Local brewing and fermentation evangelist Adam Harrington has opened a new tap house on Flagstaff鈥檚 east side. Fittingly named Harrington鈥檚 Tap House, the space serves a variety of beer, wine, cider, mead and sake in a cozy and sociable atmosphere.
Harrington,聽formerly head brewer at Mother Road Brewing Company, is the owner of High Altitude Home Brew Supply and Bottle Shop. The new taphouse is located adjacent to his brewing supply store on East Lakin Drive.
His vision for the new taphouse, he said, largely comes from his experiences abroad. He specifically drew inspiration from the small bars of Spain鈥檚 Basque Region, where he once lived for nine months, and from English pubs.
鈥淚t was a really cool culture. It wasn鈥檛 debaucherous,鈥� Harrington said of the bar scene he experienced in San Sebastian, Spain. 鈥淚t was more a socializing time to get out of your home and spend time with your friends.鈥�
The taphouse, he hopes, will be 鈥渁 place to have conversations, and meet your neighbors,鈥� with no TV screens, no hard alcohol and an earlier closing time than typical bars.
Harrington believes that this type of community-oriented drinking space is needed on the east side, where he also lives.
鈥淭his is kind of a desert over here,鈥� he said. 鈥淓ast of the downtown scene, there鈥檚 not a whole lot, and there鈥檚 a lot of people living over here.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 excited to see what this side of town does in the next few years,鈥� he added.
In terms of brews, Harrington said, 鈥淲e鈥檒l do some local stuff, we鈥檒l do some micro-brew stuff, we鈥檒l do some of the macro-brew stuff.鈥� He said he hopes to highlight 鈥渓ocal, small, unheard-of breweries鈥� from across Arizona and beyond, but he also plans to include some better-known staples: 鈥淚 think we鈥檒l have Modelo on tap.鈥�
Special collaborative beers with local Flagstaff breweries may end up on the tap list, too.
Although Harrington has been leasing the space alongside the brewing supply store for years already, transforming it turned out to be a prolonged and difficult process -- 鈥渁 lot of hiccups,鈥� as he put it.
鈥淭his was a private gun shop, so I was finding lots of ammunition around here and wiping the fingerprints off and putting it in a plastic bag and giving it back to the old tenant. I was like, 鈥業 want nothing to do with these!鈥欌€� he recalled, laughing.
After teardown and cleanup, Harrington began to rebuild the space with the help of friends and family, sometimes in between helping customers in the brewing supply store.
鈥淢y dad and I, plus a few friends, built the bar,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e bought logs, milled them down, planed them. The bar is built literally from scratch -- we did everything except for cut down the tree.鈥�
He鈥檚 been using reclaimed materials where possible, such as the tabletops from the now-closed Blendz wine bar and wood from an old indoor basketball court.
The taphouse itself won鈥檛 serve food, but Harrington plans to coordinate with food trucks to have dining options available outside.
鈥淜ind of mix and match who鈥檚 coming in every weekend,鈥� he said, 鈥渁nd then encourage people to bring food in from the local businesses around here.鈥�
He intends to feature the work of local artists on the walls, beginning with paintings by Sky Black, and to host trivia or board game nights on occasion.
But most of all, he said, he鈥檚 just eager to welcome people.
鈥淚鈥檝e been blood, sweat, and tears in it for three years," he said.
Harrington鈥檚 Tap House is located at 2711 E. Lakin Drive and is open 2 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 10 p.m. Saturday, and 11 am to 9 p.m. Sunday. A tap list and more information can be found at .