[UPDATE] Start Line Brewing Will Launch in Hopkinton This Year

Start Line Brewing. / Photo via Facebook

UPDATE, January 26, 2017, 9:30 a.m.: Now if you go out to visit Hopkinton’s new brewery, you can stay for a pint and a light lunch. Start Line Brewing cuts the ribbon for a taproom grand opening today at noon, in celebration of securing a pouring license. In addition to pints and flights featuring new brews like Honey Ritual pale ale, and Home Stretch chocolate stout, the kitchen at Water Fresh Farm, where the brewery is located, has created a menu. The taproom keeps the same hours of Wednesday-Friday, noon-7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from noon-6 p.m.

UPDATE, Nov. 10, 9:45 a.m.: Start Line Brewing is now open in Hopkinton, for samples and beer to-go. There are currently three beers on draft—Honey Ritual Pale Ale, the Hop Load IPA and Midnight Run Black IPA—and a chocolate stout will be tapped on Friday, MetroWest Daily News reports. Start Line sells 64-ounce glass growlers, 32-ounce crowler cans, and 32-ounce metal growlers ($40). Soon, the brewery will begin distributing kegs to local bars and restaurants, the Daily News reports. For samples and sales, hours are Wednesday-Friday, noon-7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from noon-6 p.m.

PREVIOUSLY:

By the time the starting pistol goes off at the 2017 Boston Marathon, a nearby business hopes to have its own brewery.

Start Line Brewing plans to begin serving flights and full pours out of a taproom at Water Fresh Farm as early as next month, MetroWest Daily News reported. The space is just about a mile from downtown Hopkinton, where the Boston Marathon begins.

The majority of the hops used in Start Line’s beers will be grown on-site in a hydroponic greenhouse, alongside much of the market’s fresh produce. The fresh hop vines for the brewery’s debut batches have been flourishing since March, owner and operating manager Edwin Twinney says. Now that those cones are harvested, and construction on the tasting room is complete, he’s getting his beers ready for the masses.

“We are just doing final testing and hope to be brewing soon,” he told MetroWest Daily News.

Start Line will debut with four beers: a honey pale ale, an IPA, a stout, and an Irish red ale. Each of these beers will revolve around the farm’s four hop varieties, with a few additional strains sourced from elsewhere. Twinney and fellow brewer Ty-juan Greene have a few other beers in the works, but the duo won’t reveal details just yet.

The idea to open a brewery sprung from a friendship between Twinney and Water Fresh cofounder Phil Todaro. The two, along with fellow Water Fresh founder Jeff Barton, told MetroWest Daily News the brewery will be a “natural extension” of the market.

The market serves a number of locally-sourced sandwiches, salads, and prepared dinners, and it has a small grocery store, offering curated wines, cheeses, and various baked goods. All of the foods in the market will be available to enjoy while sipping a pint in Start Line’s 560-square foot taproom. The space will also have a patio area in the warmer months, and an area for private events. 

Start Line will serve drinks Wednesday through Friday, from noon-7 p.m., Saturday from noon-8 p.m., and Sunday from noon-6 p.m.

The brewery’s LLC, CraftLife Brewing Co., will appeal for its pouring permit next week, MetroWest Daily News reports. Twinney has already been approved to sell alcohol for off-site consumption. The beer is soon to come, but in the meantime, grab an artisan sandwich and watch the team sprint toward the finish line.

Start Line Brewing, opening November 2016, 151 Hayden Rowe St., Hopkinton, 508-761-2044, startlinebrewing.com.