New downtown Modesto brewery 18Seventy opens amid pandemic; outside beer, food served
Modesto is about to head into a 100-plus degree heatwave this weekend. Modesto is about to have its only downtown brewery-taproom open this weekend. Coincidence or best-possible coincidence?
Cold, fresh, craft beer straight from the source is on the menu as the new 18Seventy Brewing Co. opens on Friday. Work on the long-vacant space just off the busy corner of J and Ninth streets began last fall. And then the coronavirus hit, slowing construction and putting question marks above everyone’s best-laid plans. Still founder and owner Bridgette Berry found a way to get her new brewery up and brewing — with a healthy dose of humor.
Take, for instance, its Rough Start IPA. The signature IPA (at a healthy 7.1% ABV) whose name is a reference in part to the complicated task of opening during a pandemic.
“It’s kind of what we’re all going through right now — a lot of trials and tribulations. But the beer turned out pretty well, so we’re looking forward to people trying it,” Berry said.
She said the brewery’s name and location pay homage to Modesto. The former references the year Modesto was founded, and the latter reinforced that with its heart of the city site. Berry is partnering on the project with her wife, Korinn Berry, and mother, Becky Berry.
While Modesto has had a downtown brewery in the past, namely O.G. valley microbrewery St. Stan’s at its former L Street location (now home to Skewers Kabob House), its current reincarnation isn’t brewed in the city and only has a taproom downtown. Two other newer craft breweries in the city — Persuasion and Contentment — sit just outside the downtown area.
18Seventy will open only its brewhouse side for now. With COVID-19 precautions in place, they will have outdoor dining and pints, plus to-go growler and crowler fills. Berry plans to set up an outside seating for about 25 on the sidewalk in front of the business. To allow for on-site alcohol service, the brewery will have different taco trucks serving food. This weekend those include the new food trailer from Slick Fork BBQ and Super Sope, as well as El Tacocontento.
In a couple months, she hopes to complete the coffeehouse side of the project, which will compliment the brewery with a night-and-day approach to its drinks and service. But once it does open, the cafe side will serve Modesto-based Clayton’s coffee in a variety of specialty drinks with emphasis on unique cold and nitro-brews (think unusual flavors and ice cream toppings).
And if the coffee makes its way into the beer and the beer into the coffee, well, that’s what big corporations call synergy. Brewmaster Mike Blaskower, a long-time friend of a brewing buddy of Berry’s, said he was excited for people to experience the dual concept.
“People can stop here for coffee in the morning and beer in the afternoon,” he said.
But for now they will focus on their beer, which is all brewed in-house on 18Seventy’s new one-barrel brewhouse, which produces about 30 gallons each batch. They are opening with three beers on tap: Rough Start IPA, Bail Blonde Ale and Chulacabra Black IPA. Having sampled some I can confirm the Bail Blonde Ale is a great “dang, it’s hot in the valley today”-beer and the Chulacabra Black IPA is a flavorful, smooth sipping beer.
Blaskower has been making his Black IPA at home for going on a decade, and brought the recipe to the taproom because no other local craft brewer makes one. Its name is a play on his nickname for his wife and the mythical creature of folklore fame.
Eventually, Berry and Blaskower hope to have six to eight of their beers on tap. Down the road they also hope to start canning their brew, and possibly distributing to local restaurants. And, depending on when coronavirus guidelines get lifted, start serving their own food — sandwiches, small bites and the like — in the cafe by early next year.
18Seventy Brewing Co., at 911 J St. in Modesto, hours will be noon to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1 to 8 p.m. Sunday for its grand opening weekend. For more information visit 18seventybrew.com.
This story was originally published August 14, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
