USA, PA: Trace Brewing to debut in Bloomfield on December 17

Even with Pennsylvania in an end-of-the-year pandemic lockdown and with a winter storm on the way, David Kushner still has waited long enough to debut his Trace Brewing in Bloomfield, the Pittsburgh Business Times reported.

After recently getting the final permits needed to open, Kushner has scheduled the opening of Trace Brewing for Thursday, Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. Trace will be selling a selection of five different brews in 16-ounce four-packs of cans on a to-go basis to meet state Covid requirements.

Noting all the challenges to get to the point of opening in a year largely turned upside down by Covid-19, Kushner acknowledges some unknowns in the coming weeks and winter months.

"It’s almost impossible to project what our demand will be," he said. "All of 2020 has been very unpredictable."

Yet he sees reason for hope in the roll out of a vaccine this week to suggest that beer drinkers and coffee sippers can soon hang out in his newly built-out brewery space at 4312 Main St. It is housed in a modest-sized former industrial building across from the Community Market at the intersection of Liberty Avenue and the Bloomfield Bridge — a major neighborhood gateway.

Amid the dense residential neighborhoods of Bloomfield and Lawrenceville, he's hopeful that Trace will attract plenty of customers walking past, noting the neighboring beer distributor is always busy.

Trace's debut selection of beers are a Brass & Bronze IPA, the Penny Auction - Session Ale, a Sun Shadows Lager, a Guavagool Fruited Sour and Ray - Saison.

After an extensive buildout of a long underused building, Kushner added customers can at least get a look at the new place and walk through in buying beers to go, even if coronavirus restrictions doesn't allow them to linger and taste the beers there.

Kushner and crew will use a mobile canning line the day before the opening to can 28 barrels of beer for the opening as well as for distribution.

Trace is working with Steel City Beer Wholesalers to distribute its beers to various other outlets, an approach he said was accelerated by the pandemic.

"The name of the game right now is survival," he said. "Our plan was to eventually to do that kind of stuff in the future to start building relationships. Covid kind of sped up those plans."

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