In Newtown, There's Room for Two

Broderick admits that his initial attempts at making beer were “amateurish,” so he hired head brewer Frank Lockwood to man the kettles. He is also joined by his father, former Waterbury restaurant owner Mark Broderick. Ryan Broderick decided on a spacious and well-lit warehouse for Reverie’s location, which had formerly operated as both a bus depot and automotive shop. Together, the Brodericks transformed the neglected space into a welcoming tasting room with plenty of seating at communal and small-party tables, all with views of the 10-barrel brewhouse as well as access to games and sunshine through an industrial-sized garage door that is kept open during pleasant weather.

Reverie keeps the choices on their 11 tap lines broad. There’s a nod to the current obsession with cloudy and floral varieties of India pale ales, but plenty of other options, like a peanut butter Scotch-style ale and a gruit brew, a traditional European style that employs an herb mixture (rather than hops) to flavor the beer. “One of the things we always talk about is variety and having something for everybody,” says Lockwood.

Mark Broderick said his son’s venture is comparable to opening a restaurant, but he enjoys the relief of not having to deal with a kitchen. Although there are regular food trucks to satiate customers, he appreciates the fact that Reverie can focus their attention on making and serving beer. “The bar part is really similar [to a restaurant],” Mark Broderick says. “If the beer’s good, everything else is about customer service. Remembering people’s names, having a conversation with them, whether it’s about beer or sports or whatever."

As evidence of how far along municipalities have come in their understanding, acceptance, and support for breweries, Ryan Broderick says that Newtown officials were helpful in getting them up and running. One of those supporters was Christal Preszler, Newtown’s head of economic and community development. “I think breweries make Newtown a destination,” she says. “They bring people to town, and then they can discover restaurants and other places.”

Preszler has been instrumental in supporting Newtown’s second brewery, NewSylum, a brewery that promises to be quite different from Reverie, despite being only a couple of miles away. The environment is less industrial than that of many breweries; in fact, it’s a green oasis amidst relative suburbia. NewSylum is being built on the Fairfield Hills Campus, the site of a state-run mental hospital that operated from 1933 to 1995 and that has since been repurposed for both private and municipal use. The brewery is being constructed in the Stratford Hall, formerly a dining area for doctors and nurses that, in the 1970s, was converted into a library. Its arched windows and high-ceiling interior provide a unique atmosphere that will include a pizza oven and marble bar top.