Pulpit Rock & Barn Town

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Al_4_State

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I'm going to bet it's an April Fool's joke.

But anything these two do together has been amazing, and you can make a strong argument that they're the best breweries in Iowa right now.

Being able to get Barn Town within a 15 minute radius all the time would be amazing.
 
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DSMCy

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I'm going to bet it's an April Fool's joke.

But anything these two do together has been amazing, and you can make a strong argument that they're the best breweries in Iowa right now.

Being able to get Pulpit Rock within a 15 minute radius all the time would be amazing.

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Also - FIFY
 

capitalcityguy

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I guess there is no downside if this turns out to be an April Fool's joke. In the meantime, people are talking about them.
 

NickTheGreat

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I'm guessing a joke too, but it's a weird joke. Like, not crazy enough to be funny, but real enough to be believable. Which is a bad joke.
 
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SWCy13

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While this is a joke, rumor around the area is that Pulpit is in the process of purchasing the large building right next door to them (which was a furniture store that recently went out of business) with the intent to scale up and begin distributing more widely.

If so, it'll be interesting to see if their beers change drastically. It's one thing to make every single pastry sour, stout, and milkshake IPA under the sun with local ingredients on a 7 BBL system, but a whole different ballgame if they're going to try and do the same on a larger scale. Not saying that their more "traditional" beers aren't great, because they are, I'm just curious to see if it changes their direction.

It would be slightly surprising if this is true and would be curious to see what changes they'd make if/when they begin distributing. They've got to be an absolute money making machine selling out of 4pks of beer for $20-25+ almost weekly, even with their high cost of ingredients.
 

Al_4_State

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While this is a joke, rumor around the area is that Pulpit is in the process of purchasing the large building right next door to them (which was a furniture store that recently went out of business) with the intent to scale up and begin distributing more widely.

If so, it'll be interesting to see if their beers change drastically. It's one thing to make every single pastry sour, stout, and milkshake IPA under the sun with local ingredients on a 7 BBL system, but a whole different ballgame if they're going to try and do the same on a larger scale. Not saying that their more "traditional" beers aren't great, because they are, I'm just curious to see if it changes their direction.

It would be slightly surprising if this is true and would be curious to see what changes they'd make if/when they begin distributing. They've got to be an absolute money making machine selling out of 4pks of beer for $20-25+ almost weekly, even with their high cost of ingredients.

I think there's truth to the rumor of them buying the old furniture building. I wouldn't assume a significant increase in output because of it.

Their current brewing space is insanely crowded, and just having more space to operate plus let them make a little more beer is what the old furniture store could offer. Would give space to spread out their big events a little easier too. Release days and anniversary parties can be very tight in the current set up.
 
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huntt26

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I initially read that post like they bought a furniture store next to Barn Town! haha

They could definitely use some more space for events and to get lines to move more efficient. They did do a fantastic job with the BA Cake Walk release. Hopefully they don't change too much with their strategy. Their beers are phenomenal and I don't mind one bit waiting in line for hours to get their special releases. Much better than refreshing a crashing website to try and get tickets.
 
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SWCy13

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I think there's truth to the rumor of them buying the old furniture building. I wouldn't assume a significant increase in output because of it.

Their current brewing space is insanely crowded, and just having more space to operate plus let them make a little more beer is what the old furniture store could offer. Would give space to spread out their big events a little easier too. Release days and anniversary parties can be very tight in the current set up.

I agree, I don’t think they’re not going to go crazy big with their system, but I can’t see buying a 10,000+ sf space without the intention of brewing more beer. Selfishly I’m just hoping for a day that I don’t have to pay $16 for a 4pk of Saftig that’s only available once every few months.
 

baller21

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Barntown is good but PR is on another level. Was just in Decorah over the weekend and noticed the furniture store going out of business next door. Immediately wondered if they were buying it. It would be great if they moved the brewing operation over there and used the entire existing building for taproom.

Also got the lowdown on the name change of their Whippy DIPA to Softly Served. Apparently the owner of the Whippy Dip is an ******* and threatened to sue. Not very neighborly and they’re not the only ones. The dental practice next door blocks people from using their parking lot all weekend even though they’re not open. You would think the other businesses in town would be a little more appreciative of the extra money they make from all the visitors that PR and TG bring in.
 
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Al_4_State

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Barntown is good but PR is on another level. Was just in Decorah over the weekend and noticed the furniture store going out of business next door. Immediately wondered if they were buying it. It would be great if they moved the brewing operation over there and used the entire existing building for taproom.

Also got the lowdown on the name change of their Whippy DIPA to Softly Served. Apparently the owner of the Whippy Dip is an ******* and threatened to sue. Not very neighborly and they’re not the only ones. The dental practice next door blocks people from using their parking lot all weekend even though they’re not open. You would think the other businesses in town would be a little more appreciative of the extra money they make from all the visitors that PR and TG bring in.

The owners of the Whippy Dip are very conservative and didn't have an issue with the beer name until Pulpit hosted the Decorah Pride party. Or so I've heard. They've been making Whippy DIPA for several runs and it wasn't until after hosting the Pride party was anything threatened. Allegedly.

The dental office thing is even more bizarre, on a lot of levels, that I won't bother to explain here. Not a good look for the dental office, suffice it to say.

TG has run afoul of local businesses before as well, but that had more to do with Clark Lewey's general disregard for anyone but himself. Most places around embrace the dollars that beer tourism has brought to the area. My house has appreciated since I bought it in 2012, and I know that a large part of that is directly attributable to increased interest in the Driftless Area, which is in no small part related to the craft beer thing.