An award-winning homebrewer is opening a brewery in Davis Square
Somerville’s booming brewery scene will soon see a new addition in the heart of Davis Square.
“people in the neighborhood can stop by and have an espresso, hang, or work here,”
Behind the brewery is Nick DeFae, a data scientist and award-winning homebrew enthusiast.
To him, beer as a hobby isn’t enough; he hopes to mash hospitality into beer and build a community around it. A brewery with an all day cafe seemed to fit the bill.
After years of simmering the idea, the Vermont native finally found the ideal space in Somerville, where he has been living for the past 15 years. He quipped that, despite having a robust craft beer scene, there’s an opportunity in Davis Square in that there’s “no brewery within walking distance,” he said.
A passionate advocate of New England-style IPAs, DeFae heeds the demand to bring excitement and innovation to this style of beer, which some may feel has become a bit trite in recent years. Oversaturation of craft brewing and the said breweries’ laser focus on the hazy, smoothie-like beer have turned some beer fans away, but DeFae believes that “new hop products and an improved understanding of the biochemistry of the hops” may help turn the tide.
To achieve this goal, he tapped veteran brewer Bryan Daly, the former head brewer of Definitive Brewing Company in Portland, Maine to lead the production. Daly oversaw the launch of many of the flagship hoppy beers at Definitive; he’s also a certified brewmaster with training in classical beer styles at the VLB Berlin, a leading beer research and education institute in Berlin, Germany.
Riding the wave of small, crushable beers driven by changing consumer behavior, DeFae will combine forces with Daly to experiment with low ABV IPAs that “still retain the hoppiness and flavor of the classic version.” But the core of the business remains DeFae’s true passion, the New England IPA that has sparked his desire to brew beer. He cited Trillium and Tree House Brewing as his inspiration and was moved by the precision and innovation both companies instilled in their beers.
The former auto body shop had been vacant for a number of years and was converted to an open floor plan office space about 10 years ago. Located at 49 Day St., its neighbors will include local haunts such as Sacco’s / American Flatbread and Redbones Barbecue, and the main drag of the bustling square is just a stone’s throw away.
DeFae envisions a cafe that “serves the community,” where “people in the neighborhood can stop by and have an espresso, hang, or work here,” he said. Once the construction commences, the indoor taproom and outdoor patio will seat around 120 people and the other half of the space will be dedicated to its brewhouse with a 10-barrel capacity. ASK+, a local architecture design firm whose clients included other Cambridge and Somerville hot spots such as Lamplighter Brewing, Remnant Brewing, and Broadsheet Coffee, will lead the buildout.