Chris Malloy
Audio By Carbonatix
The Shop Beer Co., the Tempe brewery known for Church Music Hazy IPA and Crispy Blonde Lager, is expanding.
The brewer has taken over PHX Beer Co.’s former downtown Phoenix facility on 30th and Washington streets. Unlike the former occupant, The Shop’s team isn’t planning to run a tasting room from the space.
“We just want to solve the issue of production,” says Dylan DeMiguel, the president and co-founder of the brewery.
The Phoenix brewhouse enables The Shop to make 10,000 to 15,000 more barrels of beer each year, with room to expand, DeMiguel says. The Shop is the third-largest craft brewery in the state, according to data compiled by Phoenix Business Journal. Only SanTan and Huss Brewing Cos. produce more beer annually.
The Shop opened in 2016 in an old house that was previously home to a Tempe mayor, on First Street and Hardy Drive. The brewery, which sits just west of Mill Avenue, won Phoenix New Times’ Best New Brewery award in 2017, followed by Best Brewery in 2020. The Shop has gained a strong local following not only for Church Music and Crispy but also for its inventive Neonic fruited sour series and its casual neighborhood taproom with a massive shaded patio.
Huss Brewing Co. & PHX Beer Co.
With the popularity of its flagship brews, which The Shop also cans and distributes to shops, restaurants and bars, the team was on the hunt for more brewing space to “allow ourselves more creative freedom,” DeMiguel says.
The PHX Beer Co. brewhouse shuttered in August, when the craft beer maker announced a merger with Tempe-based brewery Huss. With that partnership, under a new parent company called Zonafide Beverages, production of PHX Beer Co., Sonoran Brewing Co. and Chestnut Sports Club brews moved to Huss’ Tempe facility.
The Shop’s brewing team has made some upgrades to the Phoenix warehouse and anticipates brewing will begin there this summer.
“These markets change, and we’re so lucky to be growing,” DeMiguel says.
That means craft beer fans can expect more new and seasonal beers from The Shop. If new brews are a success, the brewery’s crew will have the capacity to produce more than one-off batches. Two examples of beers DeMiguel wants to make again are Goldfish, a West Coast IPA, and Harry’s House, a Helles lager.
“We want to get more products out into the world,” he says. “You never know what your next Church Music is going to be.”
The Shop Beer Co.
922 W. First St., Tempe
