Wild Heaven Beer Plans to Join Monday Night Brewing on BeltLine’s Westside Trail

Southwest Atlanta is getting another brewery adjacent to the BeltLine’s forthcoming Westside Trail. Monday Night Brewing is already on board to anchor the Lee + White development in West End, and now Wild Heaven Beer is joining the project. The Decatur-based craft brewery will expand with a second facility in the first half of 2018, according to a Thursday announcement.

“We plan to create an incredible beer and food destination in an area of Atlanta whose time has come,” Wild Heaven president Nick Purdy said in the announcement. “Beyond that, this facility provides space for our ongoing growth and expansion.”

The news comes a day after the Georgia Legislature passed a bill that would allow brewers and distillers in the state to bypass wholesalers and sell their products directly to consumers. If signed into law by Governor Nathan Deal, the changes would take effect September 1. It’s no coincidence Wild Heaven is announcing this expansion news on the heels of the bill’s passage.

“Thanks to the leadership and vision of Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, Senator Rick Jeffares, Representative Howard Maxwell, and the efforts of our wholesale partners and persistence of the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild, it makes sense to double down on on our home state,” Purdy said.

The new space will cover 21,000 square feet with room for expansion, including a taproom and large patio overlooking the BeltLine. Wild Heaven Westside, as it’s being called, will launch with 15-barrel brewhouse that allows for “production of new beers plus smaller run beers from our lineup,” according to brewmaster Eric Johnson. That will be followed by a 60-barrel system for production of Wild Heaven’s “mainline beers.” The original location in Decatur will eventually shift its focus to sour and barrel-aged beer production.

The BeltLine is becoming a destination for Atlanta’s craft beer lovers. In addition to Wild Heaven and Monday Night in West End, former Stone Brewing brewmaster Mitch Steele is opening a brewpub along the Eastside Trail in Poncey-Highland. That’s not far from a planned beer garden at Irwin Street Market in Old Fourth Ward.

The Lee + White development, named for its location at the intersection of Lee and White streets, will also house Southern Aged Cheese, Doux South Pickles, and Honeysuckle Gelato.

• Monday Night Brewing Will Anchor Southwest Atlanta's First Major BeltLine Development [EATL]
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