*This is the fifty-fifth post in an on-going chronicle dubbed the Great Wisconsin Brewery Tour. Follow the journey here.*
Urban Harvest Brewing Company
1024 S 5th St
Milwaukee, WI 53204
(414) 249-4074
Visit date: 05/07/16
Quick Hits:
1) How many different beers?
12 on tap, around 24 recipes.
2) How long operational?
Opened April 8, 2016 (5 weeks)
3) Why? (here, this, etc)
“Opportunities available in Walker’s Point.”
4) Distribution?
2-barrel system; growlers to go.
5) What sets you apart?
“Easy, drinkable, approachable styles.”
6) How did you get your name?
“We plant the brewing seed.”
Urban Harvest Brewing Company in Milwaukee. All photos by Joe Powell.
It took 3 years, looking at “dozens of places”, and a timely ad on Craigslist to get Urban Harvest’s Mark and Steve a location to brew their passion, but Milwaukee’s newest microbrewery is up and running: with 12 beers on tap out of the gate.
The Cream City Brick is beautiful in the bountiful natural light.
Adding to the extremely vibrant craft-food and beverage scene in Walker’s Point, Steve mentions that their spot in the neighborhood, anchoring the south end of 5th Street, puts them not necessarily in competition with the other brewers nearby, but instead sees them all as “a draw to the area” and mutually beneficial. As brewery-hoppers ourselves, we couldn’t agree more. This is the same type of thinking that we’ve seen first hand produce exciting, collaborative beer cultures in Denver and Seattle.
But Steve does admit that part of the draw so far has been that “(Urban Harvest is) so different.” Having a varied and extensive portfolio of beers early on surely helps with that; we tried all 12 ($8/flight of 4).
An impressive amount of beer comes out of such a small setup.
414 Golden Ale
Floral-forward; like drinking a summery field of wildflowers.
Black Puppy Pale Ale
The one I kept coming back to: extremely smooth, akin to an APA.
Ach Ya Der Hey-Fe Weizen
Clove explosion with lingering banana on your tongue.
Corkscrew IPA
Strong grapefruit start and a hoppy finish.
HC IPA
Malty mouthfeel ending with a very dry wash.
Olde Towne Amber
A classic: drink this while fixing a car with your grandpa.
Wicket Summer Wheat
Golden & smooth.
Cascade IPA
Fresh hops on hops on hops.
Nookie Nookie Chinook Citra Pale Ale
“Surpising.” Meaty & bold.
Willy Scotch Ale
Fantastic; smooth, boozy, creamy.
Espresso Amber
A coffee shop in your mouth, but beer.
Blood Orange Wheat
A tangy beer-mosa.
“Milwaukee’s the center of what we do. We’ve got a family-background to the business, and we want to be neighbor-oriented.” – Steve (head brewer)
Steve and Mark, the men behind the magic.
Though they’re just getting their feet wet with their own taproom, the beautiful space in a growing location pairs perfectly with Urban Harvest’s beer. It’s a fitting name for a place dedicated to growing Milwaukee’s bounty (that’s beer, folks).
I’m trademarking the term “Milwaukee’s bounty” as it relates to beer.