The Alchemist – New Brewery Set For July Opening

John and I are very excited to announce the upcoming opening of our new brewery and visitors center in Stowe this summer. We are shooting for an early July opening, but will not be able to confirm an exact date until we are closer to the actual opening. Until then, we have put together some information about the new brewery and our future distribution plans. We are working hard to make this the smoothest transition possible for our employees, our retail accounts and our customers. All of us here at The Alchemist are very excited to, once again, be open to the public. We have missed the daily connection with our local community and our loyal beer enthusiasts.

Q: What will the days and hours of operation be?

A: Our visitor’s center will be open Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-7pm.

Q: Will there be a restaurant?

A: No. We will not serve food or full pints of beer. However, there is a lot of great food and drink near us.

Q: What will you sell?

A: We will sell sample glasses of beer to taste, merchandise and packaged beer to go.

Q: What kind of beer will you sell?

A: We will have 2 year round beers that are available every day for sale— Heady Topper and Focal Banger. Other beers will rotate throughout the year. John will be bringing back many favorites from the pub days. When these beers are ready for sale, they will simply show up in our retail cooler. We will not be promoting or ticketing any limited releases.

Q: Will there be limits on beer purchases?

A: Yes. We are trying to accomplish 2 things with our daily allocations. We want to spread our beer out as much as possible. We also want to make sure our customers and beer enthusiasts can purchase enough beer so that the visit is worthwhile. When we open this summer we will start out with the following purchase limits per person: 1 case of Focal Banger and 1 mixed case of Heady Topper and current specialty (to be announced at opening). Of course, 4-packs can be sold singly, but only up to 3 four-packs of Heady and specialty per person.

Q: How much will beer cost?

A: 16 ounce cans are $12.50/4 pack or $75/case plus tax and deposit. All canned specialties will be sold at this price.

Q: Will you still distribute your beer?

A: We will continue to distribute Heady Topper but not Focal Banger. We will pull back about 30% of our distribution so that we can have daily Heady Topper allocations in Stowe. All bars, restaurants and stores that currently carry Heady Topper will continue to do so. Our larger retail accounts will be pulled back more than smaller accounts. It is our belief that lines will diminish at these stores when our retail shop is open in Stowe. We hope that it becomes simpler for locals to buy a 4-pack at their local store.

Q: Why won’t you sell more Heady Topper in Stowe?

A: Although we could probably sell all Heady Topper out of our new retail shop, we have decided to maintain our distribution for a few reasons. We have worked hard to build relationships with our local retailers and restaurants. With our local economies in mind, we don’t want to cut Heady Topper out of distribution. Many of our accounts have experienced significant increases in craft beer sales and foot traffic. This is a phenomenon in which we take great pride. “A rising tide lifts all boats.” – JFK

Stay tuned for more information! We can’t wait to see you!