Geneva, N.Y. — Fresh off national recognition as America’s small brewer of the year, New York City’s Big aLICe Brewing Co. has its sights set on a new location in the Finger Lakes.
Big aLICe, headquartered in Long Island City, Queens, has reached a deal to buy the former GAEL Brewing Co. on State Route 14 just south of Geneva on Seneca Lake. GAEL owner George Adams announced his brewery’s closing earlier this month.
Big aLICe co-owners Kyle Hurst and Scott Berger hope to have the new brewery and taproom open early in 2021. Big aLICe, which also has a tasting room in Brooklyn, is known for a wide range of beers, from hazy New England IPAs and pilsners to sours and barrel-aged brews.
It won the award as Small Brewing Company of the Year for 2020 at the prestigious Great American Beer Festival (held virtually) this month.
The decision to open the location near Geneva came after Hurst and Berger and their wives vacationed in the Finger Lakes this summer.
“We thought this would be a great place for a brewery,” Berger said. “It’s got a really good wine scene, a really solid beer scene. We just thought we can be part of this. A rising tide lifts all boats.”
They found out that the GAEL property and equipment, at 4180 State Route 14 near Belhurst Castle, was available through Paul Leone, executive director of the New York State Brewers Association.
Big aLICe’s expansion from the big city to Upstate New York has precedents:
SingleCut Beersmiths, also of Queens, opened a second location in the Saratoga County town of Clifton Park in 2018. That same year, Brooklyn’s Other Half Brewing Co. took over another closed Finger Lakes brewery when it opened in the former Nedloh Brewing Co. in East Bloomfield near Canandaigua.
Hurst and Berger say they are aware of those moves, but came to their decision independently. “That had zero impact,” Hurst said of the Other Half location near Canandaigua. “It’s cool, though.”
The move to the Finger Lakes does open up space — and possibilities — for a brewer operating in the tight confines of New York City. Hurst, who grew up in Wisconsin, is looking forward to hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities that are popular in Upstate New York.
But the bottom line for the brewery is a bigger brewhouse and more space. The Long Island City brewery makes 5 barrels of beer per batch (though it has bigger storage and fermenting tanks). The GAEL set-up is 15 barrels, with several fermenting tanks including one that hold 30 barrels. (A barrel is 31 gallons).
And the Seneca Lake location sits on 2.5 acres of land, allowing for further expansion, outdoor seating and the chance for Big aLICe to grow some of its own ingredients. Although it is based in New York City, Big aLICe is a licensed New York state farm brewery, meaning it sources many ingredient from the state’s growers.
In addition to its beer and wine reputation, Hurst and Berger said they also want to take part in the Finger Lakes culture of sustainable production, farm-to-table dining and more.
“That’s really why we want to be up there,” Hurst said.
The Finger Lakes tasting room will likely start by brewing the popular “high volume" beers in its current line-up, but eventually movie into more styles.
“There may be some beers that are unique to our new location coming down the road,” Hurst said.
Big aLICe currently self-distributes, rather than going through an independent distributing company. That means its beers can be found at limited stores and restaurants that carry similar brands, and is most easily found at its taprooms. It will continue to offer special can releases at the Geneva location.
Leone, who helped put Big aLICe in touch with GAEL, is not surprised that the Geneva location was snapped up so quickly by another brewer, and one from New York City at that.
“I think the New York City brewers are finding that Upstate New York drinkers are educated and supportive of good creative beers,” Leone said. “From Syracuse, to Rochester and western New York, more downstate brewers are expanding their brands to another great part of New York.”
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Don Cazentre writes about craft beer, wine, spirits and beverages for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.