Boise loves this ‘rad’ brewery. Now its new Garden City taproom opens with food, patio
Barbarian Brewing isn’t Boise’s biggest brewery, but it has some of the city’s biggest fans.
You see the sweatshirts representing around town. The trucker caps. Barbarian’s howling wolf logo.
Specializing in sours but covering a spectrum of beer styles, the brewery has developed a following since opening in Garden City in 2015. Co-owner Bre Hovley — whose husband, James Long, is co-owner and head brewer — says Barbarian strives to please. “We try and have something for everybody,” she explained.
That might be an easy-drinking lager, a fresh IPA, a porter, a barrel-aged stout. Or maybe even a Unicorn Farts glitter IPA.
Variety and beer rotation have helped Barbarian’s downtown Boise taproom — an expansion launched in 2017 — hit the right tasting notes. A typical Yelp review? “This place was rad.”
“We get a lot of people who don’t like beer,” Hovley explained. “And we have fun finding a beer on the board for those people, whether it’s an ice cream ale, a sour — or maybe it’s our new seltzer, Wolf Paw.”
Barbarian’s adventurous, accessible approach should win over more customers when it celebrates the grand opening of a new taproom Friday, April 8, in Garden City. Needing more space for canning and production, Barbarian recently closed its original taproom and brewery at 5270 W. Chinden Blvd., moving the entire operation to 114 E. 32nd St.
Barbarian’s downtown Boise beer bar at 1022 W. Main St. will remain open and bustling. But the Garden City destination has its own allure. Located at 32nd and Clay streets, it’s near the Boise River — not to mention Telaya Wine Co. and the splashy-looking, still-unopened Split Rail Winery. The taproom is 3,500 square feet. That’s roughly the size of the downtown space.
The large building has a sizable outdoor area behind it with picnic tables and shade sails. There also will be a full-time food truck on site: Kismet Kitchen. Unlike the Boise taproom, minors are allowed inside until 6 p.m. Leashed dogs are fine on the back patio area. And inside, of course, a wall of 23 Barbarian draft beers beckons.
“We’re excited,” Hovley said. “We’ve been working on this for over a year.”
Not drinking alcohol? Barbarian recently released a blueberry botanical “mocktail” called Tranquillitas. It has no booze in it. But it does contain nootropic ingredients ranging from Lion’s Mane to ashwagandha powder.
Strange brews are nothing new for Barbarian, even if mocktails are. The brewery’s motto? “Old world style with new world flavor.” This is the brewery that experiments with a series of Ice Cream Ale and Candy Sour concoctions. Among Boise breweries, it’s the one that comes to mind if you imagine, say, Froot Loops as a beer ingredient?
“We are,” Hovley admitted with a chuckle.
“But we also make traditional lagers and IPAs and porters and Belgian ales,” she said, adding: “We’ve definitely evolved.”
Barbarian’s Garden City taproom will be open Wednesdays through Sundays to start. After full staffing is achieved — soon, Hovley said — the plan is to be open seven days a week, just like the Boise beer bar.
▪ Online: barbarianbrewing.com.
This story was originally published April 6, 2022 at 4:00 AM.