Long Ireland Beer Company has started construction on a microbrewery in Polish Town.
The makers of Long Ireland Celtic Ale plan to open a brewery, tasting room and retail store in February 2011, according to co-owner Dan Burke of Shoreham.
Burke and his partner Greg Martin have signed a 10-year lease on the 8,800-square-foot building at 817 Pulaski St. — for many years the home of Riverhead Agway.
“We wanted to be in Riverhead right from the time we drew up our business plan,” Burke said in an interview at the future brewery site this afternoon. “It seemed like it was an up-and-coming area, definitely a destination for people,” Burke said.
The partners started out as home brewer hobbyists, which quickly turned into a passion, said Burke, a former oil burner mechanic. “The rest is history,” he said.
Long Ireland Beer Company brews “fresh, all-natural, handcrafted beer the way beer was brewed a few hundred years ago in Ireland,” according to the company’s website. “Since Ireland is an island, ingredients weren’t always readily available. The Irish brewers used ingredients that they were able to get locally. This beer is made with four different malts and a big serving of honey and oats that give it a sweet but smooth flavor.”
Steve Wirth, owner of Diggers Pub on West Main Street, who is planning a microbrewery of his own in a building he purchased this winter adjoining his restaurant and pub (see Riverheadlocal.com’s Feb. 21 story and video), said he’s excited that Long Ireland Beer Company is building a brewery in Riverhead. Their Celtic Ale is a popular brew at Diggers, he said, and he’s pleased they’ll be Riverhead-based. “I’d love to see a bunch of microbreweries in Riverhead,” Wirth said today.
Locally, Long Ireland Celtic Ale — and their summer seasonal Raspberry Wheat — is sold at Stonewall’s Restaurant, Diggers Pub, and The Birchwood Tap Room in Riverhead, The Cooperage Inn in Baiting Hollow, Blackwell’s Steak House in Wading River, Eagle’s Landing in Calverton and The Maples in Manorville, It can also be purchased — by the keg only right now — at retail beverage centers in Riverhead, Riverside and Wading River.
Dan Burke outside Long Ireland Beer Company’s new microbrewery site on Pulaski Street in Polish Town today.
RiverheadLOCAL.com photos by Peter Blasl
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