CLEVELAND — Platform Beer Co. plans to open a brewery and tasting room in Pittsburgh and is targeting a summer 2019 opening. Pittsburgh would mark the first tasting room location that Platform would operate outside of Ohio. Platform is finalizing the lease on a 2-story, 8,000 sq. ft. space located in the city’s Bloomfield Neighborhood. The project would include a 10 barrel brewhouse, multiple fermenters, canning line, barrel aging, 100 plus seating capacity and 24 plus taps.
“We are opening with a big enough brewhouse to allow fora nice variety of draft beer made on-site in Pittsburgh. Our packaging capability will also allow for limited can release offerings on a regular basis. Locals will be able to experience some of our more unique, smaller batch beers,” explains co-owner Paul Benner. The space will also feature a kitchen with a specialized food menu along with a private space for larger events.
According to Justin Carson, co-owner, “There are a number of reasons why the Pittsburgh market makes sense for our next tasting room. Existing distribution, consumer drinking trends, geography, location of the space and the desire to engage with the local community are just a few reasons why we are so excited to call Pittsburgh our next home.”
The Pittsburgh location will look similar to other Platform retail locations, leveraging an old, brick, warehouse-style building to create a warm, authentic feel for customers. Platform will be sharing location details, floor plans, construction photos and timelines on their various social media outlets over the next few months.
After a year in the works, Platform’s Cincinnati tasting room location, dubbed LOCOBA (local coffee barrels), is set to open the week of Jan. 28. The 1,700 square foot retail location, situated on the busy corner of Main and 12th St in Cincinnati’s Over-The-Rhine district, will highlight a full-service coffee shop during morning hours along with a lunch and dinner food menu while transitioning to a more traditional tasting room experience throughout the day and evening.
“It is a very attractive proposition for us to have a retail location in all three of Ohio’s major markets. Customers are visiting tasting room sat an all-time high because of the opportunity to drink fresh beer, sample a variety of offerings and to have an experience with a brewery brand. Cincinnati has a thriving beer culture, with a host of fantastic options locally. We hope that our unique approach to LOCOBA will give local customers another great option,” explains Carson.
Platform also expects to begin public hours for their dedicated wild beer and souring facility, branded Phunkenship, in the spring of 2019. TheCleveland space has approximately 2,000 barrels of aging beer in wood barrels and foeders with releases planned for the spring. A tasting room and event space are currently under construction.
For an update on Platform projects, follow the brewery’s active social media outlets.
About Platform Beer Co.
Platform Beer Co. is an independently owned craft brewery based in Cleveland with a hometown Tasting Room and Production Facility. In addition to Platform’s local presence, locations in Ohio include Tasting Rooms in Columbus and Cincinnati (2019). Founded in 2014, Platform crafts an ever-changing variety of styles that blur the edges of beer styles. Offerings include Speed Merchant White IPA, NewCleveland Pale Ale/Pilsner Hybrid, a Small Batch IPA Series featuring NewEngland Style IPAs, a variety of fruited sour beers and a series of exclusive taproom-only barrel aged clean and sours beers. Platform Beer Co. has grown from 97 barrels of beer produced in 2014 to approximately 27,000 barrels produced in 2018 and was named by the Brewers Association as the fastest-growing Regional Brewery in the U.S. for 2017.