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After more than 15 years of slinging suds to locals and tourists alike, the Capitol City Brewing Company location at Postal Square poured its last pints on Saturday.
Fear not, fans of Amber Waves and other frothy house-made brews. You won’t have to schlep all the way Capitol City’s downtown location at 11th and H streets NW for too long. According to brewer Micah Krichinsky, the local chain plans to open a new Capitol City location inside Union Station in October.
One big difference: you won’t see the same big tanks of beer at the new spot. From now on, brewing operations for all Capitol City locations, and the company’s new beer-focused restaurant and bar, 901, which opened in the Penn Quarter in May, will be handled at the company’s Shirlington outpost.
Some of the equipment from Postal Square will be moved to Shirlington, but most of it will be sold or scrapped (you can actually buy a bunch of stuff through an online auction), which is probably for the best. Krichinsky, who took over brewing operations at Postal Square back in March, has spent the last several months tirelessly troubleshooting issues and obsessively cleaning in order to improve the quality of his beer there. At least to him, the hard work has paid off. “I’m really proud of the beer that is on for the closing,” he told me. “I wanted to send this place off right.”
Here’s a look at some of the suds that Capitol Hill regulars will be missing. (At least until October.) The highly heralded Amber Waves is one of my favorites.
Amber Waves
American red ale, filtered, medium bodied, well balanced with a nice malty middle and finishes with an assertive hop character.
5.3% Alcohol by Volume (ABV)
2006 Silver Medal, 2005 Gold Medal Winner Great Americal Beer Festival
Capitol Kölsch
German golden ale, filtered, light bodied lager like characteristic from cooler fermentation temp. Clean and crisp with a dry finish.
4.8% ABV
ESB-Extra Special Bitter
This one is a bit of a misnomer for a classic English-style ale. Herbal hop aroma and a complex caramel flavor make this smooth medium-bodied beer and easy sell.
5.1% ABV
Hefeweizen
German style wheat beer. Unfiltered and refreshing this ale has notes of banana and clove from fermentation.
5.4% ABV
IPA
Brewed with Centennial, Galena and Ahtanum for dry hopping, this unfiltered American-style IPA packs a big hop character from start to finish. Big floral/citrus aroma with a satisfying hop bitterness.
89 IBU’s
7.3% ABV
Oatmilk Stout
Rich and roasty, this medium bodied dark stout was brewed with lactose and flaked oats for a smooth finish. English hops and yeast compliment our intepretation of this classic ale.
5.5% ABV
Pale Rider
American style pale ale, filtered, medium/full bodied, highly hopped character with a nice bitterness and aroma.
6.1% ABV
Light Lager
Filtered, continental-style lager brewed with corn for a lighter body. Malty grain aroma and a very clean taste distinguish this end of summer beer.
4.5% ABV
Prohibition Porter
Dark, roasty ale, unfiltered, medium bodied and nice hop presence to balance the dark malt flavor.
5.3% ABV
Photo by Tammy Tuck