In February, Homestead Beer Co. acquired Heart State Brewing, moving their brewing operations into the Heart State space in Gahanna. The company has maintained the two beer brands under one roof, leveraging the assets of each brand’s history to create a new experience. I chatted with Stan Riley, CEO of Red Barn Hospitality and co-owner of Homestead, to learn more.

According to Riley, the move was prompted by a desire to expand Homestead’s brewing capacity from its limited space in Heath, where the brewery opened its first taproom. When the opportunity to purchase the Heart State facility became an option, the team jumped at the chance.

From the start, the plan was to keep the two brands separate. The Heart State taproom offers 20 taps, with 10 dedicated to each label. Fortunately, the lineups work well together. “Homestead has already been known as a sophisticated craft beer drinkers beer,” Riley explained, while “Heart State is more wild, takes more chances. They’re a great complement.” He emphasized that they have not, and will not, make one beer packaged with two different labels- “we respect what they built [at Heart State]”. 

To learn the recipes from Heart State as well as continue brewing those from Homestead at a larger scale, brewer Andy Rich, formerly of Elevator, joined the team.

Riley shared that combining two beer brands into one space has been an “interesting challenge:” moving the brewery, with all of its equipment, over quickly. Getting our arms around Heart State as a brand was really difficult, he explained. General Manager Kim D’Anza worked with an artist from Portugal to redesign the labels for the Heart State brand to create a fun animated heart mascot, to emphasize the playful nature of the beers and distinguish them from Homestead’s more stolid label.

With the existing market for the two beers, keeping up with the demand on the production side has been a challenge. The remaining fermentation tanks from Heath were moved to Gahanna in August in order to meet the demand as they continue growing their distribution throughout the state.

Regular visitors of Heart State may have noticed that the kitchen has temporarily closed while the team upgrades the kitchen facility. When the kitchen re-opens soon, they will serve an expanded menu with a variety of pub fare. 

Visitors to the taproom will also notice a focus on events, with weekly happenings like pinball league, music trivia, and nightly drink specials. GM D’Anza, who joined Heart State after opening taprooms for CBC and BrewDog, is focused on building a fun customer experience for both brands in their new shared space. The team is also excited about the capacity to host larger events like corporate holiday parties. Riley’s Red Barn Hospitality also owns the Barrel & Boar gastropubs, which means barbecue can be catered for larger events.

For those who are not beer fans, one exciting development is the expansion into ciders. Homestead has already applied for a winery license and hopes to bring a cider to market soon. 

Additionally, the brewers are working on a recipe for a non-alcoholic beer that should be available sometime soon. As the kitchen menu expands, Beverage & Sales Director Ben Mooney shared that new cocktails will join the menu- look to see options featuring spirits from their neighbor Noble Cut Distillery.

The production brewery is open Tuesday- Friday 3pm-10pm, and Saturday- Sunday 12pm-10pm. For more information, visit https://www.heartstatebrewing.com/ and https://www.homesteadbeerco.com/.