Craft beer bar The Brass Tap to open next month at Mesa Riverview

The Brass Tap, a national chain of craft beer bars, will make its Arizona debut next month at Mesa Riverview. The Florida-based chain offers 60 beers on tap, another 300 in bottles or cans, and a small food menu.

The 2,010-square-foot space shares a stand-alone building with Matta’s Grill & Cantina, directly in front of the Cinemark movie theaters.

It’s a family venture involving Jessie Rowe III and his sons, Jessie IV and Jason, who originally were interested in opening a Beef O’Brady’s restaurant. But when they traveled to Florida to learn more about the franchise, they instead fell in love with the company’s newest concept, The Brass Tap.

“It was pretty much a no-brainer,” Jessie Rowe III says. “When we started to look at the margins of a craft beer bar compared to a straight restaurant, this is something we wanted to invest in. And, we love beer!”

The family chose to open at Mesa Riverview because of its proximity to the new Chicago Cubs spring-training facility.

“We felt being close to the Cubs facility with the spring training and all the other events that will be coming as a result of it down the road, this development has nothing but growth,” Jessie Rowe III says.

The Mesa location will be The Brass Tap’s 13th, but another 26 are expected to open nationwide by the end of this year.

The Brass Top often is compared to World of Beer, which also is based in Tampa, Fla.  (The recently opened WOB at SanTan Village in Gilbert also offers 60 taps, 500 beers in bottles or cans, and a small food menu.)

The biggest difference, Jason Rowe says, is The Brass Tap is more focused on American craft beers, which represent more than 80 percent of the beers. At least 25 of the 60 handles will be dedicated to Arizona beers. They’ve also offer their own Brass Tap IPA (brewed by Epic Brewing in Salt Lake City)

A 28-seat dark-wood bar will dominate the interior of The Brass Tap, which also will have counter seats against the opposite wall, some two-person tables, and a 30-foot-by-10-foot patio on the north side.

Decor-wise, there will be 13 50-inch LED screens for watching sports. Most of the remaining wall space will be taken up with blackboards listing daily specials and members of the bar’s loyalty program, known as the Brew Crew. There also will be a humidor for those who want to purchase cigars.

The one-man kitchen will offer pretzels, mini pizzas, paninis, and flatbreads.

The Rowes plan to do the usual beer classes, beer tastings, and tap takeovers. In addition, Mesa Riverview will allow them to host up to eight outdoor events a year.

Happy hour will run 3-7 p.m. Monday through Friday and offer $3 pints of Arizona beers and $3 glasses of house. There also will be various daily specials, including for military and first responders (Mondays), teachers (Fridays), and industry workers (Thursdays and Sundays).

The Brass Tap is scheduled to open Feb. 24.