Harpoon Shows Off New Boston Brewpub Designs

The new space is planned to allow for simultaneous uses as a beer hall, touring area, retail outlet and function hall. Service areas and bars are strategically placed to lead visitors to their desired destinations and reveal the full experience of Harpoon beer, from production to consumption. A centralized main bar serves as a social center as well as a separation between those waiting for tours and those enjoying drink in main beer hall.  The project challenges distinct boundaries in service of creating more opportunities for social encounters. The function room is open to the main beer hall with; a large dramatic bi-folding overhead door used to create privacy. The retail area features a custom growler filling station with 24 different types of fresh beer available.

Given the industrial setting of a brewery, featuring an abundance of stainless steel, pipework, storage vats, bottling lines and other automated mechanical processes, the visitor center adopts more natural materials and humanizes the experience of the facility.  All finishes and lighting are selected and designed to enhance the warm, authentic character of the space. Floors are a reclaimed wide plank antique oak. Bartops and tables are salvaged live edge Vermont butternut, so that the natural deformations and imperfections of the materials add to the tactile experience of the bar.  Communal tables are also made from this wood, unifying the beer hall space.

A beer hall in a brewery provides an amazing juxtaposition between agriculture, science, chemistry, industrialized processes, and the very human qualities of imbibing with dear friends.  The architecture of the Harpoon Visitor’s Center celebrates these different worlds, enhancing appreciation for the complex craft that is making beer.