We are so psyched that Common Roots is back up and running in their amazing new space and just when we thought things couldn’t get any better, they went and added artisan stone hearth pizza to their take out offerings - starting tomorrow! We’re sharing a look at the new space, the delicious new pizzas, and a chat with Christian and Bert Weber - check it all out below!
Christian Weber and Bert Weber
On Designing the New Space
At the time of the fire we had just begun our expansion project to the original facility. We had purchased the property next door and had plans to expand both brewing and taproom space. The fire changed everything and gave us an opportunity to start from scratch rather than expand by additions to the old structure. About one month after the fire, we sat down with Phinney Design Group and discussed our vision for the space. We knew we wanted to create a destination brewery, a place where our customers could come to not only enjoy great beer, food, and music, but also enjoy a more complete experience. We wanted the customers to have an intimate look into the brewing process, provide a space for special celebrations, and share a sense of community.
With those broad stroke principles, we came up with the brewery concept that you now see today! The taproom is crafted as a gathering place and encourages conversation and community; it also has a direct visual connection to the brewery, and the spacious outdoor biergarten and covered patio provides additional space for gatherings. We’ve also included a special event space that allows groups to use the brewery for private events, corporate meetings, or family celebrations; with its own bar, AV capabilities and a great view of the brewing process.
The new production brewery designed and installed by a local company, Fronhofer Design, is the actual heartbeat of the new location. As you know, the fire destroyed most of the old brewing equipment and as devastating as the fire was, it did give us the opportunity to design and build a larger more efficient system using the expertise and engineering at Fronhofer. The new brewery now has a 30 barrel fully automated brew house and larger cellaring tanks.
The new brewery is also much more energy efficient and boasts a 100,000kwh solar voltaic array on the roof. We also installed solar hot water panels and systems that recapture much of the heat loss during the brewing process. The taproom bar, tables, bench system, and parts of the ceiling, are all made from repurposed lumber by a local company in Greenwich, NY, Trevett Millworks.
The landscaping features the use of native plants and pollinator friendly plantings that will provide some respite for our native pollinators that are in real danger now. Visitors will also notice that we have purposefully eliminated the use of turf grass at the brewery. Turf uses a lot of water and needs fertilizer and pesticides to be properly maintained.
On Preserving Memories
We lost many sentimental items in the fire but, surprisingly, we were able to save a lot of them and they became part of our move to our temporary home at 30 Saratoga Avenue. The old bar, which survived the fire but had a lot of water and smoke damage, will eventually find a new home in another CRBC project that is now in the early planning stages.
Some of the brewery equipment, canning line, and grain management system did survive the fire and is now back working in the new brewery.
We have many smaller mementos in the form of signs, artwork and gifts from customers that will find a home in our new office space. Perhaps our favorite tribute to our original brewery is in the beautiful new metal sign that we’ve installed in the taproom. It has the iconic outline of our old building surrounded by trees and mountains. It was our way of paying homage to our humble beginnings and a daily reminder of how fortunate we’ve been to be supported by such a great community.
Although much of the material nostalgia was lost during the fire -- it’s clear now that Common Roots is built on a vision that the community has embraced and will continue with the company regardless of the physical space or location. We couldn’t have been more humbled by the experience of watching our coworkers and customers continue with the brewery’s ethos of community and resilience throughout the past year and a half. Although we are blown away by our new and forever home at 58 Saratoga Avenue, we will never forget that this is still just a facility and that the culture of Common Roots is made possible by such a great community that we are all members of.
Playing Favorites
Hard to say what our favorite part of the new brewery is…. we are both so amazed and humbled by the entire new space! When we are in the new taproom visualizing how good it’s going to be when we can fully open for customers to experience the warmth and comfort of the specially designed space we are in our happy place. The Germans have a word, “Gemutlichkeit” …which translates as a place or sense of comfortable belonging, which we think applies to the new CRBC.
We also love being on the new brew deck in the brewery. From that vantage point you get a real feel for the brewing operations and new technology we’ve been able to take advantage of.
Or…standing in our beautiful new restaurant’s kitchen and watching pizza being prepared and placed in the Wood Stone pizza oven. We are real foodies at heart and really look forward to offering a complete menu to enjoy with our favorite beers!
Needless to say, we could go on and on about our favorite parts of the new space…we love it all!
On Silver Linings
Had anyone told us we would be here in this beautiful space 16 months ago, we would have told them they are crazy! The fire was a gut wrenching loss for our company and our family, a loss we will never forget. In retrospect, we now realize we’ve had many silver linings in this whole process.
First, the fire was devastating but, in the end, no one was hurt and all the first responders returned to their families that night unharmed.
We learned, very intimately, just what a wonderful community we live in. The response from our community after the fire has been nothing short of amazing. We have never been on the receiving end of such love and support and it has left us with a whole new appreciation of the word “community”. That community support, in the form of donations and fundraisers, allowed us to keep our most precious assets, our employees, whole and compensated through this entire process.
On Adapting and Innovating
Opening our new space under the shadow of COVID-19 is not exactly what we planned but even that has given us an opportunity to focus on how we can provide a meaningful, safe experience for our customers and ensure the safety of our staff and all visitors. It has been a challenge but it has also given us an opportunity to show we can be a resilient company that will continue to focus on people before profit.
The switch to a beer to-go only option has been interesting and surprisingly good! The ability to deliver directly to our customers has also been a fun option and one we did not expect. As we moved into our new space, we have decided to focus on tightening up our procedures for beer sales and food to-go in the new taproom and so we have postponed our delivery option until further notice.
We have learned a lot in our short 6 years of existence as a company and our dedication to our founding principles has helped guide us through some rough times. Make great beer, treat people well, promote an active lifestyle, and remember we are all part of a community has been our company’s mantra since we began and it has continued to help us through this process. Including finding the right partners in business. We have gone the extra distance to find local companies to work with and it has made all the difference. We are extremely proud of our partnerships with Fronhofer Design, Phinney Design Group, V&H Construction, K&J Electric, Adirondack P&M, Apex Solar, Eclipse IT and Key Bank.
We also believe that being part of a community means being responsible stewards of the environment and actively supporting the promotion of social justice issues. Being part of the resurgence of the New York State craft beer industry has been a tremendous experience and has given us an effective vehicle for doing much good in our community. It was in that spirit that we created the Common Roots Foundation as a separate 401C organization. The Foundation will be our way of paying forward all the good that was bestowed on us after our fire and will be a source to help our community members when unexpected events occur.
On the Future
Being creative people and working daily with so many creative and innovative staff, we find ourselves constantly looking for other opportunities to diversify the Common Roots brand while still honoring our commitments to our original business ethos. In the end, it’s always going to be about creating the best possible experience for our customers and the tremendous staff that work with us each day.
Beer
We have lots of new beer styles coming! The time spent in our temporary space did give a rare opportunity to work on small batch beers while our larger volume brands were being produced by our friends at Singlecut and Torch and Crown Brewery. Stay tuned as we move into full production in the new brewing space!
Pizza!
We are excited to announce that we will be launching delicious artisan stone hearth pizza to-go starting Wednesday August 12! Who doesn’t love beer and pizza?! Although we are starting with a simple yet thoughtfully designed menu, we are actively perfecting other menu items that we cannot wait to offer in the near future. Food orders can be placed on-line, by phone, or in-person pick-up with your favorite CRBC cans or crowlers. As we mentioned, we consider ourselves serious foodies and as such, we are working closely with our new kitchen staff to create a culinary experience that will pair well with our beer.
Operations
Our immediate plan is to move into full production and operations mode in this new beautiful space. Having this space is a dream come true to us and we cannot wait to show off its full potential!
