Look Forward to More @ Half Full Brewery – Stamford, CT

A while ago we told you about Half Full Brewery opening up in Stamford and the reaction was overwhelming! People just can’t seem to wait for them to open their doors.  Well, guess what?  Your wait is about to end in mid-July when they expect to be open for tours and tastings.

Us, being the lucky beer lovers we are, were given the chance to get a sneak peek from Half Full Brewery owner, Conor Horrigan.  And you, the lucky OmNomivores you are, get a front row seat.

So let’s start with the brewery’s inconspicuous location. It’s on 43 Homestead Ave, which is near Crab Shell and the future Dolce Cubano. As you turn down Southfield Ave and then Homestead Ave, you think you’re going to some dude’s house, not a brewery, but don’t worry, you’re on the right path. At the very end of the street are some warehouse type places and Half Full Brewery is hiding behind those buildings in all its glory!

As you enter, you walk down the stairs to a massive tasting/tap room that will have a bar area, some tables and a spot to fill up some growlers.  You may even be greeted by the friendly and adorable brewery dog, Pounce. If you look up you’ll notice wicked high ceilings because the building used to have two floors, but to get things to code they tore down the second floor and made it one, huge, epic room! So epic, it’d even be the perfect spot for live music and entertainment some day in the future.

Leaving the tasting/tap room, you enter another huge room…the room where all the magic happens. Conor started off this portion of the tour by telling us about the driving force behind his venture: an all too familiar story of a guy who was fed up with his stressful 9-5 job and thought there had to be a better way to make a living, a way to do something he could be passionate about. Brainstorming with some friends in similar situations, they thought about starting a brewery and tossed around names reflective of their fed up state of mind. After thinking about it and building on it for a long time, Conor decided to make the dream a reality, but instead the name would be reflective of new beginnings, something full of hope, something positive…and hence Half Full was born.

Conor then took us through their entire brewing process start to finish. Staying true to their positive perspective, they make every effort to be pristine and sustainable throughout the entire process. The end result is unfiltered beer, pure and unmessed-around-with.

So, let’s talk about those hoppy details of the beer and what to expect.  Half Full will be starting with their flagship beer for a few months:  Half Full Bright Ale.  Folks, we tasted a sample batch from their microbrew equipment and it was a great.  It was the perfect beer to drink hangin’ with friends, nice and wheaty, soft and slightly citrusy.  The Bright Ale will be sold to local restaurants, so check out some of the best spots around for Half Full or you can always visit the brewery for a tasting or to fill up a growler.

More beers will become available at local bars and restaurants as well as the brewery as they get things going. Some of their other brews in the making are the Half Full Pale Ale, Half Full Stout, and the Half Full Amber. So, as you can see, there are lots of great things to look forward to at HalfFull Brewery!