The new year is bringing big changes to Redmond's as an ever-growing customer base has prompted the 2-year-old microbrewery to expand yet again.
Once permits are finalized in the next couple of weeks, Black Raven will be adding a total of 2,200 square feet to its brewery and tasting area. The new areas include a cooled barrel room, a bottling area, increased warehouse space, and a new tasting room with 24 additional seats -- which will bump the taproom's seating capacity close to 100.
Further down the line, the brewery also plans to add another 3,000 square foot feet for a second cooling room and additional wholesale and operation space. Black Raven owner Beaux Bowman said growth in demand has prompted all the changes.
"We've been in construction mode since before we even opened," he said. "It just hasn't stopped."
Bowman said the brewery's production has grown from 500 barrels in 2009 to 1,200 in 2010 to approximately 1,800 in 2011. He predicts the brewery will produce between 2,600 and 2,800 barrels in 2012.
Along with the added space, Black Raven has also begun to sell bottled beer out of its taproom and pushed back its opening time to noon on Wednesdays and Thursdays. If that change proves to be popular, Bowman said it's possible the taproom will start opening at noon seven days a week.
In the meantime, Bowman is pleased with how much the community has embraced Black Raven. The brewery's location in an office park off Willows Road gives it the neccesary space for its production needs, Bowman said, while a recent has given the establishment more room to grow its seating areas.
"Because of that (change), we were able to make this next expansion step," he said. "It's a very good thing."
January won't just be about new space at Black Raven. The brewery will also release three special or limited beers. Look for the BeakTweaker Citrus IPA starting this Saturday, the London Kawing Best Bitter on Jan. 17, and a second batch of the Coco Jones Coconut Brown Porter later in the month.
