Mothfire Brewing Co. to open 6,000-square-foot brewery and taproom Thursday in Ann Arbor

Brian Manzullo, Detroit Free Press
Updated ·3 min read

Mothfire Brewing Co. is undergoing a "metamorphosis" on Thursday.

At least that's what the 3-year-old brewery is calling its grand opening of a new 6,000-square-foot brewing facility and taproom at 713 W. Ellsworth Drive in south Ann Arbor. Starting out of a longtime industrial building in Ann Arbor in 2020, Mothfire has since impressed beer enthusiasts with its bright, clean and colorful IPAs, pilsners, sours and stouts, packaged in sleek black cans on beer shelves across southeast Michigan.

And on Thursday, Mothfire takes the next step, opening a much larger facility with a seating capacity for 40 people indoors and 70 on its outdoor patio, slinging not just beers but also hard seltzer cocktails and nonalcoholic drinks. And it's partnering with Carrozza Pizza, started by local chefs Bobby Rosenberger and Kyle Young, to serve a menu of wood-fired pizza and snacks.

Mothfire Brewing Co. at 713 W. Ellsworth Drive in Ann Arbor.
Mothfire Brewing Co. at 713 W. Ellsworth Drive in Ann Arbor.

'A cultural bonfire over art, music and beer'

Mothfire tapped Synecdoche Creative Studio for the taproom's modern, city-like facade with "clean sightlines," and art will be featured from Kaws and other artists inside the taproom.

“We couldn’t be more excited to bring the next stage of Mothfire to life," owner Noah Kaplan said in a statement. "The core philosophy behind Mothfire is sparking a cultural bonfire over art, music and beer. We’re so grateful for the foundation we built at our Industrial Avenue location and believe that this next space will help us not only continue to brew and package the highest quality beer but also build a place for locals and beer lovers from near and far to gather over food, drink, music, art and more.”

Kaplan and co-founder David Becker purchased Pileated Brewing Co. in 2019 and opened Mothfire in its place at 2290 S. Industrial Highway. From there, the two brought on Alexis Jorgensen as head brewer; she's a California native with brewing experience at Witch's Hat Brewing Co. in South Lyon, Wolverine State Brewing Co. in Ann Arbor and Stone Brewing Co. in Escondido, California.

Mothfire experimented with many beer styles and Michigan-made ingredients to get a feel for the beer scene, with a focus on IPAs while also dabbling in pilsners, stouts and sours. Some of its best releases include what are now its flagships: LoLo Hazy IPA, Maci West Coast IPA, Onyx Mist fruited sour and How Many Skulls barrel-aged imperial stout. Another IPA, Strand, was named a top Michigan craft beer of 2022.

All this and pizza too

In the new taproom, Mothfire will expand its offerings to include 14 beers and three housemade hard seltzer cocktails (Paloma Fizz, Moscow Mule Fizz and Cucumber Basil Fizz). Tasting flights will be available.

Offerings from Carrozza Pizza, which will be sold at Mothfire Brewing Co. at 713 W. Ellsworth Drive in Ann Arbor.
Offerings from Carrozza Pizza, which will be sold at Mothfire Brewing Co. at 713 W. Ellsworth Drive in Ann Arbor.

As for Carrozza Pizza, the menu will include pizzas (of course): Truffle brie, marinara, magherita, pepperoni, green curry and others, plus a few snacks. Prices range from $6-$24, Mothfire Brewing Co. said.

Mothfire will be open six days a week: 4-10 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday; 4-11 p.m. Friday; noon-11 p.m. Saturday; and noon-7 p.m. Sunday.

Brian Manzullo covers craft alcohol for the Free Press. Contact him: bmanzullo@freepress.com and on Untappd, bmanzullo and Twitter, @BrianManzullo and @SpiritsofDET.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mothfire Brewing Co. to open new brewery, taproom Thursday