ESCANABA, Mich. (WZMQ) – A Delta County Brewery has nearly finished a major expansion project.
Right now, it’s quiet at Upper Hand Brewery, which has been closed for just over a month. However, big changes are underway inside.
“Our customers have been cramped in our cozy little space for too many years,” said General Manager Dakota Soule. “We had an opportunity in our slower season to close down temporarily to bring to the community what they’ve always asked for.”
The taproom has been redecorated, creating space for more chairs and tables. Upper Hand has also added a second room for patrons.
“We increased our seating from about 16 to almost 45 I think total, so almost triple,” Soule said. “We have a different variety of high tops, low tops, different sizes. We have different games that we can play inside, and we have TVs now as well in that secondary space.”
The room also includes an indoor stage.
“It definitely will be utilized on maybe some slower nights,” said Soule, “and definitely into the fall and winter. We’re hoping to bring in live music to have year-round.”
Live music has long been a hallmark of the brewery. Live music is regularly being played in the summer and early fall on The Wedge, a small stage right outside the taproom. To accommodate the often large turnouts, the team has been working on a new, larger stage behind the building.
Of course, Upper Hand has also been brewing some new beer releases to welcome customers back.
“When we do reopen, we will have three brand new beers on tap for that opening celebration,” Soule said. “It’s a rebirth of an old favorite, along with two variants that we had some fun with. We did release a blackberry porter and a porter two days before our temporary closure. That will also be on tap, so it’s almost like having five new beers on the menu right off the bat.”
The expansion coincides with the sale of Upper Hand Brewery from New Belgium Brewing Company to a California-based company Seven Beverages in February.
“As part of the Bell’s and New Belgium portfolio, we were technically internationally owned,” Soule explained. “Now, we are once again domestically owned, so that’s great.”
He says the change is already having positive impacts on the brewery.
“These new owners have been nothing but fantastic,” said Soule. “They’ve visited Escanaba a couple times now. We’ve met with Jim McNeil, the City Manager, to talk about some exciting new opportunities that we can do with our space. We’re sitting on five acres of property, and it’s been severely underutilized for many years, and these new owners see the potential. They really want us to take ownership back of this brand and of this brewery.”
Soule hopes to reopen the brewery in the next couple of weeks. He says the new Upper Hand experience will be well worth the wait.
“I am losing my mind not being able to have people in the building and seeing smiling faces and just chatting with regulars and hearing the stories,” he said. “That’s what a brewery and a taproom should be—a place to act as that third space for folks to relax, unwind, have fun. I’m very eager to have people back in. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Once the brewery reopens, Upper Hand will initially operate on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Tuesday through Sunday summer hours are expected to begin in May, with the goal of keeping that six-day schedule all year long.
For updates on Upper Hand Brewery’s reopening, hours of operation, and upcoming events, follow the brewery’s Facebook page.
