Bank Street Brewhouse in the Scene.

The Louisville Courier-Journal included a mention of the Bank Street Brewhouse project in Saturday's Scene publication. The author is Steve Coomes, with whom I had a delightful conversation last week.

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A new New Albanian taproom in October

Roger Baylor has a terrific problem on his hands. As one of three owners of The New Albanian Brewing Co. Pub & Pizzeria (formerly known as Rich O's and Sportstime Pizza), he's faced with business so good that his location at 3312 Plaza Drive in New Albany, Ind., is bursting at the seams.

"We literally have no room left to grow, so we knew we had to do something about it," Baylor said.

That something will come in the form of the New Albanian Brewing Co. Bank Street Brewhouse (415 Bank St.), a brewing and distribution center fronted by a taproom set to open in October in the city's reawakening downtown. (The building was built in 1919 and formerly housed a Rainbow Bread bakery.)
The taproom will seat 50 inside and 30 outside in a beer garden. Long-term plans call for a rooftop beer garden seating 150.

The increased brewing capacity will launch keg sales to select bars and restaurants in Louisville, Indianapolis and Bloomington, Ind. Brews sold at the taproom will reflect that being produced for keg sales, but Baylor said "new one-off beers" also will be brewed and served there.

Unlike Rich O's, which has a broad, pizza-centered menu, the Brewhouse will serve a limited menu that's simpler to execute and reflective of the fare sold at the Belgian cafes Baylor enjoyed on visits to Europe.

"(Rich O's) got to be so famous doing others' beers that it wasn't always easy to showcase our own beers, which we want to do now," he said. "That's also part of why we want to do less food. We want our beer to be the main focus, like it is in a Belgian cafe."