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Date: 5/22/2019
CHICOPEE – Brewing beer in Chicopee has returned after a more than 40-year hiatus.
Leadfoot Brewing officially opened its taproom with a ribbon cutting on May 17. The craft brewery is in the shadow of the structure that housed the Hampden Brewing Company and later a brewery for Piels beer.
With people pouring into the taproom Jeff Thibodeau, one of the two owners of Leadfoot along with Patrick Randall, said with a smile his mood was one of relief.
The taproom is located at 95 North Chicopee St. and is open Thursdays and Fridays from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 6 p.m.
The two owners have already successfully placed Leadfoot products in a number of area bars and Thibodeau said the company’s pilsner has proven to be its best seller.
Thibodeau said, “It’s extremely competitive. There are a ton of great beers.” He added that having both a pilsner and a lager provides a “sweet spot” for the company.
He explained while Leadfoot will produce several Indian Pale Ales (IPAs), the idea has been to offer something different. IPAs only take two and a half weeks to make while a lager takes five to six weeks.
He explained unlike other brewers he and his partner “are willing to up the brewery” with the longer production time to produce a type of beer others don’t make locally.
The brewery is producing seven varieties of beer as well as nitro cold brew coffee for those looking for caffeine rather than alcohol.
The partners looked for a space for five years before starting construction in what used to be a space to store beer bottles and cans last year.
The taproom has plenty of seating and is decorated with various items from the Hampden Brewery era. Thibodeau said among the memorabilia from that time is a handwritten recipe from the Hampden Beer brew master for distinctive ale. He added he plans to recreate it.
Hampden Brewing started production in 1894 and was eventually bought out by Piels, which continued brewing at the location until 1975
Thibodeau said that it is both child and dog friendly – at least one dog attended the ribbon-cutting event – as long as an adult accompanies them.
For more information, go to www.leadfootbrewing.com.