Tap List | Downtown Shawnee Gets Another Brewery Friction Beer Co. to open in former Hartman Hardware space
Published August 24th, 2021 at 11:00 AM
Above image credit: Business partners Brent Anderson and Nathan Ryerson plan to open Friction Beer Co. in the former Hartman Hardware space in downtown Shawnee. (Courtesy | Friction Beer Co.)The path to success is very rarely linear. There are ups and downs and all sorts of curveballs that throw you for a loop. After four long years of dealing with just that, Friction Beer Co. is finally slated to open in downtown Shawnee.
Business partners Brent Anderson and Nathan Ryerson had been searching high and low for a location the past few years. They looked at buildings from Waldo to the Crossroads to the West Bottoms and everywhere in between, but nothing ever panned out. And then, of course, came COVID-19 to throw a real kink into their plans.
After some divine intervention, they were able to connect with the Shawnee Chamber of Commerce and real estate agent Russ Pearson. Pearson was instrumental in persuading the duo to consider Shawnee in a building he’s working to restore. He helped them expand their vision from a small garage brewery to a destination space where customers can have a great time.
The taproom will be in the old Hartman Hardware building located at 11018 Johnson Drive just around the corner from both Transport Brewery and Servaes Brewing Co. The plan is to have a taproom on the first floor, a beer hall and patio on the second floor, and the brewery in the garage space according to their Facebook page.
Should there be no more crazy surprises, the brewery plans to open in the spring of 2022. Their plan is to brew a mix of pale ales and stouts along with seltzers and some lighter options so there’s something for everyone.
We certainly can’t wait for Friction to open to get a taste of their beers!
Beer Releases
Pathlight Brewing — 11200 W. 75th St., Shawnee, Kansas — has released a new beer in homage to the former dance hall around the corner. Pogo’s is a 7% hazy IPA with notes of pine and citrus. You can find the beer in cans and on tap in their taproom.
Servaes Brewing Co. — 10921 Johnson Drive, Shawnee, Kansas — wants to transport you to French Polynesia with their four new tiki-inspired releases. Currently on tap and available to go in crowlers, you can try their Rum Punch Wheat, Hai Karate NEIPA, Distant Light – Jet Pilot Gose, and Distant Light – Bahama Crush Gose.
Rockcreek Brewing Co. — 5880 Beverly Ave., Mission, Kansas — has released a beer to celebrate the end of summer. Their Last Days of Summer gose is 4.5% ABV and is slightly salty with some bright lemon tartness.
Crane Brewing Co. — 6515 Railroad St., Raytown, Missouri — has a double release this week. They’re mixing up a bit of light and dark. The first is their new 4.7% ABV Odd Bird, which is a nice light corn lager. If you want something dark, spring for their Processed Pandemonium, which is a pilot batch of an oatmeal stout coming in at 6.5% ABV.
East Forty Brewing — 1201 W. Main St., Blue Springs, Missouri — has released the newest variation of their golden ale, Farmer’s Milkshake. This version, Horchata, is a 5.2% ABV homage to the popular Mexican beverage and was brewed with cinnamon to give it that classic horchata flavor.
Strange Days Brewing — 316 Oak St., Kansas City, Missouri — just released Nupont, a 6.6% ABV Nelson dry-hopped saison. The base uses the classic saison base of pilsner malt and Czech Saaz hops. They then dry hopped it with Nelson Sauvin, resulting in a beer with aromas ranging from earthy grassiness to juicy bubblegum.
Martin City Brewing Co. — 500 E. 135th St., Kansas City, Missouri — just released their Ba Dunka Dunk, a 5.8% ABV dunkel. This classic German ale is malty and nutty and finishes clean and crisp. The fun name was voted on by members of their beer club.
Beer Events
Friday, Aug. 27
Not Lost Brewing Co. — 229 S. Main St., Ottawa, Kansas — wants to put your knowledge of “Pawnee” to the test! Come in for a night of Parks & Recreation Trivia Night. Need to brush up the popular TV series? Better start that Netflix binge now!
Boulevard Brewing Co. — 2501 Southwest Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri — is partnering with Pinstripes to throw a summer backyard BBQ. This event will be an “all you can eat and drink” featuring foods like grilled pesto chicken, barbecue ribs, macaroni and cheese, and more. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased here.
Saturday, Aug. 28
Limitless Brewing — 9765 Widmer Road, Lenexa, Kansas — is back with another charitable event. They’ll be hosting a cornhole tournament starting at 5 p.m. Cost to enter is $40 with proceeds going to the Tomahawk Elementary School PTA.
The Goat Brewing Co. — 817 N.E. Rice Road, Lee’s Summit, Missouri — is hosting a Sporting KC Happy Hour watch party in their taproom. Come cheer on your favorite local soccer team while enjoying $1 off all full pour beers.
Sunday, Aug. 29
Fields & Ivy Brewery — 706 E. 23rd St., Lawrence, Kansas — is hosting Yoga on Tap at their brewhouse. This hour long yoga class is hosted by registered yoga instructor Megan Feighny and includes one free beer. Cost to attend is $15.
Big Rip Brewing Co. — 216 E. 9th Ave., North Kansas City, Missouri — is also hosting a Sunday yoga event. Their Bottoms Up Yoga event welcomes yoga enthusiasts of all levels and will begin at 10:30 a.m. Stick around for free post-class beer. Tickets are only $5 and can be purchased here.