Photo by ephemera assemblyman via Creative Commons.If you’ve lived on North Beacon Hill for more than a decade, you may recall the smell of brewing beer that used to waft over the Hill every day from the Rainier Brewery next to the freeway on Airport Way South. The brewery closed 10 years ago, but brewing is returning to the historic old brewery building this summer in the form of the Emerald City Beer Company. Washington Beer Blog reports that Emerald City will have a brewery and tasting room/“beer lab,” and they are hoping to have their first batch of beer ready next month. Their flagship brew will be “Dottie’s Seattle Lager,” quite suitable for a building that that produced a lot of lager over the years. See more details at the Washington Beer Blog.
7 thoughts on “Beer returns to the old Rainier brewery”
Wasn’t Georgetown Brewing Co. originally brewing in that building? I know they still have offices and a small retail outlet there.
Hi Pat! I think you’re thinking of the older brewery in Georgetown. Georgetown Brewing was brewing out of the big brick building down south of Lucile Street (and you’re right, I think they still do retail from that location). Emerald City is at 3100 Airport Way — the big brewery that used to have the iconic “R” on top.
I had heard that there is a chance the building may be demolished.
You’re probably right Jason. I didn’t know there was another old brewery in Georgetown other than Rainier. Georgetown Brewing Co. Still has offices and the retail outlet at the big brick building but they brew at a new location in Denver Ave I think.
Georgetown Brewery (Manny’s, Roger’s, 9lb Porter) moved brewing operations last year into the former Merlino Foods building. Their retail counter is, till the end of May, at the old location in the former Seattle Malting and Brewing complex, aka Rainier Cold Storage, now owned by Sabey and re-named “The Original Rainier Brewery”, 5840 Airport Way S.
Check out G-town’s website for location details. $6 growlers and kegs as small as 2.5 cases of beer. Bob’s Brown available Friday.
Yeah, that’s why I didn’t call the building next to the freeway at the West Seattle/Columbian Way off-ramp the “original” Rainier brewery, because that’s the name of a different building now.
For what it’s worth, calling the brewery complex in Georgetown “The Original Rainier Brewery” is inaccurate. Rainier was originally brewed in a wooden brewery that was located, if I remember correctly, on the property where The Unoriginal Rainier Brewery (now Tully’s) was. It was called the Bay View Brewery, although I don’t think it had anything to do with Bayview St. or had much of a view of the bay.
Wasn’t Georgetown Brewing Co. originally brewing in that building? I know they still have offices and a small retail outlet there.
Hi Pat! I think you’re thinking of the older brewery in Georgetown. Georgetown Brewing was brewing out of the big brick building down south of Lucile Street (and you’re right, I think they still do retail from that location). Emerald City is at 3100 Airport Way — the big brewery that used to have the iconic “R” on top.
I had heard that there is a chance the building may be demolished.
http://www.king5.com/news/local/Rainier-Brewery-may-be-torn-down-due-to-toxic-paint-86253437.html
You’re probably right Jason. I didn’t know there was another old brewery in Georgetown other than Rainier. Georgetown Brewing Co. Still has offices and the retail outlet at the big brick building but they brew at a new location in Denver Ave I think.
Georgetown Brewery (Manny’s, Roger’s, 9lb Porter) moved brewing operations last year into the former Merlino Foods building. Their retail counter is, till the end of May, at the old location in the former Seattle Malting and Brewing complex, aka Rainier Cold Storage, now owned by Sabey and re-named “The Original Rainier Brewery”, 5840 Airport Way S.
http://www.georgetownbeer.com/
Check out G-town’s website for location details. $6 growlers and kegs as small as 2.5 cases of beer. Bob’s Brown available Friday.
Yeah, that’s why I didn’t call the building next to the freeway at the West Seattle/Columbian Way off-ramp the “original” Rainier brewery, because that’s the name of a different building now.
For what it’s worth, calling the brewery complex in Georgetown “The Original Rainier Brewery” is inaccurate. Rainier was originally brewed in a wooden brewery that was located, if I remember correctly, on the property where The Unoriginal Rainier Brewery (now Tully’s) was. It was called the Bay View Brewery, although I don’t think it had anything to do with Bayview St. or had much of a view of the bay.
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