The Republic | azcentral.com Wed Jan 22, 2014 11:00 AM

The small pub is tucked next to a hair salon, on a quiet side street off Old Litchfield Road — easy to miss for those who aren’t looking for it.

Peoria Artisan Brewery’s owners aren’t worried. West Valley craft beer fans have been waiting for independent breweries to open in their backyard for a long time, they say.

The 23-seat tavern in downtown Litchfield Park became the first locally owned brewery to open in the West Valley when it welcomed its first customers Dec. 27. It’s one of several similar breweries that plan to open in the region this year, part of a national surge in the popularity of craft beer.

Co-owner Neal Farrell said many curious diners from nearby restaurants have been walking up to Peoria Artisan Brewery. He said he didn’t have an exact count of how many customers he has served. Business has been steady and, on a few days, they have been filled to capacity, Farrell said.

“We’ve had some locals who say they aren’t craft-beer people wander in,” he said. “They left converted.”

Although brewery owners might have to navigate local red tape before taps begin to flow, demand from young customers and lack of competition in communities west of Phoenix make the area a promising market, experts say.

“The West Valley has been slighted when it comes to craft beer,” said Chuck Therio, a Litchfield Park resident and the owner of What Ales Ya?, a Glendale store that has sold home beer-brewing and wine-making supplies since 1996.

“I think the proven success of my store shows there is demand for good beer west of Phoenix,” he said.

Beer in the Valley

Although some associate beer with college fraternity parties and tailgating at sporting events, craft beer has a passionate following in foodie circles and the industry is an emerging economic engine.

Craft beer, unlike domestic brews from Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors, are made on a smaller scale and often feature distinctive flavors and colors.

Though total beer sales in the United States have been decreasing over the past few years compared with wine or spirits, the craft-beer segment of the market has grown 10 percent annually since 2010, according to the 2013 State of the Craft Beer Industry report from the Demeter Group Investment Bank.

In Arizona, the craft-beer industry had a total economic impact of $278 million in 2011, according to a 2012 Northern Arizona University study. Brewers had $37.7 million in beer sales that year, the report said.

Those economic figures have probably increased since then. There were only 33 Arizona breweries in 2011, according to the study.

There are about 50 open today, and another 20 are expected to open in the next year, according to Rob Fullmer, head of the Arizona Craft Brewers Guild.

Most of the breweries in the Valley operate east of Interstate 17, though Farrell expects more brewers will open stores in the West Valley soon.

Young drinkers are driving the craft-beer trend, according to Ed Sipos, the author of “Brewing Arizona,” a book released in 2013 that chronicles the history of craft brewers in the state.

“Early craft brewers had to educate the consumer about why their product was better than some of the bigger breweries, which took time,” he said. “But the younger generation today came of age and are more aware of the different styles of beer available to them.”

Peoria Artisan Brewery

Although West Valley could be a strong future market for craft beer, opening a tasting room or restaurant isn’t easy if owners plan to make beer on the premises, brewers say.

Farrell initially hoped to open his brewery in Peoria, hence its name, but said he had trouble finding a small space that met city zoning rules.

Then Farrell, a Litchfield Park resident, began looking at spaces in the Southwest Valley city’s downtown. Farrell needed a special permit to open his brewery in a commercial zone and officials granted it.

“The city of Litchfield Park was really, really awesome and we could tell they wanted us here,” he said.

Litchfield Park officials say the brewery fits city plans to attract more “destination” businesses.

“We’re always looking to bring in more non-chain establishments and microbreweries are something special that people will tend to travel for,” said Darryl Crossman, Litchfield Park’s city manager.

Other breweries on the way

More breweries are headed to the west side.

Freak’n Brewing Company has leased an industrial building space in Peoria on Olive Avenue near Loop 101. It has had the space since 2012 and has made major renovations to get it ready to open within the next couple of months, according to the brewery’s website. Representatives did not respond to requests for comment.

This year, 8-Bit Brewery in Avondale, Mischief Brewing Company in Peoria and Veritas Brewing Company in Buckeye plan to open, according to their websites and social-media pages.

Fullmer, from the brewers guild, said that each company has its own financial and bureaucratic challenges to overcome before opening, but there is a demand for specialty beers in the region.

“What I see working well are smaller places, like Peoria Artisan, that are designed for their neighborhoods,” he said. “I can easily envision 10, 15 or 20 places in the West Valley that could be successful doing that.”

As the first West Valley indie brewery, Farrell plans to spread word about his business through social media and word of mouth.

Farrell hasn’t put his beers into many competitions and hasn’t paid for any kind of advertising. So far, it has been working, he added.

“The support we’ve gotten has been overwhelming,” he said. “It’s so exciting to think that my dream is finally a reality.”