Oct. 24—WATERTOWN — The 1812 Brewing Company is about to acquire Maggie's on the River and turn the popular taproom into a retail center to showcase its products.
In the past couple of years, the brewery has been making its beer in the old Alteri's Bakery building in the City Center Industrial Park, 981 Waterman Drive. The brewery moved its operations from its restaurant in Sackets Harbor about three years ago.
But 1812 Brewing Company chairman and CEO Thomas W. Scozzafava decided against opening a taste room in the building, down the street from the Metro-Jefferson Public Safety Building.
So he started looking for someplace to purchase where he could open a retail center to promote 1812 products and to increase sales.
Maggie's on the River, 500 Newell St., fit the bill perfectly as what he calls a "beer-forward restaurant," Scozzafava said.
"This is very big for us," he said.
It's the only bar/restaurant/partyhouse in the area right on the river, Scozzafava said.
It's also just a few minutes away from where they make 1812 beer in the city's industrial center. Purchasing Maggie's will allow the brewery to increase production without adding much expense in the process, he said.
With the acquisition, the brewery can be its own distributor.
"It's going from point A to point B," he said.
Since moving to the Watertown site, the company has made a $2 million investment in the Waterman Drive building.
The company acquired the bottling and label/filler equipment out of the now-defunct Empire Farm Brewery Co. site in Cazenovia and large-scale tanks and canning equipment from breweries in Milwaukee and Detroit.
And now comes the Maggie's deal for $1 million.
Tyler Bartlett has owned Maggie's since July of last year after running it and leasing it in 2021.
The Watertown Local Development Corp., also known as the Watertown Trust, is expected on Thursday to approve a $300,000 loan to help finance the acquisition. The brewery also has requested a $250,000 loan from the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency. Watertown Savings Bank also is involved in financing the $1.5 million project.
Maggie's features second- and third-floor dining rooms and a wood-fired brick oven that opens the door for the brewery to enter the pizza market.
Donald W. Rutherford, the Watertown Trust's CEO, believes that acquiring Maggie's will help the brewery's products become more well known outside of the north country.
"It sounds like a good move for them," he said.