What do you get when you cross a music loving, geologist with a passion for home brewing and an aerospace engineer with an entrepreneurial spirit? Artifact Brewing — a nanobrewery and taproom with heart.
Artifact, located at 2 South York Road in Hatboro, was brought to the Borough by two friends – Ryan McKinney and Matt Brzowski – who met through their kids and spent enough time together on Little League fields to learn that they both had a passion for small batch and home brewed beer.
When they met, Ryan (the geologist) had already been fine tuning his home brewing skills for years. His success resulted in having his creations served at family and friends’ gatherings and even at a few major events like weddings. Matt (the engineer) had spent years enjoying the craft beer scene with his wife – both locally and while traveling. After having multiple conversations about their mutual admiration for, and interest in, microbreweries Matt went to Ryan with an idea. He proposed combining his entrepreneurial spirit with Ryan’s brewing expertise to create a brewery of their own. And in October of 2019 their idea became a reality when Artifact opened its doors to an enthusiastic welcome by friends, family and community members. The opening was so successful in fact that a line of patrons had to be managed to ensure capacity guidelines were being followed. And that enthusiasm for their offerings has not stopped.
“Since we opened we have been blown away by the support of the Hatboro community – both the residents and our fellow business owners,” says Ryan. “We are so thankful and feel really great about how everyone has really embraced us here.”
That support and enthusiasm is due in large part to their great beer, but also to the environment that they have fashioned for their patrons. From the subtle but inviting aesthetics of their exterior and signage, to the interior space they created that provides a relaxed environment where neighbors can gather to socialize and enjoy a shared community, they truly have met their goal of creating a place where people can get good drinks and go to just “hang out.”
The environment coupled with their commitment to offering an ever changing selection of beer styles and flavors to ensure that new options are always available for their customers, has their followers coming back for more each and every week. According to Ryan, also known as the Head Brewer, he never makes the same recipe twice. Weekly offerings can include IPAs, Saisons, English Ales, Belgian Beers and Ryan also dabbles in mixed culture barrel projects.
Since both Matt & Ryan have full-time jobs, they tend to their Artifact duties in the evenings and on the weekends. Matt handles most items pertaining to operations and Ryan is in charge of brewing the beer, merchandising and most social media/promotion efforts. They often have guests help with tending bar, but for now it’s really just the two of them running the business.
Those interested in learning more about their weekly offerings should follow them on Facebook: Artifact Brewing and Instagram: artifactbrewing and should check their website http://www.artifactales.com regularly for updates.
Special COVID-19 Update: During this time all orders are takeout and they are being offered in 32 oz sealed cans of beer, also known as Crowlers. Visit their website for details pertaining to ordering, curbside pick-up and delivery options.
Additional Artifact Fun Facts:
• As mentioned earlier, Ryan is a music lover and as such, the names of ALL of his beer creations are song lyrics. Some are obvious and some obscure – always fun to see if you can catch the reference. Recent examples include an English Mild named Scars Upon the Land (John Denver), an IPA named Life of the Party (Smokey Robinson) and Soft but Estranged (Red Hot Chili Peppers) a Table Saison.
• Ryan is also an avid and enthusiastic fly-fisherman. You will see this influence throughout the taproom, and prior to the COVID-19 closure he would hold periodic “Fly-tying Nights” where folks would be invited in to learn fly tying and to share fish stories.
• Artifact supports local artists by featuring their work in the taproom. Local artists can connect with them to get in the cue to have their work displayed.
• Pre-COVID 19, Artifact would partner with food truck operators to have them on-site to offer up tasty treats to accompany their drinks. They intend to continue these collaborations when they are permitted to re-open.
• They offer Artifact Brewing merchandise. Ask them about their t-shirts and other offerings.