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Date: 4/11/2023
SPRINGFIELD — After four years of searching for the right location, Loophole Brewing has found a space to open its business in Downtown Springfield.
Located at 51-59 Taylor St., Loophole will bring quality crafted beer to the restaurant and entertainment district.
Before stumbling on this location, Loophole partner Jeff Goulet said they were moments away from buying another building in Springfield. However, once they saw the for sale sign on Taylor Street, they immediately called, only to find out it was under contract and not accepting any other offers. After the purchase fell through, Goulet said they made another call and months later, the building was purchased.
While there are countless buildings for sale, lease or rent in the Greater Springfield area, Goulet said when looking to open a brewery, it is different. For example, the space must have high ceilings and no basement, as the heavy tanks would fall through the floor.
Other requirements include access to power for a large volume of water and natural gas to fire equipment, to name a few.
“This space doesn’t answer all the questions, but it is large enough to be a brew pub,” Goulet said.
With a brew pub, there can be more drink options. Although their focus is beer, Goulet said there will also be a “nice selection of wine,” some spirits and pre-prohibition cocktails. He shared that they want to steer away from Tito’s and soda and make a more craft experience.
On the food front, Loophole will have a full restaurant with a classic pub menu including burgers and more, along with pizza.
With a lot of people living, working or visiting the area, Goulet said there are not many pizza options. “Red Rose has fantastic pizza [but it is] hard to get on the weekends,” said Goulet.
He went on to say that they plan on tying this in with Union Station. For people taking the commuter train from Hartford, if Loophole has a QR code on the train to scan, passengers can order and pick up the pizza one block away from their stop. Goulet noted that rail parking is adjacent to the brew pub. “[They can] get in their cars and go,” he said.
Goulet shared that they would like to make this a “natural thing” for people to get on the train and order pizza – as well as beer – to go. Currently, there are several timelines regarding the brew pub’s opening. As certain offerings are completed, they will open. For instance, once the permit for the kitchen is received, it will open.
Goulet noted that they will be applying to switch from a brew license to a brew pub license which will take months.
Other projects include installing the pizza ovens, adding drainage and more. “Once we get the equipment in the building, [it] will be great,” said Goulet.
Ideally, he said the brew pub will open around July, followed by the brewery shortly after.
The hours of operation have not been determined. However, Goulet predicts that Loophole will be closed on Monday and Tuesday. Also, the building will not be open until 2 a.m., but more so 10 or 11 p.m. — like other breweries in the area.
One of the differences between Loophole and other local breweries is its set up. Spread across three floors will be a plethora of offerings and experiences. On the first floor, there will be an outside beer garden with a fire pit and fenced area that is family and dog friendly. The second floor will serve as the event space — a nearly 5,000-square-foot area — with access to an outdoor patio that runs the length of the building, overlooking the beer garden.
This floor will also have a stage, DJ booth, bar, finished kitchen and more. Lastly, on the third floor, Cook Todd Snopkowski will have culinary training and temp placement. Here, individuals can learn kitchen skills across different training levels.
The other Loophole partner is state Rep. Aaron Saunders (D-Belchertown).
John Geraci is Loophole’s head brewer. Geraci previously served as the head brewer at Amherst Brewing and has a “grade level of experience,” Goulet said.
For the past four years, Loophole beer has been contract brewed primarily at Castle Island Brewery in Norwood. The beer is currently sold in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Due to the size restrictions of some tanks, Goulet said they cannot put enough tanks to house all needs but will fill them to meet demand. If there is any additional need for Loophole’s beer, it can be transferred to the Springfield location.
When COVID-19 hit, Goulet said he was “lucky to gamble.” At the time, he had a 60-barrel batch of beer which is equal to 120 of the large sized kegs. While two batches were ready for packaging, normally he would put a number in cans and kegs, but when restaurants began shutting down, he decided to put it all in cans.
“All the money that people were getting from the government pushed people to package stores,” said Goulet. “People were buying a lot of beer.”
He continued, “Our business is primarily draft beer at restaurants. If we didn’t put it in cans, we would’ve gone out of business.” During this time, sales increased for Loophole. “We got super lucky with that,” Goulet said.
Loophole’s business model, as explained by Goulet, is that they want to offset the struggle that small, local breweries have in trying to stay afloat.
“Every brew I know has updated its brewery system for a larger facility,” said Goulet. This includes Vanished Valley, Field Crest, Two Weeks Notice and more. Once they get started, he said they realize the demand and need to adjust.
When asked about plans for another location in the future, Goulet said they “100%” want to open another location — particularly one that allows them to make 60-barrel batches. In Springfield, they will be making three-barrel batches.
Goulet is also the creator of the Worthy Brew Fest that takes place every year on Worthington Street in Springfield. He explained that it is a 1,000-person brew fest with 30 home brewers and 30 professional brewers — all with talent, desire and a want to have their own brewery.
The name “Loophole,” came from Sam Adams, he said. Every year at the festival, they have a brewery recipe challenge where one drink is selected and sold by Sam Adams. Goulet referred to this as the Aspiring Brewers Program, which Loophole wants to offer. He explained that a brewer can visit their brew pub and they will work with them on licensing the beer and brewing it under Loophole — allowing it to be poured legally — as home brewers cannot sell it on their own. “This is the loophole that allows them to do so,” he said.
Loophole Brewing can be found on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.
For additional information about the brew pub, visit loophole.beer.