USA, OH: Lockport Brewery preparing second brewpub in Bolivar

Lockport Brewery is expanding, the Akron Business Journal reported on July 10.

The nanobrewery, located in Bolivar, has purchased the former Georgio’s Grille, 10748 Wilkshire Blvd., a mere two-tenths of a mile away from its current site.

Owners Andrew and Lauren Marburger are renovating the 5,500-square-foot space into a brewpub that also will feature a new seven-barrel brewing system.

The second location — yes, second, they aren’t abandoning the original site — will allow Lockport to double its brewing capacity, distribute its draft beer more and offer limited runs of cans or bottles in the future.

The new site, which overlooks the Wilkshire Golf Course, is about double the size of the current taproom. Lockport employs a 3.5-barrel brewing system now, limiting its ability to produce beer.

“We have known since day one that we were going to be operating at capacity with no real ability to grow the business,” Andrew said about the need for a larger system.

Lockport plans to add some 15-barrel fermenters, too.

The brewery, which opened in November 2016, produced 375 barrels last year and is on pace for about 450 this year. It will have the capacity for 1,500 barrels a year moving forward.

But that doesn’t mean the brewery will concentrate on distributing.

“Our primary focus is the taproom and maintaining that business,” Andrew said.

He has a family connection to the new site. His mother waited tables and his grandmother cleaned the eatery at night when it served as the Wilkshire Family Restaurant.

As for the current taproom, the Marburgers are entertaining housing a sour beer or barrel-aging program there.

The new Lockport location won’t open anytime soon. The Marburgers hope to be brewing there early next year and open to the public in the summer of 2019.

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