Counterbalance Brewing Gets Rolling in Georgetown

Two former home brewers have quietly opened Seattle's newest microbrewery, Counterbalance Brewing, on South Michigan Street in Georgetown. Owners Jeff Howell and Frank Lawrence met as employees of Caffe Ladro, where Howell was Director of Operations and Lawrence was Project Manager. They discovered their shared interest in home brewing and eventually explored going into business together.

It's taken them a full year of building out their space and getting the recipes just right, but Counterbalance Brewing is now open for business. The taproom is just steps away from the brewery's custom-built 10-barrel brewing system. For now, you can try four beers: Abigale Blonde Ale, Counterbalance IPA, Bad Wolf Dark Ale, and Kushetka Imperial Stout. More will be added as the brewery gets going at full capacity.

"We want our beer to be accessible but not dumbed down," says Howell. "We're focused on making beer that people want to enjoy having a couple of. They're easy drinking, flavorful, and balanced." They'll start self-distributing around town as well as experimenting with a few off-beat brews that will be available only in the taproom. And maybe, down the line, they'll brew a nod to their origins in coffee.

Counterbalance Brewing is open Wednesday through Friday, 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, 2 to 6 p.m.