Theresa Stanley
Pivot Brewing Co. - interior - 1
Just in time for UK football’s game Saturday against Missouri, Pivot Brewing Co. -- Lexington’s newest entrant into craft alcoholic beverage production – will host a grand opening of its taproom at 1400 Delaware Ave.
Pivot, which will be the area’s first maker of artisanal hard cider, is the long-gestating dream project of owner Kevin Compton.
“This has been a marathon, multiyear project for me,” said Compton, who bought the land in 2012 and designed the striking, bright red, 6,800-square-foot building that houses the production area, a taproom and an adjacent barrel room.
On Saturday, the taproom will be open from 11:30 a.m. to midnight, and Lexington Pasta Garage, which is located down the street, will be onsite serving food from 4 to 8 p.m., Compton said.
The taproom has 20 taps with a rotating list of craft beer and hard ciders, a bar and seating for 49. An adjacent room can hold another 49 people, and Compton plans to use an outdoor patio area for more capacity during good weather.
Pivot joins Lexington’s maturing and increasingly crowded craft brew scene, which has seen newcomers such as Mirror Twin Brewing in the nearby Warehouse Block neighborhood and Life Brew Pub out on Richmond Road joining the more established West Sixth, Country Boy and Blue Stallion.
Theresa Stanely
Pivot Brewing Co. - Kevin Compton - 1
But, true to its name, Pivot is taking a different tack by dedicating the bulk of the operation to making artisanal hard cider, which means it will be crushing apples onsite instead of the more common method of simply buying apple juice for fermentation. Compton said that part of the operation is still weeks or months away, as he works to source the apples and ramp up production.
A Louisville native, Compton has been in Lexington since the mid-1990s. Pivot is a true labor of love for him, he said, and he’s excited to see the years of work and planning coming to fruition.
He credits his background in engineering and biology as key to the projects success, but also a forgiving spouse.
“Thankfully I have a very patient wife,” he said.