The new rooftop at Greenpoint Beer and Ale Co. (1150m Manhattan Ave.) features a signature Tom Fruin glass water tower.

Something was in the air Saturday afternoon. The dulcet tones of Phil Collins, yes, but also the yeasty aroma of craft beer.

Photo courtesy of Ben Weiss

Greenpoint Beer and Ale Co., a local brewery shuttered since late 2018, opened the doors of its newly renovated location at 1150 Manhattan Avenue Saturday to celebrate Phil Collins Day.


The event marked the first public showing of Greenpoint Beer and Ale’s new space before the brewery opens permanently next weekend, according to owner Ed Raven.

Inside the new Greenpoint Beer & Ale Co. (Photo courtesy of Ben Weiss)

The new space is as cavernous as the previous site, which was located on North 15th Street, but now has a new rooftop bar overlooking the Manhattan skyline. And the brewery has quadrupled its brewing capacity, adding 15 more barrels to its production line. Despite having a full kitchen, Raven plans to slim down the menu, “First and foremost, we’re brewers,” he said.


On Saturday, the crowd milled about the main room, pilsners and IPAs sloshing inside plastic cups as enthusiastic members of the throng sang along to Phil Collins staples and danced to live music. Wood shavings, the kind that accompany new construction, lined the banisters of the stairs leading up to the rooftop.

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Photo courtesy of Ben Weiss

The brewery is in the rapidly developing northern tip of Greenpoint, across the street from the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, the Box House Hotel, the Mediterranean restaurant, Glasserie, and a short stroll from Newtown Creek.


The crowd appreciated the new space. “It’s awesome,” said Andrew Amore, a Greenpoint resident who works in education. “We’ve been jogging past here for months watching it grow,” he said.

“It’s going to be a neighborhood spot for us,” commented Sarah Shearin, a local who was disappointed when the last location closed. (The landlords wanted to make way for a new office building.)

Photo courtesy of Ben Weiss

Raven and his staff are preparing to open this Friday evening. Until then, the neighborhood, to loosely quote Phil Collins, will be waiting for that moment—oh lord.

 

 

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