First Look: Alpha Brewing Co. and Alphateria in Tower Grove South

When Alpha Brewing Co. moved into its Washington Avenue location downtown in 2013, it was soon evident a bigger brewery was needed. Five years later, owner Derrick Langeneckert’s dream has been realized with a move to a much larger space at 4310 Fyler Ave. It’s slated to open tomorrow, March 16.

“We couldn’t make enough beer with the old system to even feed our own taproom,” Langeneckert said.

The buildings were constructed in 1966 to house as a tile company and later, a rake and shovel manufacturing company. Now, the building has new life thanks to the architecture and interior design by Dadoworks.

“We didn’t want the regular look every brewery has,” Langeneckert said. “We have no exposed brick or wooden benches; it’s more refined with a black and white theme.”

The move also means the brewery is now able to provide food to battle brew-induced hunger. Langeneckert has partnered with Mandy Estrella of catering company Plantain Girl to provide Caribbean cuisine in the Alphateria housed inside the taproom. 

The Alphateria is a food window with a variety of Caribbean-inspired snacks and meals. The menu isn’t set in stone, but will feature sweet plantains, tacos and mofongo, a traditional Dominican and Puerto Rican dish of fried green plantains mashed with garlic and olive oil, formed into ball and served with chicken broth and fried pork. There will also be tostones con aguacate, green plantain with avocado and pickled red onion.

Many of the brewery’s original downtown offerings will be available at the new location, as well as new barrel-aged beers that will comprise about half of the 20 brews on tap. Langeneckert will also have more room to experiment with sour beers, including pink guava and passion fruit, which will change every two to three months.

Alpha Brewing Co. will be open from 3 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 to 8 p.m. Sunday and 4 to 10 p.m. Monday. 

Lauren Healey is associate editor at Sauce Magazine.