Buoy Beer Co. is bringing new excitement to downtown Astoria with the opening of a permanent taproom space that will also house a small-batch brewery and distillery.
Craft beer will soon be enjoyed again on a spacious patio dotted with picnic tables and served by a cluster of food trucks.
Popping up in time for the tourist-rich Astoria Regatta festival, Buoy’s new beer garden will debut Friday, Aug. 9, at the former Reach Break Brewery location on Duane Street.
Astoria-based Buoy intends to serve beer there on weekends until late fall or winter, when the three-barrel pilot brewhouse will be installed and the interior given a makeover.
Buoy will share the Reach Break space with its sister company, Pilot House Distilling, which currently operates a tasting room and distillery across the street. (The bulk of Pilot House spirits will be made and packaged at a new facility west of downtown).
The pilot system has been in storage for the past two years. It had been a fixture in Buoy’s waterfront building prior to the June 2022 partial collapse that also took out the brewpub, taproom and canning line.
The system’s revival will allow Buoy brewers to once again offer beer lovers a chance to taste one-of-a-kind brews available only at the new location.
“It’s absolutely a big deal,” said Buoy marketing manager Jessyka Dart-Mclean. “The brewers can really experiment on it, which leads to a lot of creativity.”
Buoy president Dave Kroening said the Duane Street space will be “a place where people can try what’s new from our brewers and distillers in a relaxed setting, enhanced by a great patio.”
In addition to beer, the new taproom will offer wine, cider and Pilot House-based cocktails. Ultimately, Buoy plans to open the taproom daily, taking advantage of indoor seating on rainy or chilly days.
For the owners of the four food trucks on the premises, Buoy’s arrival is a godsend.
Otis Lucas, owner of Dee Dee Thai Fusion, said he’s looking forward to a late-summer surge of customers. “I’m more than happy to bring the community back to this corner,” he said.
Nearby craft beer businesses were also cheering. Reach Break’s sudden closure in January left a gaping hole in what had been a thriving downtown beer zone anchored by Fort George Brewery.
“It’s a great thing,” said Dwayne Smallwood, owner of Bridge & Tunnel Bottleshop and Taproom. “Welcome to the neighborhood! More people coming to the block for craft beer is not a bad thing at all.”
The general manager of Portland-based Breakside Brewery’s brewpub a block away shared that sentiment. “I’m excited,” Kyle Chriestenson said. “I want something to be in there – it’s a great space. The more the merrier.”
Reach Break, which opened in 2017, converted a former used car lot and repair shop into a small brewery. Founder and head brewer Josh Allison expanded into a former cidery next door in fall 2023, creating a special events space with additional taps.
Allison blamed the closure on rising costs and personal health issues, thanking Astorians for their strong support. “We gave it a good run,” he said at the time. “I’m proud of what we did, for sure.”
Buoy had been planning to open a summer, weekends-only beer garden called Buoy on the Bay – leasing a former restaurant on the south side of Astoria overlooking Youngs Bay. That was delayed due to needed construction work and is now on hold indefinitely, Dart-Mclean said.
Since the collapse, Buoy has operated a brewpub in the downtown Astoria Food Hub building on Marine Drive. The restaurant will continue to operate as usual.
The new Buoy taproom will be open Friday, Aug. 9, from noon to 8 p.m.; Saturday 11-8; and Sunday 12-6.
