(Lewiston, ME) – Work began in early June to renovate the space at the legendary Bates Mill in Lewiston, Maine, into a world-class brewery. Baxter Brewing Co. will be the first craft brewery in northern New England to combine high quality, hand-crafted beer with the unparalleled convenience and environmentally-friendly technology of aluminum cans.
Believed to be the first new manufacturing venture in more than 100 years to occupy the iconic structure which once housed the biggest employer in Maine, the brewery will create six new jobs in the first year and will distribute product throughout New England. Luke Livingston, Baxter president, said “we should be shipping our first beers by September or October. We’re going to start with two styles – our flagships, if you will. The first – Stowaway IPA is a heavily-hopped, West Coast-style IPA unlike anything currently produced in Maine; or, really, anywhere in the northeast.”
“The second – Pamola Xtra Pale Ale – will be a very easy-drinking variety,” Livingston added. “It will also be unique, easy enough on the palate to satisfy a newcomer to craft beer without scaring them off. But it will also have the flavor profile to please even the most experienced craft beer fan.”
Renovation of the historic mill space will feature both lowering the ground floor, to accommodate the height of fermenting tanks, and reinforcing the floor to support the weight of equipment and beer. Many original artifacts will be adapted for reuse in creative retail, office and storage spaces.
The next big event, according to Livingston, “will be the arrival of the state-of-the-art brewing equipment in early August. We are acquiring a 30-barrel system from Ninkasi Brewing, in Eugene, Oregon, which has experienced such explosive growth that they outgrew this system in just a year and a half. This won’t be the biggest brewing system in Maine, of course, but it will be among the most technologically advanced.”
Livingston explained that the exterior wall of the brewery’s building that parallels the Cross Canal will be “punched through. We’ll bring the brew house right through the wall, then instead of replacing the brick, we’ll have a glass wall so that the brewing process can be observed from the new outdoor plaza,” he added. Canning equipment – the only such equipment in Maine – will arrive “a couple of weeks later,” Luke explained. Baxter Brewing Co. will be the first brewery in New England to combine its entire line of craft beer with the unparalleled convenience and environmentally-friendly new technologies of aluminum cans
“Mainers really need full-flavored, American-style ales and environmentally-friendly, beer-friendly and highly portable cans,” says Livingston. “We are here to combine the two and reward the thirsty residents of Maine with the beer they want in the packaging they need.”
Plans are underway for a grand opening, projected for September. While details are being carefully kep under wraps, Livingston describes that event as “maybe the most exciting thing to hit the ground in Lewiston since Sonny Liston!”
The brewery will be open daily for tours, tastings and special events, as well as a fully-stocked retail shop featuring both beer and Baxter-themed merchandise. “We want our home to be a fun and vibrant place that people not only want to visit, but want to keep coming back to,” adds Livingston. “The brewery itself will truly be a destination, like no other production brewery in the state.”