More craft beer in Baltimore? Pour it on.
In both drafts and decor, it’s clear that the team behind Waverly Brewing Company paid attention to detail. However, the place and the product are inviting rather than over-produced.
Open as of Thursday night, Nov. 5, the brewery and taproom near the corner of Clipper Mill Rd. and Union Ave. is in an old warehouse that was likely pretty bare before the team got in there. Using reclaimed materials, they turned the taproom into a space they’re calling “The Shed.” The Orioles penants and antlers definitely give it the air of a collector’s hangout, but it also has a community living room feel. In the second room, there’s a long, communal table. In the far corner, the prized seat is a red vinyl booth sandwiched between a pair of deer heads. With outdoor picnic tables as well, the space definitely invites you to hang out. Luckily, the beer does, too.
The initial beer menu is full of clever names like Golden Sombrero and Hi, Hon Red, but what stood out most was the numbers. The alcohol content in five out of the six beers was around five percent. While not quite session ales in full, the approach appears reflective of a larger trend in craft beer to find more flavor with less alcohol. In this space, however, it just makes you want to stick around for a while. On Thursday, Clementine also catered, providing a baked potato layer.
We sampled a pair of beer offerings. The Waverly Belle, a Belgian Pale Ale that’s fermented with local honey, is earthy and easy going down with notes of citrus. Uber-hoppy is a more bitter offering that’s packs more of a punch up front. But since it’s not an 8.5-percent hop bomb, it’s clean enough where it doesn’t destroy your palette.
Waverly Brewing isn’t the only brewery to open in the city in the last month, nor is it the only one in an area where Union has long called home. But with smaller cities like Asheville and Bend having plenty of breweries, it doesn’t feel to us like Baltimore is at peak brewery, yet. After building up a decent base and making good on plans to begin distributing to other watering holes will help get the word out, it’s easy to envision beer lovers cozying up to Waverly.
Waverly Brewing Company is located at 1625 Union Ave. Check their website for more details about drafts, and beyond.
