E-Malt.com News article: USA, MA: Jack's Abby Brewing to expand in Framingham by the end of September

When Jack's Abby Brewing opened in 2011, the Hendler brothers set up in a 4,500-square-foot warehouse on Morton Street in Framingham, MetroWest Daily News reported on August 3.

But soon, Jack, Eric and Sam Hendler's lager-only brewery will be opening in its new location at the Avery Dennison Building, 100 Clinton St., Framingham, in a 67,000-square-space that will feature a retail area and a large, state-of-the-art brewery.

"We really did it kind of piecemeal at our current spot," said Jack Hendler, co-founder and brewmaster. "Here, we're doing everything at once."

Jack's Abby Brewing announced in December that it would be expanding, and Hendler said everything is still on schedule. The 5,000-square-foot restaurant, called the Jack's Abby Beer Hall, is scheduled to open in mid- to late-September, Hendler added.

The brewery will be much larger than what they currently have. This year, Jack's Abby Brewing will brew 20,000 barrels of beer. A barrel of beer equals 31 gallons. The new brewery will open with a capacity of 45,000 to 50,000 barrels of beer, but the building has the infrastructure to handle up to 150,000 barrels of beer a year. The only brewery in Massachusetts that brews more than 150,000 barrels a year is the Harpoon Brewery in Boston, which is one of the top 15 craft breweries in the U.S. when it comes to sales.

While many new breweries open small and plan on staying relatively small, Jack's Abby specifically planned for growth.

"When you are brewing lagers, it costs more, and we have three brothers who own it and we're selling at a lower price point than many other breweries, so we had to grow," said Hendler. "Theoretically, we could be number two (in the state)."

Currently, workers are still completing work on the floor, and none of the brewing tanks are in. But, Hendler said, they still believe they will start brewing on a limited basis in the new space in October, and be fully operational by November.

When that happens, Hendler said they will have the space to greatly increase their barrel-aging and sour beer program, and they will be installing a canning line, so fans of Jack's Abby beers will be able to pick up 12-packs of its popular beers like Hoponious Union or Smoke & Dagger.

"We really see this as being a real community spot in downtown Framingham," said Hendler. "We want to be part of Framingham."


05 August, 2015