"Flying Dreams" Become Reality For Local Brewery
MARLBOROUGH- The craft beer industry is booming in cities and towns across America, and has no doubt hit Massachusetts hard much to the delight of its residents. For a local brewery out of Worcester, the opportunity to capitalize on a turn-key taproom just 25 minutes away in Marlborough has been, well, a dream come true.
"The stars just aligned for us," says Flying Dreams Brewery owner Dave Richardson, who has been operating a brewery in Worcester since 2015 with no immediate plans to open a second location. "We had already taken out a loan to start a canning line, so my intention wasn't to try and go find a place to start a taproom anytime soon."
Yet after learning the Marlborough location's former tenant Walden Woods wasn't going to be opening, Richardson says he knew he'd been given an opportunity he couldn't let pass by. "We met the landlord and we were like, 'I think we can do this'."
Richardson says the response from the community so far has been overwhelmingly positive. "The residents and the city have been super supportive of us. We've had lots of people come by and say they can't wait until we open and poke their heads in."
With the taproom already being so well developed from its former tenants, Richardson knew he had to make the location his own. He began by looking at the space as a blank canvas, and brought in a local artist to bring the walls of the brewery to life. "The main personal twist is Kai," he says, referring to mural artist Kai Griffiths that has been recognized for his work in Pow Wow Worcester. Griffiths is responsible for painting several murals throughout the walls of the space. "You're going to walk into the taproom and be transported into the Flying Dreams world," Richardson says, describing scenes of flying creatures, planets and machines."When you walk in, it's not going to look like any brewery around here that I've been into. You'll be walking into a work of art."
As far as the beer itself, the taproom will have eight tap lines for its customers to enjoy brewed by Flying Dreams Head Brewer Lee Chiang that Richardson expects to be running at all times. "We're not a jack of all trades, but kind of like a master of all trades. We like to do a little bit of everything and we're perfectionists, so we like to do it well."
Richardson says he anticipates a soft opening for Flying Dreams in just over a month, with a formal opening to follow.
To see the video from WMCT News, click the link below:
