So we went here today. Solace Brewing of Dulles (Sterling), Virginia is a young buck of a craft brewer located under the departure end of Dulles International’s runway 30, with a large service space, a long bar, and a gorgeous brewhouse. They’re open but three weeks, yet sport six beers, with three more on short order.
Neal and I spent a few hours here sampling their beers, shootin’ the shit, and generally enjoying each other’s company. Our pal Alex and his family happened in mid-flight, proving great minds think alike. After sitting amid a pile of Labrador puppies, it’s one of my life’s true pleasures.
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These folks present a simple, straightforward proposition: beer, t-shirts, glasses, and communal space. The beer spans styles from witbier to blonde ale to a pair of IPAs, with a tasty brown ale thrown in for good measure. They’ll drain three brite tanks in the coming two weeks to put up a third IPA, a stout, and a double IPA. Their brewers are working it.
Here’s a couple shots of their brewhouse.
The blue thing is a heat exchanger. It cools the boiled wort from around 200 degrees to something that won’t kill the yeast. Brewers make sugar water. Yeast makes beer.
Notice not only a three-vessel brewing system, but duplication amid their tanking. They can effectively malt two-at-a-time, boil a kettle and keep hot liquor at the ready for sparging all at once.
All of their finished beer is packaged off to kegs, and the taps are served from a cold room just off the side of the retail space.
Of note, their cold room keeps the beer at a lovely cellar temperature. If you’re ordering an IPA, drink it now. The ambient air temperature is wind-chilled by two of these Big Ass Fans, and will warm your beer to stinky-feet aroma right quick if you wait.
There’s room for another four brite tanks behind these guys.
If you’re in the Sterling, Virginia area and looking for a beer, this young brewery is worth a stop. Say “hey” to Holly behind the bar, and enjoy a Beach Bod blonde ale while you’re there.
#beer #solace #brewing #sterling #dulles #virginia
A Random Stroll 