The summer of 2021 will bring warm weather, vaccinations and also the opening of a new brewery and taproom in Bushwick. The new space, which will be located at 8 Wilson Avenue, is being opened by Non Sequitur Beer Project.
Non Sequitur, known by Brooklyn craft beer buffs for its double IPAs, has been around since October of 2019. Until recently, the company never planned to open a permanent location. For the past year and a half, Non Sequitur has been brewing at other breweries’ facilities and bringing its beer to events and selling in unconventional spaces like museums and movie theaters.
When the COVID pandemic hit, those events ceased to exist, and Non Sequitur had to develop a new plan to deliver its beers to its growing customer base.
“Once COVID happened and we saw how much the brand was picking up, we really started to feel this need and desire to open a physical location and a taproom so that we could have a place that our fans and people who love our beer could actually interact with us, interact with the company and learn more about what we’re doing,” said Simone Schroeder, co-founder of Non Sequitur.
So, the company decided to lay down its roots in Bushwick. According to Schroeder, the space is supposed to open in July. But, to stay up to date, give Non Sequitur’s Instagram page a follow.
Although Non Sequitur has made all types of beers, including lagers, stouts, sours and pilsners, the company specializes in IPAs made with experimental hops.
“Most of the beers that we are producing right now are IPAs,” said Schroeder. “We’ve tried to take that style and put our spin on it by introducing experimental ingredients, specifically hops. While there are going to be ingredients that you recognize, we try to look to see, as we’re ordering ingredients, what are some things that sound exciting? What are some hops that don’t even have a name yet?”
Non Sequitur does not currently have a flagship beer. That’s because the company rarely makes any of its beers more than once. Out of the dozens of beers that Non Sequitur has produced, they’ve recreated only one, which they called “Love Your Friends and Die Laughing,” a double IPA that made it onto GQ’s list of top summer beers in 2020.
But once they open the permanent location, Schroeder said Non Sequitur will likely start repeating recipes more often.
“If I could make a guess, there would be a few recurring beers,” she said. “We want to have a few lighter beers available at all times to balance out the stronger, hoppier beers that we’re making.”
In addition to brewing, Non Sequitur has a passion for giving back.
“Every beer that we make, we donate a portion of the proceeds to charity,” said Schroeder. “That was something that we started that was very important to us. In addition to having fun and creating fun beer, we also wanted to make sure that we were giving back to the community.”
Non Sequitur mostly focuses on giving back to local charities. In its short life, Non Sequitur has donated to the New York Immigration Coalition, Kings Against Violence Initiative, and Make The Road NY, among others.
“We wanted to give back to organizations mostly that were local. So, we wanted to focus on things that were affecting New Yorkers.”
I recently tried two of Non Sequitur’s beers, which I found on tap over at Bier Wax, a bar in Prospect Heights.
I started with an IPA named “That Don’t Impress Me Much.” The hoppy flavors and aromas of the beer are undeniably present. Yet, compared to other IPAs I’ve had, the beer is refreshingly light and airy. It reminded me of dry red wine, like a Pinot Noir. “That Don’t Impress Me Much” is both a beer that a lager drinker could handle and one a seasoned IPA drinker would undoubtedly appreciate.
The second I tried was a double IPA named “Fur Baby Shower.” This was my favorite of the two, which makes sense, considering double IPAs are what Non Sequitur is known for. While traditionally, I’ve always saved double IPAs for cold winter nights by the fire, “Fur Baby Shower” tasted refreshing enough to drink all summer long. Here’s to catching them at Wilson Avenue.
Top image: Non Sequitur.
Second and third image: Jackson Schroeder.
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