It’s only been a little over a year since Zauber Brewing first launched, but they’re already upgrading, expanding and relocating. This summer, Zauber founder Geoff Towne will begin working on relocating the business a short distance from 1300 Norton Avenue to 909 West Fifth Avenue, the former home of Reed Arts, which is also relocating within the neighborhood.

We spoke recently with Geoff to find out more about his plans for the new location and the timeline for the move. Our full Q&A interview can be read below:

Q:First, can you tell us a bit about how the business has been doing in the current location?

A: Things have been going really well for us at the current location. We have built a good loyal following despite our hard to find location in Grandview. In particular, Growler sales at the brewery have been a pleasant surprise. We have been doing so well that we have not been able to sell many kegs to bars and restaurants. Beyond a couple of regulars, we try to sell kegs to other new customers only when our volume allows us to. It was our plan from the beginning to stay small and intimate until we could expand.

Q: And now you’re expanding! Is that what prompted the need for the relocation?

A: It was always the plan to get ‘phase 2’ going as fast as possible, but it took a little longer than we originally expected to expand. It was hard for us to find the right financial and structural fit for a long-term location, but there are a lot of factors that have to come together to make it work. Having said that, we are very excited about our new location around the corner. The new building has great character and an easy-to-find address on Fifth Avenue in the 5xNW Area.

Q: What do you have planned for the business expansion in the new location?

A: We plan on having a taproom in the front that is an American take on the Bier Garden concept. Food will be provided by food trucks instead of a restaurant, which has always been part of the plan. The brewery will take up most of the middle of the building, with room for expansion of both sides of the business.

Q: What’s your current timeline for getting moved in and operational?

A: Initially, the taproom will be open in September or October, with the brewery becoming operational in early winter 2013 or 2014.

Q: Do you have any design changes planned for the building to make it less “Reed Arts” iconic, and more “Zauber” iconic?

A: I’m not sure I could ever make the Reed Arts building as iconic as it currently is, but we shall try. Tim O’Neill did a great job drawing attention to the unique façade, and that is hard to follow. The boxes in the front will be staying, so we’re mostly tinkering with color and design. Our early mockup designs look promising — we have a great team on the case.

Q: Anything else you’re working on this summer?



A: We are planning to have our food trucks park out front of the new location, ramping up after the 4th of July. We are going to have a regular rotation of trucks and food options on a daily basis. Our growlers will be following to the new location as soon as we can get approval to do so. For fans of our monthly food truck events, we hope to ramp those back up in the late summer. We had great fun and success running those last year and hope to do the same at our new location.

CLICK HERE to read more about Reed Arts Relocation to Third Avenue.

More information can be found online at www.zbeers.com.