USA, TX: Local Group Brewing planning to launch production facility by the end of the year

A group of three Houston transplants are planning to open a new brewery in Near Northside, just a couple blocks from Saint Arnold, Chron.com reported on June 10.

Local Group Brewing received its brewpub permit from the state in February, with plans to open a 1,400 square-foot taproom by the end of the year, at 1504 Chapman.

The founders, Michael Steeves, Todd Donewar and James "Huggy Bear" Wolfe, have been planning the new brew business for nearly three years. Wolfe is a familiar name in the local craft beer scene, after spending five years as a brewer at No Label in Katy, and another year-and-a-half at Southern Star. Donewar and Steeves previously worked in the energy industry, and worked at home brewing in their spare time.

"Since I've been in the industry so long, I can bring the experience and the knowledge of what is and isn't working," Wolfe said during a phone interview on Monday. "And Texas is extremely unsaturated for breweries — Houston even more so. So there's a lot of opportunity, a lot of room to grow for a lot of people."

Wolfe has been busy testing more than 80 recipes for launch, with the aim of starting with eight full-time beers, and room on the 20-tap menu for a steady stream of rotating smaller batches. Along the way, he's already released a few collaboration beers with Holler Brewing, and Great Heights Brewing; a collaboration with No Label will be released later this week.

As a brewpub, there will also be a big focus on the food.

"Our goal is the entire customer experience," said Steeves. "We're looking for an executive chef, and we're going to place as much emphasis on the food as we do on the beer."

There will be a view of both the kitchen and the brew house from the bar. And because of the location, there will also be a skyline view from the patio, which Steeves and Wolfe said will be both dog- and kid-friendly.

"We want to have a nice variety of beers. So we're going to have beers that pair well with the food we serve," said Wolfe. "We want them to be approachable, and have a wide variety. So we'll have some lighter beers, some New England IPAs, West Coast IPAs, some kettle sours and we'll play with fruit."

While Houston's craft beer scene has been growing at a rapid pace in recent years, the men of Local Group say there's still plenty of room for more options.

"We think it's a good time, and we're also really excited about this neighborhood," said Steeves. "It's growing, it's booming, it's close to downtown, and we're excited to be next to Saint Arnold. And at the same time, there are a lot of brew pubs and breweries opening up everywhere, but there's still a lot of space in Houston."

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