Nowadays most travelers are only impressed by the great wonders of the world or YouTube videos of cats being cute. But for lovers of great beer, Downingtown is becoming something of a wonder. These people have been avoiding the Route 30 bypass, and instead are driving down Lancaster Avenue through Downingtown to grab a great beer, or to find the means to brew one.
For many beer drinkers, Downingtown has always been special (at least since 1996) thanks to Victory Brewing Company. As Victory has grown over the years, so has the local public’s love and appreciation for good beer. As is common in the craft beer industry, they’ve been converting the Budmillercoors crowd one glass at a time.
And now, fifteen years after Victory opened their doors, it seems that some of the small businesses along Lancaster Avenue have caught up to the idea of good beer.
After working at Exton Beverage for a number of years, and joining the military, Mike Hamara opened Artisan Homebrew right in the heart of Downingtown. After wishing for some time that there was a homebrew shop in the area, Mike decided to stop waiting for someone to open a shop, and to open his own. One small business loan and a fridge full of hops later, Mike found the perfect spot right in the heart of Downingtown, and only a half mile from Victory.
Why not just buy what you need online? Because there is something wholesome, warm, and beer friendly about his shop that you can’t find on your computer screen. Although the shop is small, it features everything you’d ever need or want to make your own beer or wine. It also has beautiful old wood floors, exposed overhead wood beams, two small fireplaces, and a kegerator. It has the feel of an old general store transformed into all your home brewing needs. The smell of sweet malt is instantly apparent walking through the doors, and although Mike says he doesn’t notice the smell anymore, he does notice the need for a local shop with great customer service and a concern for one’s fellow home brewer and beer lover.
Mike is not just a provider of equipment and supplies, he takes care in helping people brew their own recipes, and assist them in cloning their favorites. He says the most popular cloned beers are Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale, Rogue’s Dead Guy Ale, and Victory’s HopDevil IPA. For Mike, there is a pleasure in supplying the ingredients that will allow someone to brew a beer. Seeing the beer through from start to finish, and tasting what his customers have created, is one of the joys of owning his own homebrew shop.
Heading West on Lancaster Avenue, another half mile down the road from Artisan, you will find the Downingtown stop on Septa’s R5. Across the street is the Station Taproom.
The Taproom opened in the spring of 2010, and after a terrible winter, people rushed to Downingtown’s newest restaurant/bar. Walking into the Station Taproom, one notices its modern feel with black tables and chairs, dark wood floors, and smooth cherry wood bar. The open kitchen can be viewed from the front door, and large front windows open out towards the street, but the most noticeable feature is the large chalkboard running the length of the bar. Craft beer drinkers love chalk boards. It shows that the bar has a high turnover rate for their beer list. This means fresh beer, and always a variety of new things to try.
The bar was opened by Sean McGettingan and Mark Barthmaier (now solely owned and operated by Sean), who are both veterans of the local beer scene, working at Exton, PA’s Drafting Room for a combined decade. The idea for Station Taproom was simple; provide nothing but great craft beer, a large spectrum of whiskeys and bourbons, and interesting varietals of wines. You won’t find anyone drinking Seven and Seven, playing darts, or stuffing money into a jukebox. Their food menu is fresh and local. It combines familiar foods that are given a new and delicious twist. Just as you won’t find any Guinness on draft, but instead Sly Fox’s O’Reilly’s Stout, or Victory’s Donnybrook Stout, you may not find a simple grilled ham and cheese sandwich on the menu, but instead a ham and brie Panini with thick slices of ham, melted cheese, on sourdough bread with a honey mustard sauce. Mark and Sean are not just lovers of great beers, whiskeys and wines, but are clearly culinarily driven as well.
The Station Taproom has been a roaring success, using only half barrel kegs, their beer list must still be updated every couple days. But Sean and Mark will be quick to acknowledge that Victory helped pave the way for the success of their business. Downingtown was not ready for the Station Taproom fifteen years ago, nor would Artisan Homebrew have become a success. However, now with an excellent homebrew shop, gorgeous beer bar, and world class brewery, Downingtown is not just becoming a place for people who love great beer to travel to, but also one that is supplying the locals with what they want: great businesses, with friendly service, and fantastic products.
