Tumwater Craft District

Tumwater’s work to foster innovation and entrepreneurship throughout the City’s business community is represented today and tomorrow in the Craft District on the sprawling grounds where Olympia Beer was brewed from 1896 to 2003.

While the brewing of beer here effectively passed into history when the Olympia Brewery closed, City leaders never stopped believing the brewery could once again be an economic driver in Tumwater.

No less than seven small craft breweries, including three in Tumwater, have been established in Thurston County in recent years.

And now, brewing is back on the historic brewery grounds in the heart of Tumwater.

Beer, spirits and cider

The City of Tumwater has created a center for craft brewing and distilling in the Craft District to feed into the already-flourishing craft beer, spirits and cider industries in Washington.

Our vision is far-reaching:

• To be a destination for the craft beverage and food industry in Tumwater, regionally and statewide;
• To train future craft beverage workers in the science, technique and business of brewing and distilling;
• To encourage growth and facilitate interaction among beverage makers and the agricultural and industrial infrastructure that supports them.

The Craft District is prominently situated south of E Street between Capitol Boulevard and Tumwater Valley Drive, overlooking the City’s Tumwater Valley Golf Course to the southeast.

Its centerpiece is the 30,000-square-foot building that houses classroom and laboratory space for South Puget Sound Community College’s Craft Brewing and Distilling Program, plus production facilities for beer, spirits and cider.

Upstairs is a public tasting room and state-of-the-art distillery for the award-winning Heritage Distilling Co. Across the parking lot, the Market Building is an emerging retail hub that includes tasting rooms for beer and cider, an ice cream shop, a seafood store, gallery and restaurant, with more businesses on the way.

Facts about brewing and distilling in Washington

There are 426 craft breweries in Washington, a 34 percent increase since 2014 (per Washington Brewers Guild, 2023)

• Craft brewing generates a $1.74 billion annual economic impact in the state, according to the Brewers Association (2022), 15^th among American states.
• There are 7.7 craft brewers per capita in Washington (9^th)*
• Washington craft brewers annually produce 577,730 barrels of beer (12th).
• Washingtonians consume 3.1 gallons of beer a year per 21+ adults (20^th)

Craft distilleries, which have been allowed since 2008 after a change in state law, now number more than 100 in Washington.

*per 100,000 21+ adults

History

A planning grant from the Washington State Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) provided for a study of public/private cooperation to guide and refine the direction for a craft brewing and distilling center. A partnership was formed among the brewery site property owners, the Thurston County Economic Development Council, Olympia Tumwater Foundation, Port of Olympia, Washington State University (WSU) Extension, WSU School of Food Science, and South Puget Sound Community College to create the craft brewing, distilling and cider center.

The State Department of Ecology provided a $200,000 Integrated Planning Grant, with additional funds from the property owner, to perform an environmental assessment and market feasibility study.

Still to come

The Craft District in its central Tumwater location offers room to grow and expand, with the prospect of new businesses and cultural opportunities and new ways to study, share and enjoy the resources and products of the vibrant craft beverage and food industry in Washington.

These might include:

• New restaurant and brewpub
• Museum/cultural center
• Demonstration garden featuring brewing and distilling ingredients such as barley, wheat, corn, apples, hops, oak trees, bees and aromatic plants
• Office space for brewing and distilling industry and related associations
• Brewing or distilling industry museum
• Outdoor entertainment area for musical or theater performances
• Gathering, reception, and convening space
• Farmers market

In the greater Pacific Northwest, the Craft Center is helping to strengthen the ties between craft beverage producers and agricultural products grown in Washington.

First, it brings together farmers and small-scale growers to align specialized interests for marketing, education and collaboration on the product side. In turn, associations of brewers and distillers are working to promote and expand markets for Washington's specialty agriculture products.

Tumwater envisions this symbiosis between agriculture and the craft food and beverage industry providing a funding loop by which the Center is supported by the industries that receive its benefit.

This business model is similar to the Washington State University Wine Science Center in Richland, which is a partnership of academic, industry, and economic development partners.

SPSCC Craft Brewing and Distilling Program

Building a workforce educated in the theory, technology and practice of producing craft beverages is an important part of the vision for the Craft Center. South Puget Sound Community College in Tumwater offers degree programs for students seeking a place in the Northwest craft industry.

SPSCC’s two-year Associate in Applied Science (AAS) program focuses on the science and production of craft beer, spirits and cider.

Starting in the Fall 2024 academic quarter, students seeking more advanced study can pursue a four-year Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) degree in craft business management and quality assurance. This degree program is the college’s first-ever bachelor’s-level offering.

Students in the current program, led by the faculty brewmaster, have crafted their first brewed products – the Percival Creek Bohemian Pilsner and Percival Creek Pale Ale – which are in limited release but expected to be available to the public in early 2024 in the Craft District tasting room.

Tumwater and its partners believe the educational programs of SPSCC will play a role in growing craft brewing and distilling in this region comparable to the influence of the enology and viticulture program at Walla Walla College in the flourishing Washington wine industry.

Contact us

Contact the Community Development Department for more information at (360) 754-4180.