Other Half Brewing Company
Sam Richardson, Matt Monahan and Andrew Burman opened this brewery in 2014. They took 4,000 square feet where Carroll Gardens, Red Hook and Gowanus meet.23 Twenty taps pour in the room now. The flagship is Green City, a hazy IPA at 7 percent.4
Why go
Green City runs on Citra, Centennial and Simcoe with oats in the grist. The oats give it a creamy body and keep the sweetness down.4 The West Coast IPA is the other end of the house. It is 100 percent malted barley, hopped Simcoe, Chinook, Nelson Sauvin and Columbus Cryo. The brewery's own tasting note runs candied pineapple, pine, citrus and a touch of dankness.4
Molly Fitzpatrick, at The Infatuation, put it on her list of the city's best breweries. Forever Brewing and Wild East sit on it too.1
Centre Street is the first of nine doors now. The company also pours at Domino Park and Rockefeller Center. Buffalo, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Bloomfield and Canandaigua take the rest.5
Order this / avoid
- Order: Green City, if you only get one. It is the flagship and the beer the house builds its releases around.4
- Order: the Motueka and Saphir lager at 4.5 percent when the hazies get heavy. Dry, soft, and finishing on fresh lime.4
- Order: cans and bottles to go. The taproom sells them alongside the pints.4
- Avoid: a weekend afternoon if you came to talk. Fitzpatrick's advice is that the lines are long then and the room is calmer midweek.1
What locals & experts say
- Molly Fitzpatrick, The Infatuation's NYC Senior Staff Writer, on the room:
The space is pleasantly sparse, keeping the focus on the quality of the beers rather than the curation of a vibe. Incidentally, this creates a party-like vibe.
1 - Time Out New York, reporting the launch on 14 February 2014:
After years spent manning the tanks at Greenpoint Beerworks, head brewer Sam Richardson strikes out on his own with this IPA-driven brewery.
2 - The three founders, on what they set out to do: make
beer that they wanted to drink from a company that they wanted to be a part of.
3
Good to know
- Which door: this is Centre Street, the original taproom and brewery.4
- Getting there: two blocks from the Smith-9th Streets station.4
- Also poured: wine, cider and soft drinks, with merchandise and snacks alongside.4
Verdict
could-visit — If you are off the drink, the house makes a non-alcoholic hazy called All In and pours it in the taprooms. Nobody takes a booking, so turn up.