I only made it out Braman once, because it was a bit out of the way. To me, it felt very wine-focused, and it didn't have a traditional brewery feel at all. More formal by brewery standards, maybe? Not that that's a bad thing, it just seemed different. I recall the beer being good, but not worth a 45-minute drive for.
9:34p, 6/15/23
In reply to cajunaggie08
Will be interesting to see the effect the sale has.
Yeah, they've always been better at marketing than beer, I've found. I did like Intellectuale back in the day, but don't think they make that anymore. Otherwise, feel the same about their beer. If I'm in that part of town, which is rare outside of Astros games, I'd rather drop into True Anomaly or Equal Parts for better tasting beer.cajunaggie08 said:I can't remember the last time I bought one of their six packs. Its not that their beer is bad. There are just tons of options and none of their beers are outstanding. Excluding the upcoming construction mess, I think they have a great location but I dont know if they make enough money as a bar to pay for the rent or mortgage. If the best thing they have going for them is location and thats about to be wrecked then it may not be a bad time to bow out and let the hemp guys give it a go. Its important to remember 8th wonder is the same guys that started Eatsie Boys and they have been burned by a failed brick and mortar location and just recently shut down their food truck for good. It seems they are great at concepts but never can quite get the long term growth part figured out.bluefire579 said:Was chatting with a buddy who has worked for years in the local industry over the weekend, and he mentioned their beer sales haven't been great, so might be they got a nice bargain. Imagine the impending I-45 construction might have had an impact as you mentioned as well.cajunaggie08 said:
Bayou City Hemp just bought 8th Wonder. Bayou City Hemp was the company 8th Wonder partnered with to create the THC seltzers Wonder Water. I'm shocked Bayou City Hemp has enough capital to buy out 8th Wonder. Perhaps a lot of 8th wonder's value was tied up in the brewery which is about to be next to a major highway construction project for years.
https://www.houstonpress.com/restaurants/bayou-city-hemp-and-8th-wonder-become-one-15840167
Will be interesting to see the effect the sale has.
7:28a, 6/16/23
In reply to AlaskanAg99
Saw something similar when I visited Cantillon earlier this year. First time I had seen a contraption like that.
8:52a, 6/16/23
In reply to bluefire579
I hope True Anomaly finds a new spot that works out for them because their beers are great. Their location is set to be leveled as part of the freeway construction.
9:28a, 6/16/23
In reply to cajunaggie08
They should relocate somewhere else in EaDo, they're spot is always packed after dynamo games.
I'll also add they drew really well after Comic Con too which was... a different crowd than normal.
I'll also add they drew really well after Comic Con too which was... a different crowd than normal.
11:02a, 6/16/23
In reply to BBRex
Yes ... even for the Sugar Land/Missouri City area, it's not a quick trip. And you're right, the inside vibe is very different from most breweries. Kind of dark and formal, as you say.BBRex said:
I only made it out Braman once, because it was a bit out of the way. To me, it felt very wine-focused, and it didn't have a traditional brewery feel at all. More formal by brewery standards, maybe? Not that that's a bad thing, it just seemed different. I recall the beer being good, but not worth a 45-minute drive for.
10:10p, 6/16/23
In reply to Jock 07
Cantillon is such a great tour!
Jock 07 said:
Saw something similar when I visited Cantillon earlier this year. First time I had seen a contraption like that.
Cantillon is such a great tour!
10:13p, 6/16/23
In reply to Texan_Aggie
I got a lot of compliments on my Squirrel Girl costume.
Texan_Aggie said:
I'll also add they drew really well after Comic Con too which was... a different crowd than normal.
I got a lot of compliments on my Squirrel Girl costume.
10:56p, 6/16/23
In reply to Charismatic Megafauna
It really is, I was in Germany for work and made the drive to check it off the bucket list. Just wish there was more availability for to go offerings. I was there late Jan so I'm assuming that's why it was so limited. Certainly lives up to the hype of one of the beer Meccas to make a pilgrimage to.
1:58p, 6/18/23
In reply to Jock 07
Hope you hopped over to bruges? I still have a bottle of cantillon lambic from like 8 years ago in the wine fridge waiting for the right occasion
9:02a, 7/25/23
In reply to Furlock Bones
Same here. Sucks for them that it didnt work out. That area of town (Inside the loop and north of I-10) has an overabundance of breweries and bars though. You either need to have a great product that makes people want to come, a great location that people want to go to, or great marketing that makes people think you have a great product and/or location. I could see how being right next to White Oak Music Hall could have worked in their favor, but I'm not sure what the foot traffic would be on a non-concert night. Plus, looking at the google street view, it is tucked away in the neighborhood. I can see how people could be in the area and not even know there was a place to grab a drink literally behind the trees and just go grab their drinks at the venue or Raven Tower instead.
9:26a, 7/25/23
I went to Black Page a few times, since I live quite close. The site itself is fantastic. You think you're in the middle of the forest, lots of trees and no street noise. The seating indoor and outdoor is very well done. The beer was decent enough and I liked their taco vendor. So what's the issue?
I suspect they were highly in debt prior to opening. I'm pretty sure they had leased that land for a few years before opening, so that's sunk cost. The start-up costs had to be enormous as the building there was a worn-out shell before they re-did it. Plus they needed better marketing. I've followed them in social media and they hardly ever made a post. I don't think they had running clubs, weekly yoga, cornhole tournaments, etc. to get people in there. They needed big signage on N.Main to get pre- and post-concert people in there along with average people driving on the street. I'm not sure how many local neighborhood customers they got, but you'd think if they catered to the locals that they'd have a built-in base of regulars. The other near-northside breweries (Bad Astronaut, Gristworx, St. Arnolds) aren't really super close and a bit of a convoluted drive getting over to those places. The last couple times I was in there I saw the owner/manager just typing on his laptop and not engaging with customers - another issue.
Sad to see them go.
I suspect they were highly in debt prior to opening. I'm pretty sure they had leased that land for a few years before opening, so that's sunk cost. The start-up costs had to be enormous as the building there was a worn-out shell before they re-did it. Plus they needed better marketing. I've followed them in social media and they hardly ever made a post. I don't think they had running clubs, weekly yoga, cornhole tournaments, etc. to get people in there. They needed big signage on N.Main to get pre- and post-concert people in there along with average people driving on the street. I'm not sure how many local neighborhood customers they got, but you'd think if they catered to the locals that they'd have a built-in base of regulars. The other near-northside breweries (Bad Astronaut, Gristworx, St. Arnolds) aren't really super close and a bit of a convoluted drive getting over to those places. The last couple times I was in there I saw the owner/manager just typing on his laptop and not engaging with customers - another issue.
Sad to see them go.
4:22p, 7/25/23
In reply to chico
Closed due to failure to pay rent and taxes. What I find interesting is it appears one of the breweries "co-founders" listed on their website is apparently the property owner per the letter. So much for that business relationship.
4:26p, 7/25/23
In reply to cajunaggie08
Welp, looks like I don't need to bother trying to go one more time before July 30th.
6:56p, 1/26/24
https://houston.culturemap.com/news/restaurants-bars/buffalo-bayou-brewing-closed-sawyer-yards-1/
Seemed like it was a long time coming
Seemed like it was a long time coming
4:44p, 1/27/24
In reply to bluefire579
No big loss. Hopefully something better takes the spot - it is a great venue.
10:30a, 1/29/24
I know ownership has sucked, but I will be sad to not see More Cowbell, Dreamsicle and their yummy stouts that I always stocked up on for the holidays.
7nine
3:20p, 2/16/24
I tried H-Town Brewing last night; it's in the old Black Page location (near White Oak Music Hall). The site is fantastic; you think you're in the middle of the country - not in the middle of Houston.
The bock was just tremendous, wow. I sat at the bar and next to me was John Ritter, who happens to be the head brewer. The guy is a fountain of knowledge and was happy to share details of brewing. Decent crowd, friendly beertenders. They also have mixed drinks available.
The bock was just tremendous, wow. I sat at the bar and next to me was John Ritter, who happens to be the head brewer. The guy is a fountain of knowledge and was happy to share details of brewing. Decent crowd, friendly beertenders. They also have mixed drinks available.
7:51p, 2/18/24
In reply to wessimo
Went to H-Town this afternoon. The West Coast IPA and Peach DIPA were very tasty. The place was not nearly busy enough given the fantastic weather. Seems they haven't done a great job promoting themselves... hope they make it.
7:54p, 2/18/24
Sounds like some shady stuff going on at Southern Star. Apparently fired most of their staff.
8:43p, 2/18/24
In reply to wessimo
Sounds like they're making the same mistake as the previous brewery.
wessimo said:
Went to H-Town this afternoon. The West Coast IPA and Peach DIPA were very tasty. The place was not nearly busy enough given the fantastic weather. Seems they haven't done a great job promoting themselves... hope they make it.
Sounds like they're making the same mistake as the previous brewery.
11:48p, 2/18/24
In reply to wessimo
Didn't they recently have some sort of controversy supporting some political agenda or something?
wessimo said:
Sounds like some shady stuff going on at Southern Star. Apparently fired most of their staff.
Didn't they recently have some sort of controversy supporting some political agenda or something?
12:02a, 2/19/24
I spoke to an old worker there. He said they have new owners and he's heard the same rumors. He's still in the industry but either didn't know details or wouldn't elaborate. Didn't press.
7:51a, 2/19/24
In reply to Jock 07
They found out an event that a group booked at the brewery was going to have Kyle Rittenhouse as the key speaker and they shut it down.Jock 07 said:wessimo said:
Sounds like some shady stuff going on at Southern Star. Apparently fired most of their staff.
Didn't they recently have some sort of controversy supporting some political agenda or something?
10:02a, 2/19/24
In reply to AlaskanAg99
I went by there a few weeks ago and the bartender said the new owners were about to start refreshing their branding. as in updating the logos and the packaging appearance.
AlaskanAg99 said:
I spoke to an old worker there. He said they have new owners and he's heard the same rumors. He's still in the industry but either didn't know details or wouldn't elaborate. Didn't press.
I went by there a few weeks ago and the bartender said the new owners were about to start refreshing their branding. as in updating the logos and the packaging appearance.
10:03a, 2/19/24
In reply to wessimo
New ownership group took over fired most of the taproom staff.wessimo said:
Sounds like some shady stuff going on at Southern Star. Apparently fired most of their staff.
12:25p, 2/19/24
Guess I just don't get firing the tasting room staff and shutting down the highest ROI for their product.
8:25p, 2/19/24
In reply to Jock 07
was is outstanding if you're into that type of beer.
Their Strawberry BlondeJock 07 said:
Maybe the beer will be worth a **** now
8:38p, 2/19/24
In reply to EclipseAg
Sorry to jump in late on an old thread, but you didn't miss much by missing the beer at Braman. I went once and was underwhelmed by their beer. I always got the vibe that the owner was a person who had too much money and made beer and wine for something to do, and they were better at wine than beer. The venue is cool, or was when I went, and the wine is ok, but the beer left a lot to be desired.EclipseAg said:
Southwest area news ... I was at Braman in Richmond a couple of weeks ago and learned that they stopped brewing beer around the first of the year.
They even changed their name from Braman Brewing and Winery to Braman Tasting and Taproom.
They still sell a limited number of craft beers but only those from other breweries.
Also, Sugar Land is getting a brand-new brewery adjacent to Constellation Field. Construction began last November.
https://talyardbrewing.com/