Barrier Brewing

Coming from homebrewing roots, Long Island New York’s Barrier Brewing has overcome incredible odds, including the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, growing into what’s become one of the most accomplished breweries in New York.

Founded in 2009 by Evan Klein, the precursor to Barrier Brewing’s beginnings was a friend of Klein’s who invited him to homebrew with him. While his buddy’s interest waned, he continued to brew batches, eventually sharing them with the founder of nearby Sixpoint Brewery who was impressed. Over the next 6 months Klein helped out around their brewery, cleaned kegs and tanks, then was officially brought on staff as a brewer.

Following 2 years at Sixpoint, Klein opted to strike out on his own, leasing a small location in Oceanside where he set up a 1bbl system, with the first batches going out into the market June 2010. After 6 months of hustling the entire operation himself, Klein hired on Craig Frymark, a friend and former co-worker from Sixpoint. Within their first year, they cranked out over 700 barrels of beer on that 1 bbl and 17 fermenter system, an astounding amount for such a small brewhouse. Soon after, in 2012, the brewery was relocated to a larger 4,600 sq ft space, setting up a 5bbl system with 1,500bbl of initial capacity.

This new facility was only open for a few months before Hurricane Sandy totally devastated their operations, including being flooded by 4 feet of water, with damages estimated at $100,000. To rebuild, the brewery participated in a local collaboration called Surge Protector: Sandy Relief Ale, created to raise funds for victims of the storm, and raise money for their own rebuild. They were also invited to temporarily brew on Brewery Ommegang’s system to retain the taps they’d established at local accounts, including a collaboration beer called Barrier Relief Ale.

Having survived such a tumultuous period, Klein and Frymark continued to grow the business once again, eventually opening a 20bbl brewhouse with an annual brewing capacity around 15,000 bbls. From the beginning, Barrier has always brewed a wide variety of beers, though over time, the brewery has evolved from being focused more on accessible English and Belgian styles, to one more often brewing various types of IPA, Imperial Stout, Wild Ale, and the occasional Fruited Sour. Since 2010, the brewery has released roughly 500 unique beers, with just over half being a variation of IPA.

This week we’re happy to have Barrier Brewing back in Oregon, with this being their second time shipping beer to the state! Keep an eye out for these cans and kegs landing at locations starting today:

• Deadly Combination: Citra + Motueka ~ New England IPA ~ If you don’t know the deal by now, ask a friend… lol. This series has been nothing but absolute fiiiiiiiiiire since its inception….A massacre upon your taste buds! 7.4%. Available in 16 ounce cans and on draft.
  
• Deadly Combination: Mosaic + Vic Secret ~ New England IPA ~ Two standout hops going off all in their glory. A juicy, dank crusher and fantasic addition to this super popular beer series. 7.4%. Available in 16 oz cans only.
  
• Easy Livin’ ~ New England IPA ~ This brand new baby is a New England IPA that’s been dosed with a delicate amount of Grapefruit Puree and than Double Dry Hopped with Mosaic cryo, Centennial cryo, Simcoe cryo and Cascade pellets? We basically took the base of our beloved summer crush (Lomax), switched up the hop profile slightly and added a little grapefruit to hammer home this taste of summer. 5.5% Available in 16 oz cans only.
  
• Geaux Juice ~ India Pale Ale ~ Double Dry Hopped IPA inspired by those good ol’ boxes of liquid gold we would crush as kids… Pronounced “GO JUICE!” – this hazy boy is packed with a plethora of fruitastic flavors… all of which come directly from the selected hops and yeast… this beer contains no added juice or fruits… Expect notes of bright tropical tangerines, some grapefruit pith, a strawberry/mango juice blend and a touch of cantaloupe… A pinot gris type of sweet dry finish attributed to the house yeast we used on this beer. Very low bitterness… 7.7%. Available in 16 oz cans only.
  
• Lomax ~ India Pale Ale ~ A Summer India Pale Ale dry-hopped with Simcoe, Centennial & Mosaic. 5.8% Available on draft only.
  
• Money ~ India Pale Ale ~ You got Money on your mind. Now you hold Money in your hand. 500 mill to be exact. Smells stanky. Piece of advise? Don’t save your Money. Party like a rockstar. Get air like you just don’t care. Because when you go through all your Money, we’ll make more. Cha-Ching! 7.3%. Available in 16 ounce cans and on draft.
  
• The Strongest Geometric Shape: Citra + Motueka + Galaxy ~ New England Triple IPA ~ The first beer in our new 3hop Triple IPA series. This beautiful monster was blasted with overflowing amounts of Citra, Motueka and Galaxy throughout the brewing process… Touch of Milk sugar to pull this one all together. Expect intense tropical notes, a full pillowy mouthful and a ridiculously smooth finish! Triple IPA’s shouldn’t drink this easy… you’ve been warned! 10.3%. Available in 16 oz cans only.

Content for this article sourced from Barrier Brewing, Union Beer Distributors, Long Island Herald, Beer Advocate, and Craft Beer Dot Com.