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CORRECTION: As Capitol City has pointed out to us, our post below includes sloppy language that we regret. We cited “a patron” telling the Washington Post that the odor was that of sewage. In fact, the complaint came from a customer of the post office. The odor, now known to have been grease build-up in an old pipe, appears to have been confined to the mail sorting facility downstairs from Cap City. Furthermore, we’re told that the problem has been resolved. Again, we regret the error.
Literally. We have no problems with Capitol City‘s beer. In fact, it’s one of the great pleasures of DC’s beer culture to be able to drink fresh brews next to its beautiful fermentation tanks. To be clear: we love fresh beer. But when it comes along with a foul-smelling odor, the experience is considerably diminished. The Washington Post reports that Cap City, located upstairs from the US Post Office facility on Massachusetts Avenue on Capitol Hill, is indeed a stinky place lately. From the Post:
Kelvin Nwosu, general manager of Capitol City Brewing Company, a restaurant on the floor above the post office, said the smell is the result of a leaking pipe somewhere in the bowels of the building, known for its round-the-block lines come annual tax deadline time in April. Three weeks ago, Capitol City received a report of leakage in the post office lobby, where several ceiling panels bear brown stains. Contractors hired by the restaurant opened walls to try to pinpoint the leak, unleashing the stink. “Everything has kind of really embedded really strongly in the concrete,” said Nwosu, who has worked at Capitol City since October. “We’re working on it.”
Cap City has understandably been a little hesitant to characterize the odor. But one patron told the Post that it had the unmistakable stench of sewage. Still, plenty of people seem to be braving the stink to fill their bellies with fresh beer. Contractors are working the problem, but accessing the faulty pipes is itself quite an undertaking, given that most of them are buried behind floors and walls. They supposedly broke through Cap City’s kitchen floor on Sunday night and everything might be resolved as early as next week. Meantime, the restaurant remains open.
Photo by Cavalier92 used under a Creative Commons license.