Put through ‘the ringer,’ a new Boise brewery didn’t open. It will pour this instead.

Before the pandemic began, a new local brewery was planned in a vacant office building on the Boise Bench.

But Bench House Brewing Co. didn’t wind up opening last summer.

And now the plan is to brew something else — with caffeine.

Bench House intends to open as a coffee and bottle shop at 4795 W. Emerald St., marketing director Christy Brown said. It will sell Bench House Roasting Co. coffee, plus Bench House Brewing beer that is brewed elsewhere under contract, she said.

Bench House’s proposed 2 1/2-barrel brewhouse has been abandoned for the time being.

“We have actually changed up the plans because of the pandemic,” Brown explained via email. “We are going to start out as a small coffee and bottle shop with hopes of adding the brewery down the road.”

The owners acquired a small coffee roaster, she said. They have their “fingers crossed” that the reinvented Bench House will open this summer.

“Things have definitely put us through the ringer with the pandemic,” Brown said. “We got our building permit approved three weeks into the pandemic and had to put that on hold, as well as the entire project. We have been proactive in working on our coffee and figuring out the next steps for us during this time of uncertainty.”

When Bench House opens, it also will sell wine, Brown said. Bench House Brewing’s beer will be available on draft, plus in bottles and cans, she added.

The Bench House crew hopes to start selling coffee soon through its website: benchhousebrewco.com.

This story was originally published February 8, 2021 at 11:53 AM.