Brewery, music venue planned in Phoenix Hill

Louisville hasn't yet hit its limit for breweries or music venues, according to the owners of a new business who intend to prove as much when they open a combination of the two in Phoenix Hill.

On Thursday, Gravely Brewing Company received approval from the city to start a $700,000 renovation of the former Pride Tile Co. building at 514 Baxter Ave.

The 11,000-square-foot space will soon be separated into a brewing facility, taproom and music venue, with business partners Nathaniel Gravely and Cory Buenning hoping to open by May.

It will join 15 other craft breweries in the city and will be located just down the street from Headliners Music Hall, which can fit more than double of Gravely's expected capacity.

Opening a music venue and brewery in an underserved city has been Gravely's plan since about 2009. The University of Kentucky graduate, who grew up in northern Kentucky, said he considered Austin, Asheville, Savannah and other cities before settling on Louisville and purchasing the Baxter building in 2015.

You might like

► Here's a list of recently closed restaurants in Louisville

► 6 new eateries for downtown New Albany

► Demolition requested for 8 historic buildings

"I'd been living in the general area long enough, Lexington and Cincinnati, that I'd see bands come through and not stop here," Gravely said. "I didn't feel like there was a consistent thought that 'We have to stop in Louisville.' To me, it was like a missed opportunity, and we had a chance to be successful."

Gravely worked in the music industry in New York and Nashville after college and said he will be in charge of booking the venue's shows. But he's tapped his brother-in-law, Buenning, to handle the brewing side of the business.

Buenning moved to Louisville from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where he worked as the head brewer of Snake River Brewery for 17 years.

He said he plans to produce several lagers and west coast IPAs on Gravely's 15-barrel brewing system, along with some experimental beers that he wouldn't yet explain.

"You'll have to wait to find out," Buenning said. "I'm keeping that one under wraps."

Related stories

► Phoenix Hill brewery close to opening

► Falls City beer moving in with Heine Brothers'

► Production brewery opens its floodgates

Gravely said the music venue will hold about 400 people and will be separated from the taproom so that customers can enjoy a beer without having to purchase a ticket for a show.

While the venue will be small, Gravely said he hopes to attract bands with large followings who will find it appealing to visit the brewery, where they can play to packed crowds and work with Buenning to create specialized beers.

"We want to do brewery collaborations with a lot of the artists," Gravely said, adding that the beers could provide additional revenue for the bands. "... I think music is a hole that needs to be plugged here. But I look at it as a marketing platform for the beer. I think there's a connection between beer and music naturally that when you're at a show, you typically want to have a drink."

Gravely said he visited spaces in NuLu, Germantown and on Frankfort Avenue before choosing the spot in Phoenix Hill.

The ability to connect the Highlands to NuLu drew him to the spot. But he said he was sold when he saw two limestone caverns on the property that were previously used to age barrels of beer.

The caverns are located in a hillside next to the building, and Gravely said he plans to turn the area into a courtyard where customers can sit outside the caverns or atop the hill overlooking downtown Louisville.

"I think Louisville is really up-and-coming," Gravely said. "... Louisville has some really cool stuff with the Derby and Kentucky bourbon, but I think craft beer is starting to float the boat a little bit."

Follow updates on the brewery at gravelybrewing.com.

Reach reporter Bailey Loosemore at 502-582-4646 or bloosemore@courier-journal.com.