”

Pogue and Barker want Fair Isle to be more than just a place to enjoy a pint with your friends. They envision it as a destination where beer lovers can enjoy a new style; learn about the process that brought it to their glass; and experience the mutual transformation that takes place when pairing it with locally sourced food.

“We’re trying to use our space to tell the whole story of these beers,” Pogue affirms.

Crowdfunding Campaign Ends Nov. 30

The future opening of Fair Isle Brewing was made possible by a hugely successful crowdfunding campaign. In just shy of two months, Pogue and Barker blew past their minimum fundraising target of $200,000, providing much of the capital needed to make their dream a reality. The campaign is run through NextSeed: the first funding portal certified with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

NextSeed employs a revenue-sharing model, in which supporters become investors in the business for as little as $100. Once the brewery opens, monthly revenue-sharing dividends and special bonus rewards will begin to be distributed.

The campaign ends Nov. 30, but Fair Isle recommends that anyone wishing to participate sign up by Nov. 27 to ensure timely processing.

To read the complete article and learn more about the future of Fair Isle Brewing, visit the blog.

Visit the NextSeed campaign page for more information about crowdfunding and to become an investor.

Explore the Fair Isle website.

About Fair Isle Brewing

Fair Isle Brewing will fill an underserved niche in Seattle’s otherwise vibrant craft beer scene by producing exceptional and nuanced mixed-culture farmhouse ales. Located in Seattle’s Ballard Brewery District, Fair Isle Brewing is spearheaded by Andrew Pogue and Geoffrey Barker, who are creating beers that represent a specific time and place by using a unique blend of wild yeasts and bacteria cultivated from areas East and West of the Cascades. Fair Isle’s sales focus will be on direct-to-consumer interactions through a comfortable and well-designed tasting room and outdoor beer garden. A kitchen and dining area will also host local chefs for monthly pop-up beer-pairing dinners and events, giving customers an elevated tasting room experience.