Already 14 hours into my road trip from North Carolina to Denver for the Craft Brewers Conference in May, I had seen about as much interstate highway as my eyes could take for one day. Luckily, the timing of my respite from the endless stretch of I-70 put me near the exit for Lawrence—home of the University of Kansas and one of the Midwest’s pioneer breweries.
Free State Brewing Company is a lively, award-winning brewpub along Massachusetts Street, one of the main drags of this college town. Just like my visit there in 2012 at the end of a six-week, coast-to-coast road trip, the place was full of patrons. A solo musician was performing on the sidewalk, while thirsty 20-somethings kicked back and soaked up the scene on the patio.
In 1989, thanks to persistent lobbying from owner Chuck Magerl, Free State became the first legal brewery to open in Kansas in more than a century. In February 2014, the brewery celebrated its 25th anniversary.
The original JV Northwest brew house, installed by New Glarus co-owner/brewmaster Dan Carey, still churns out the beer at the Massachusetts St. location. Free State, which produces about 2,000 barrels annually at the brewpub, utilizes four 15-barrel fermenters and one 30-barrel tank. Dry-hopping takes place inside three conditioning vessels perched above them on the brewery’s unique upper deck.
A separate production facility two miles away, which came online in 2009, currently yields another 8,000 barrels.
Four flagship products pour year-round at Free State: Wheat State Golden, Oatmeal Stout, Ad Astra Brown Ale and the top-selling Copperhead Pale Ale, named when Steve Bradt, head of brewing and bottling, stepped on one of the poisonous snakes on his buddy’s porch after brewing the initial batch.
Bradt leads an acclaimed brew staff at Free State. He has judged at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) and World Beer Cup (WBC) , holds the rank of National Judge with the Beer Judge Certification Program, serves as president of the Kansas Craft Brewers Guild and is a Brewers Association board member who serves on the BA’s Events Committee.
Bradt oversees the recently expanded production facility, which is now bottling six-packs, variety 12-packs and specialty four-packs—including Cloud Hopper Imperial IPA and 2012 GABF medal-winner Iron Man Imperial Stout—for distribution throughout Kansas, parts of Missouri and, starting last month, Omaha, Neb.
Geoff Deman, head of downtown brewing since 2002, remembers the spacious building once served as Lawrence’s inter-urban trolley house and a Greyhound bus station. He began working at Free State from day one as a 16-year-old bus boy, and now is a multiple GABF and WBC veteran judge.
The brewpub features a full-service, 200-seat restaurant and a host of specialty brews beyond the four mainstays. During my visit they included Umami, a German-style helles made with cucumber and a healthy dose of ginger. Ironically, the beer was inspired by a cucumber-basil beer served by one of my own hometown breweries, Wicked Weed, at the 2013 GABF.
A rotating tap handle also pours specialty brews such as Owd Mac’s, a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout, and Old Backus Barleywine, both of which score a perfect 100 on Ratebeer.com. The latest seasonal, meanwhile, is another nod to Kansas’ tornadic weather events, Storm Chaser, an IPA made with a substantial amount of Citra hops and wheat malt in the grist.
The restaurant’s menu is highlighted by such appetizers as Spanish baked goat cheese and smoked salmon bruschetta, and entrees include steak, chicken, pasta, quesadillas, fish and chips and a chicken and crawfish gumbo.
Free State, located at 636 Massachusetts Street, is open 11 a.m. to midnight Monday through Saturday, and noon to 11 p.m. Sunday. Text “free state” to 626-414-3210 to get on the waiting list!
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