Brews News: Fledgling Salish Sea Brewery Coming to Edmonds

A new local beer option, Salish Sea Brewery, is coming to Edmonds, likely by summer, says the owner of the Old Milltown development on 5th Avenue.

A lease has been executed, and Rosen Harbottle, which owns and operates the property, is getting ready to pull tenant improvement permits for the 1,600-square-foot space, located in the funky modern three-store addition on the Dayton Street side of the Old Milltown property.

When the space is ready, Salish Sea Brewery plans to brew and serve beer on-site and to hold tastings, Jack Rosen of Rosen Harbottle said. The owners of the brewery, Jeff Barnett and his wife, Erika, have been perfecting their recipes and looking for a space for months, operating as a "brewery in planning," according to the company's website:

We evolved from the stove top with extract batches, to setting up a small all grain batch brewery (8 gallon kettles Thanksgiving turkey frying pots -  on propane burners with converted coolers for mash tuns) on the back porch,  to bigger and bigger goals.  From a 5 gallon pot on the stove (with a batch of extract syrup) to a 10 gallon converted cooler (with cracked grain) and kegs turned to kettles to working on a 15 barrel brewery creating batches that go state to state – national - international.  We made batches at home for ourselves, for friends, for weddings, parties, etc..  and realized this is what we wanted to do for a job.   Jeff apprenticed with a professional brewer (Skip Madsen of Pike, Boundary Bay, American, etc…) and learned the pro angle of the trade.   We have seen the evolution, gone through it, appreciate it, and are happy to be where we are.

We are still small batch testing on the patio with a professional 26 gallon pilot system.  Our fellow home brew aficionados are helping us out with ideas, kegging, cleaning, and bottling.

Leasing activity has been brisk there, Rosen said, with Segway of Edmonds taking the farthest east storefront recently, and Canarino Gelato making plans to open soon in the center storefront. With the addition of Salish Sea, all of the street-level retail is filled, and all but one inside office space, Rosen said.

Rosen said the new brewery space is really interesting with a ramp down into it and should make an eclectic alternative for people looking for a cold beer this summer in Edmonds. Barring any bumps in the road to a liquor license for the brewery, the business is expected to open this summer, Rosen said.