Everything Just Got Real.

First of all, Viva's Vintage Market is inked in for Sat. July 12th in Baileys Harbor!

Now...
I've been a bit shy talking about this because it's really about my husband and sons.  Over the course of almost two years things have churned and shifted, evolved, shed, gained, lost, hit highs and have bottomed out.  While I've been around to offer opinions, run an errand here and there, I've pretty much stayed out of it.

Until now.

A couple of years ago a serious conversation started about starting a craft brewery… a conversation between my husband and a couple of good friends.  We knew that our son, Danny had been home brewing for quite a while and was making some very tasty beer.

Fast forward, the two good friends have their lives fill up with other new ventures, Danny gets educated at Siebel Inst. of Technology (America's oldest brewing school) and we buy an old grocery store solely dedicated to brewing, which has evolved even further.

Today it's official.  We are turning the old grocery store in Baileys Harbor into a tap and tasting room.

Some of you may have had our beer, because it's making the rounds through the state…

Polka King Porter

Little Sister

and

Goat Parade…

all by Door County Brewing Company.

Yep, that's us.

I'm going to keep a journal right here on the progress of the remodeling… so here we go, warts and all.

Even here we were thrilled just to have cleaned the place out.  See the white beams going from the floor to the ceiling?
They revealed quite the surprise. Our friend Kerry, my dad, Dan, Danny, and John.

Do you see those beams?!?!  They go from the basement up!  I believe there are nine of them.

More beams...

A mock up of the bar!  We are incredibly lucky to have Rick and John (pics to come) working on the remodel.  Not only stellar builders, creativity to boot!

The basement is actually my favorite spot, however it's where the brewing equipment will be stored.  The new stair case will lead right up into the bar area.

While the entire place is almost gutted, the kitchen area remains.  I got a kick out of the cole slaw recipe taped onto the  paper hand towel container right over the sink.

Recognize it now?  Yep, it's a beast and not a pretty one.  However, we're putting our hearts into it and have been lucky enough to fine the right people to help get it done.  This building was originally a barn, then a feed mill.  We're getting lots of stories from people who worked and played here!

Old doors in the basement.  This old barn door was turned into a workbench in the basement.  You know this makes me happy!

Another door… remember, this is "before".

…. and one more.

This kind of stuff excites me!  The beams in the basement still have bark on them!

When we took down the ugly paper ceiling tiles, this is what we found.

You cannot believe the snow… and not a bad view either.

A quick snowy look down the street.

Look at the top picture, and look at this after the gutting!

If you were a long time customer, you might remember Ben on the left  and Danny on the right (oldest) back in the day when they would help me at the register.
Danny is our brewer and Ben is our sales and tap room manager.  Ben will be greeting and serving you!

The goal is to be open by Mem'l Day Weekend.  You'll be able to come in and sample several beers or enjoy a pint or two of your favorite.  While you will be able to sample and purchase our regular beers, the exciting part to us is that only in the tap room will you be able to taste our one of a kind specialty beers!  That's Danny's true passion.  To make really good craft beer, and to introduce you to some really creative and delicious brews… only in Baileys Harbor!


Okay…. all of the above is something that in my entire life I never thought I'd be writing, saying or thinking!

I'll also be in the tap room a few days a week… someone has to display!