Going to Market

Cleveland’s biggest beer story of the Summer is about to hit. Market Garden Brewery is entering the final phase of construction and already has a number of beers being brewed. Partners in the project, Sam McNulty and Brewmaster Andy Tveekrem invited me out to take a look and see what they have planned, and even better, what they are brewing. I don’t think people are going to be disappointed in what they find. We spoke a little about the brewery, the beer garden, the food, the distillery and many other plans as we pulled some of their first beers from the tanks. It is hard to believe that the beers that we tasted came from a yet to open brewery, but Andy knows a thing or two about brewing.

Market Garden Brewery

1947 West 25th Street, Cleveland, OH
In Beautiful Ohio City next to the West Side Market
marketgardenbrewery.com
216-621-4000

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As you approach the brewery you’ll pass the front patio that is directly across from Bier Markt/Bar Cento. Then, you’ll enter the over 14,000 sq. ft. brewery and will be greeted with a mini retail shop and hostess stand. Making your way in and around to the left, a large bar and seating area surround you as you make your way past the kitchen, back bar, seating on your left and large fireplace and Brew House on the right. Around the massive fireplace is a doorway that leads out to the beer garden. Seating on the street level with tables, both bars, patio and beer garden will be about 350 with additional standing room. The centerpiece of the brewery is the dual-sided fireplace which ties the outdoor beer garden with the back bar. The beer garden tables are made from a Poplar tree that was sourced from Metro Hardwoods on Train Avenue have a nice unfinished edge to them. The tables also have holes cut into them to allow trees to grow through them and supply a natural canopy. A brick flooring, view of the fireplace, surrounding architecture and West Side Market round out the atmosphere.

The Brew House, residing on the street level, houses 6 10 Barrel fermenters and 2 20 Barrel fermenters. The enormous Brew House will have room for expansion, some hand bottling and a still that will be near the fermenters.

The lower level will house more seating, the cooler that houses the serving tanks and another (open) kitchen. Eventually they have plans for a rooftop patio and will know more about the logistics of it once the brewery opens.

Brewmaster Andy Tveekrem loves the proximity of the brewery to the fresh Lake Erie water. “Water from Lake Erie is perfect for dark beer. Just look at what Great Lakes has done with Edmund Fitzgerald [Porter], there is a reason for all of those awards.”

The initial beer lineup for Market Garden Brewery will hover around 12 house beers and 12 guest beers. They have 36 taps on each bar, front/back, and plan on mixing in a few seasonal brews into the rotation. We had the chance to sample a few of the beers as follows, but the names are subject to change: Pearl St. Wheat (Hefeweizen), Cluster Fuggle IPA (brewed with cluster and fuggle hops), St. Emeric’s Stout (named for the church that sits behind the brewery), Scotch Ale, Viking APA (American Pale Ale) and the Amber Lager. Other beer that will be available includes: Old School American Lager, German Pils, English Bitter, Brown Ale. Coming soon will be an ale that will mix local cherries with some cocoa nibs, it sounds great and should be available mid-Summer.

The Market Garden Brewery beers are going to be on a more “sessional” end of the spectrum. Currently, the trend is high alcohol (ABV) beer, but it takes a craftsman to create a lower ABV beer that is equally as good tasting and satisfying. If you are a fan of the bigger beers, I wouldn’t worry too much, Andy plans on doing some experimentation as well, so I think there will be a few higher ABV specialty brews.

Market Garden Brewery is going to be more than just a brewery. There are plans, and proper licensing is in place to build a craft distillery inside the works. Sam McNulty says, “This will be the first Ohio establishment that will distill, sell at the bar, and sell retail spirits to take home in one location.” Distilled spirits will include White Whisky, Aged Whisky, Rum (Light/Dark), hand crafted Vodka and Gin (Old World/New World). Although the distillery will not be ready for opening, there will be plenty of room once the time comes. In the meantime, they will offer other regional artisanal distilled spirits from the likes of MiddleWest and Tom’s Foolery among others.

An additional draw for Market Garden will be the food. Overseeing the menu will be Chef Michael Nowak who currently operates at Bier Markt/Bar Cento. He will add the duties of overseeing Market Garden to his current tasks. He says a lot of the kitchen staff is set, however, they are still hiring for some positions.

The menu is going to have a lot your pub fare, but it will be an upscale version of it. And can I say FINALLY a Scotch Egg on the menu in Cleveland. Also available on the pub menu will be wings, mussels, fries and currywurst. Sandwiches will include burgers (veggie and beef), a Chorizo Joe, BLT and Cuban. Soups and salads will be available as well.

A selection of Entrées will include a range of selections from Mustard & Buttermilk Fried Chicken to a Not So New England Lobster Roll. Meat and Cheese boards will also be available.

And all of you taco fans out there, yes, there will be tacos. Al Pastor with roasted pork, pineapple/jalapeno salsa, queso fresco, Tacos de Camarones, rock shrimp, roasted poblano crema, cabbage slaw or how about Pollo Adobada, red chili marinated chicken, salsa verde, queso fresco. Tacos will be in sets of 3 and priced well.

So, everyone is asking: when will Market Garden Brewery open? The answer: when it’s ready, but boy is it getting close. Chef Michael Nowak says, “We will know a lot more about our opening date in the next 5 days”, but all signs point to opening happening within the next few weeks. The beer is tasting great and the contractors are working day and night to get the brewery open. And Cleveland will be happy.