WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JANUARY 28 - FEBRUARY 3, 2022 | 21
THE NEXT DRAFT
Changes giving Gardner brewpub early taste of spring Matthew Tota Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK
Mired in winter, still a month from the start of spring, I try to escape the doldrums by searching for signs of rebirth and renewal. I found one in downtown Gardner last week, across two cold, gray days. Outside the Gardner Ale House and its brewery, Moon Hill Brewing Co., staff in sweatshirts and jackets needed a dolly to drag a giant fermenter into the brewhouse. When up and running, the tank will allow Moon Hill to gradually increase production from about 700 barrels a year to 1,200. A day later, owner Rick Walton closed the brewpub and helped unload a truck of new chairs and barstools, capping a spree of recent changes at the Ale House, including a new menu. Reopening last Thursday, Walton felt a little like he did in the spring of 2006 when the brewpub fi rst opened, then as an important piece of the downtown’s revival. “The place is just looking really marvelous,” he said. “We’re trying to do a regrand opening after 15 years of being in business. We revamped the menu, reconfi gured the kitchen. It’s been an early spring cleaning.” The overhaul has been long overdue. The past two years have not been easy for the brewpub. Like other breweries and restaurants, Walton has had to change things up to adapt to the pandemic. One of the few true brewpubs remaining in the state, Moon Hill was better suited than most to weather the storm. The two elements of the business – food and beer – worked together to keep the whole operation afl oat. “We were forced into a position where we had to make changes or call it a day,” he said. “We decided to make some changes – huge changes. We had to tighten our belt incredibly, change up the kitchen, reduce the size of the menu. And we had to get to canning.” To off set slower draft sales, Walton added a canning line in the fall of 2020 and started distributing through Berkshire Brewing Co. “That was too much fun,” he said of
Rick Walton is the owner of the Gardner Ale House. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE
Moon Hill’s foray into canning. “We started designing labels, because before we didn’t really need labels for our beer. All of a sudden, we’re designing labels left and right for 10 or 12 diff erent beers that we’re now distributing through Berkshire – 30 to 40 cases a week.” Head brewer Chad Warner has been on a tear, Walton said, putting out new styles for Moon Hill such as sour while upping production of its staples like the American IPA “Pufnstuf.” Last year, Moon Hill brewed around 700 barrels. Now with the additional fermenter, Walton expects to fi nish the year right around 1,000 barrels, which is close to about all the brewery can make
at its size. “If we want to do any more, we’re looking at opening a second brewery or moving to a new location,” he said. It’s unlikely Moon Hill would ever move, though, based on the success of the Ale House. The restaurant remains the biggest piece of the business and running it, especially recently, consumes much of Walton’s time. Still he can feel his attention starting to shift more to the brewery. “It’s hard to separate the brewery from the restaurant,” Walton said. Almost as if to reinforce that point, among the changes to the restaurant has been the addition of a new sign hanging out-
side that better advertises Moon Hill. “Brewing was my fi rst love. But because I loved the people in this community so much, I had to have a restaurant,” he said. “The restaurant just took over my life. But now it’s the other way around. The beer gets so much of my attention.” In the spring, Walton will revamp the Ale House’s restaurant again and prepare for the rush that follows the onset of warmer days. Meanwhile he’ll enjoy this early taste of the vernal equinox happening around the brewpub. “I feel like I’m starting all over again,” he said.
