Hacienda Beer Co., an offshoot of Baileys Harbor-based Door County Brewing Co., plans to take its first step outside of its hometown market into Milwaukee’s East Side neighborhood.
The brewery will take over 6,000 square feet of the former G-Daddy’s BBC and Hotel Foster building complex, located at 2012-2028 E. North Ave., to open a 125-seat taproom, bar and kitchen by May 2019. The venue will be located at 2018 E. North Ave. on the ground floor.
In March, the buildings were purchased for $1.5 million by an affiliate of Milwaukee developer Joshua Jeffers. G-Daddy’s BBC closed in April 2017 after over 20 years.
Hacienda Beer Co. was launched early this year, shortly after Door County Brewing Co. opened its new 15-barrel taproom and music hall in Baileys Harbor. As a self-described “experimental brewing project,” Hacienda currently produces a line of hoppy ales and stouts, and is experimenting with barrel-aging and mixed fermentation brews.
The East Side taproom will offer about 12 beers on tap, all of which will be brewed at the Bailey’s Harbor production facility. The selection will eventually include Hacienda’s barrel-aged and sour beers, which will be available as they become ready, said John McMahon, CEO of Door County Brewing Co. Six packs and growlers will also be sold.
In addition, its kitchen will serve southern California-style street food such as tacos, and the venue will host live music performers.
“We are trying to create something different than a taproom in a box,” McMahon said. “This is somewhere we want people to hang out, loiter, linger.”
McMahon said the recent surge in development throughout the East Side was a main factor of putting the taproom there. He said he had been considering properties throughout the Milwaukee area, including Bay View and the Historic Third Ward, over the past year.
“The neighborhood is under renewal,” he said. “There is lots of new energy about the neighborhood, and we knew right away that it’s where we wanted to be.”
