Barrel House Z Is Closer to Brewing; Exhibit 'A' Will Collaborate with Barrington Roasters

Barrel House Z in Weymouth is getting ready to start filling tanks and barrels with beers. The brewery is the work of Russ Heissner, Harpoon's first-ever brewer, who plans to focus on small-scale, barrel-aged collaborations.

Barrel House Z secured a 16,000-square-foot space on Woodrock Road off Washington Street in Weymouth last year, as previously reported, with plans to use about 9,700 square feet for production and hosting guests.

All the brewing equipment is in place, Heissner told Eater in an email, and Barrel House Z is just waiting on its ABCC license from the state. "I am confident that we will be in operation within the next few weeks with beer flowing within 4-6 weeks from the brewery tasting room," he said.

Anticipated beers from Barrel House Z include Old Rusty's Red Rye Ale, Session #23; a summer barrel-aged beer called Ginned Pils; Rage Against the Hop Machine (or RATH); and a future collaboration with a winner of a forthcoming homebrew contest.

In other brewery news, Exhibit 'A' Brewing Company is moving into the former Jack's Abby brewing space in Framingham, as previously reported, and it could start brewing beer by mid-June, with hopes of opening in August, according to The Boston Globe.

Longtime brewer Matthew Steinberg is the brains behind the operation at Exhibit 'A' and he has plans to collaborate with Barrington Coffee Roasting Company to produce some coffee beers. Steinberg told Eater he is a customer and friend of Barrington and wants to brew a series of coffee beers in the next few years.

He said he was working directly with members of the Barrington team "to customize some roasts to really nail down the flavors we are looking to marry." The first beer will be a porter called "Sunday Paper," made with a medium roast meant to "blend well with the brown malts in this classic porter," Steinberg said. "I have brewed many porters over the years, some of which are well regarded, and I am so excited to continue in my quest to brew the perfect porter."

Other potential collaborations could include a malty blond ale with a light roast or an altbier-style copper ale made with a darker roast. Steinberg said he felt the collaboration would give both brewers and customers new ways to explore aroma and flavor.

Finally, Bone Up Brewing Company in Everett has officially started brewing beer, according to a recent post on Facebook. "If the initial batches meet our Quality Standards, we hope to have beer out in the wild within a week or two," the brewery shared in a blog post. "If they do not meet our Quality Standards, expect beer around the time that you no longer hear sobbing coming from our building."

The taproom isn't quite ready yet, so keep an eye out for Bone Up at bars and restaurants (to be announced at a later date). "We're gonna start schleppin' samples and makin' awkward sales calls as soon as we've surely got suds to sling," they wrote. "So rest assured — you'll know where our beer is pouring roughly as soon as we do."