New brewhouse, taproom near riverfront could open this winter

A new brewery and taproom could be on tap with a riverfront view in Port Huron this winter.

Desmond Depot Brewhouse owner Steve Tranzow began interior demolitions at the old train depot at 210 Court St. near Vantage Point in June and hopes to complete renovations in late September or early October.

Port Huron officials green-lit a recommendation to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission for a new on-premises tasting room permit in March.

But Tranzow said he isn’t expecting state approval until closer to the end of the year.

Luckily, the wait hasn’t stopped him from working through recipes and lining up an online beer menu with what he hopes stylistically is “something for everybody’s taste” — be it IPAs, a lager, or what he’s a fan of in red ales.

“I’ll need a good month, month and a half before I open in order to brew beer and have enough that’s fermented and mature and ready to pour,” Tranzow said. “The target is if I can open by Dec. 15, I’ll open in December. If it starts pushing past that, then it would be into January, most likely. That’s why I just kind of put (out) that it’s this winter.”

Most recently from Colorado, where he was involved with another brewing outfit for the last 12 years, Tranzow said his connection to the Port Huron area is his father.

That connection, as well as the view of the St. Clair River, he said, was a big selling point to take on his latest venture.

“I’ve been a number of times. The last time I was here, it was the dedication of the (Blue Water) River Walk,” Tranzow said this week, motioning to the waterfront. “… Looking at that, and at the whole maritime center, just thinking, ‘This is a great place for a restaurant, for a brewery.’”

The 210 Court St. site has been listed with Vantage Point and among the properties marketed by Acheson Ventures in years past. According to the register of deeds, it’s still listed under Acheson.

While demo is ongoing inside the roughly 2,500-square-foot building, the exterior includes a walk and brickwork that Tranzow said could be used for seasonal brewery seating. Still, he admitted that the vegetation around it that’s become overgrown needs some landscaping, too.

Additionally, Tranzow said there’d be enough space outside for cornhole and other games.

Inside, he said he’s turning what was formerly used as a classroom setting into a taproom with a corner bar and seating space to fit 72. He also hopes to open up windows for renewed light exposure.

“I like a real light atmosphere,” Tranzow said. “One of the future (goals that) we’re not doing right now just because of materials and time and costs (is) opening the roof up all the way to the ceiling. It’s an A-frame above. Right now, we’re going to do some fans in here, some lighting, to give it that train station feel.”

Tranzow said he’ll also have a cold room for kegs and tanks for beer to be stored for serving, and that present storage rooms will be turned into the brewhouse space. The space itself, he said, will be a four-barrel brewhouse.

He added he was working with a local food truck to be located on site, as with no space for a kitchen, he won’t have food on the menu.

Once open, Tranzow said he expected to need three to five full-time staffers and a couple part-timers, particularly beer tenders or those who could share knowledge of the beer with customers. He was also looking for another brewer, in addition to himself, as he hoped to have time to interact with visitors in the taproom.

“It was just there’s no way to pass it up,” he added. “I love the old train station. I love the whole feel. In the taproom, we’re going to bring in a floor that back the old mosaic (of) train stations, and I want to get that 1920s feel.

“I’m not going to go overboard with antiques or decorations, but I do want to remind people what it is.”

For more, visit https://desmonddepot.com.

Contact Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Jackie20Smith.