Yankee Brew News Archive

Brewpub Review: Brown and Moran Brewing Company

Originally Published: Sum/93

By: Gregg Smith

The Erie canal was a nineteenth century engineering masterpiece that gave America a lock on its reputation as a builder. The terminus of the canal, where it met the Hudson River, combined with the area's abundant water power made Troy, New York a boom town. This original "home of Uncle Sam" manufactured many of the government supplies for a young nation and was a distribution center for grain brought in from the west. Later as the railroads of Jay Gould and Cornelius Vanderbilt paralleled the canal's path the area continued to grow. The supply routes, along with the powerful thirst of canal and railroad men, made it a natural location for breweries. In fact, by 1885 Troy had two major maltsters and 18 breweries that produced more than 170,000 barrels per year. All that ended by the late 1960s.

Twenty years later fate took a lucky turn for Troy when two high school friends decided to vacation in California. Gary Brown and Jim Moran had never been in a brew pub before that trip but after a taste they tried to make up for lost time. Flying back to New York they found themselves in a familiar conversation; how they should be in business for themselves. Soon they were agreeing their love for beer was a sign they should be brewers.

Back home Jim recalls, "We decided that if we were going to be in the brewing business, we ought to be brewing". Armed with Bill Owen's book on how to open a brew pub, and without any other aid, they decided to build a full mash home brewing system. Using an old hot water heater and spa material they were soon producing their own beers. Buoyed with confidence from this early success the two partners started researching a business plan in 1988. As work progressed the two friends naturally fell into the niches that were their respective strengths. Jim describes himself as the researcher and Gary as the builder. "Gary's just great, you draw a sketch of what you want and he figures out the design and how to put it all together."

As the idea grew, the search for a location didn't take them far from home. A burned out building in downtown Troy right on the river seemed a natural spot. For more than two years the partners and their friends would come home grimy and tired from the job of gutting the building, and on one occasion Jim actually fell through the weakened floor. Salvaging beams and floor boards from a demolition site just down the street they breathed new life back into the old warehouse while they struggled with New York's complicated building codes.

When it was time to install a brew system they went to the best and consulted with Greg Noonan, proprietor of the Vermont Pub and Brewery. They had a great place reserved for the brewery. In the back corner the building was now open from the basement through the second floor. It was perfect for constructing a traditional European-style tower brewery and it even had a freight hoist.

The result is unlike other brewpubs which usually just display fermenters or serving tanks at best. Brown and Moran does them one better by placing the entire brewery in view. From the second floor with its 2 roller Roskamp grain mill down to mash tun and brew kettle the patrons can follow the entire operation. One of the unique features is the manner in which the mash tun is elevated on top of a steel platform. It gives the brewers easy access for removing spent grains and cleaning both the tun and the grant.

Another well thought design is the brewery's energy efficiency. As mentioned, the brewery is a tower design which maximizes the use of gravity. Meanwhile the fermentation and conditioning tanks use a principle in refrigeration. In order to cool something down you must remove and pump away the heat. (For proof just sit behind your refrigerator on a hot day you'll quickly become a believer.) Thus refrigeration does cools the conditioning tanks and the heat which is pumped away maintains the correct temperature for ale yeast in the fermenters.

Upstairs the pub has captured the feeling of old Troy by recreating the labels and advertisements of the old breweries. Sitting in the brewpub you get to enjoy these murals, collections of Troy breweriana, and the warm atmosphere of the wood and brick. Meanwhile one floor below are the fourteen tanks holding a total 3,388 gallons of beer waiting to be served. If the pub seems big there's good reason; the 11,600 square feet places it as the ninth largest in the United States.

The beers they've prepared are a Golden, Amber, Porter and Weizen. The Amber is a western style pale ale with big smooth malt body and an equally bold and assertive hoppiness. As with the gold, the amber starts with a sweet, rich maltiness that balances in the mid taste and finishes with big hops. Beware of drinking these too cold. Let a slightly warmer temperature release the fruity esters present in both ales.

The Porter is another good bet. This beer will please those that crave both a smooth, slightly sweet malt and a balanced full body. The Porter has a malty dominance from the use of chocolate and crystal malt while following the western style with a touch of roastiness and noticeable hops. The hops are a combination of Mt. Hood and Williamette leaf hops along with Cascade pellets. With all the beers it pays to remember that Gary and Jim were influenced by the brews of the west and theirs follow with the big taste and flowery nose of hops.

The restaurant side of the house is yet another good reason to stop in. It's always good to visit a brewpub that has put some forethought into matching the food to the beer, and since they have been brewing since September '92 they had plenty of time to refine the menu for the February '93 opening. The traditional pub fare of sandwiches, grilled steak, chicken and fish is all complemented with spices that are assertive enough so the food neither smothers the beer nor gets lost in it. Additional specialty dishes of Cajun shrimp, steaks and a variety of chili should be given serious consideration.

The inside of the pub is airy, warm and just the place to go and forget winter for a while. The antiques, breweriana and murals combined with the beer will soon have you thinking back to the beers and times of days gone by. But this is an all season establishment and a real treat will be summer alfresco dining on a large outdoor deck overlooking the Hudson river. While you're sitting there you just may catch a vision of river and railroad men, and maybe old Uncle Sam looking to quench his thirst.