For an out-of-towner on a first-time visit, Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, can be a what-the-heck-is-going-on-here? destination.
Nightlife is buzzing on a weeknight at craft breweries, fine restaurants, shops and live music venues, and one wonders why there’s such a volume of activity in a locale with a population of about 17,000.
A former beaten-down mill town 28 miles northwest of Philadelphia, an ambitious downtown revitalization plan has paid dividends for the borough of Phoenixville and led to the emergence of 10 craft breweries and a distillery. Root Down Brewing, which opened in Phoenixville in June 2017, captured prestigious gold and silver medals last September at Denver’s Great American Beer Festival, and various other breweries, including three Victory Brewing locations, are nearby in Chester County.
“Phoenixville is a small town that puts a strong focus on mom and pop shops, and that type of mentality is where I wanted my brewery to grow,” says Root Down owner Mike Hamara. “Being in a town that embraces multiple breweries makes Phoenixville a destination-brewery location very similar to Asheville, North Carolina; Portland, Oregon, and Denver, Colorado.”
At the Denver festival — the Super Bowl of craft beer — Roots Down won a gold medal for its American-style IPA called Bine and a silver medal for its gose, Salty by Nature.
written by Gary Stoller, Contributor, Forbes Now
