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Valley’s newest brewery, Kitsune Brewing, opens Friday in north Phoenix

Japanese-inspired Kitsune Brewing, Arizona’s only Black-owned craft brewery, opens at noon Friday on the southeast corner of Bell and 32nd Street in north Phoenix.

The backstory: Owner Tyler Smith, who worked for Nike for a decade, has been brewing Kitsune beers at Simple Machine Brewing since 2020 while working on launching his brewery and taproom.

The namesake mascot: In Japanese folklore, kitsune are foxes that possess paranormal abilities.

Did you know? Kitsune has no kitchen, but Smith has plans to launch a ramen shop next door.

Open: Noon-9 p.m. Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, and noon-6 p.m. Sunday. Closed Monday and Wednesday.