Raise a glass: A large-scale brewery officially opens production on Columbia’s North Main
Tap the kegs and raise a glass: A new, large-scale brewing operation in north Columbia is officially up and running.
Peak Drift Brewing Company, located in the former Stone Manufacturing building at 3452 North Main St., had a grand opening ceremony Wednesday morning for its production facility. A laundry list of elected and business officials were in attendance for the occasion including S.C. House Speaker Murrell Smith, S.C. House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, Columbia Chamber CEO Carl Blackstone, various members of Columbia City Council and Richland County Council and a host of others.
Peak Drift is owned by siblings Sara Middleton Styles and Greg Middleton, whose family has opened a number of businesses downtown, including The Grand restaurant and bowling alley, the upscale Smoked eatery and, more recently, Hanabi Hibachi and Sushi at 1624 Main.
Various beers from Peak Drift have started to pop up in bars, restaurants and stores across the region. Director of sales and operations Jason Snyder said Peak Drift beer currently is in several dozen restaurants in the Midlands, along with a number of major wine and package stores, with more stores, including Lowes Foods, soon to come.
Wednesday’s ceremony marked the opening of the production brewery side of the North Main Peak Drift facility. The site will also eventually include restaurant space with indoor and outdoor dining options, a members-only gym, an entertainment stage, a duckpin bowling alley, a merchandise shop and much more. Snyder said Wednesday the larger complex is aiming for an opening in the fall.
The production brewery side of the business alone was a $20 million project, according to company officials, with many more millions to come to develop the rest of the complex.
Sara Middleton Styles said it has taken the help of numerous people and entities to launch the Peak Drift production facility, a project that is three years in the making. It’s part of what leads to a special feeling when she sees Peak Drift products on taps in local restaurants or on the shelves at stores, she said.
“We had teams and teams of people, at every level and every facet, within this community and from beyond this community, that saw the opportunity for something bigger,” Styles said. “It was absolutely incredible to look out (Wednesday) and see this equipment in place after three years, and being able to look over and see every single person’s face who helped us get where we are today. It’s been a fun and supporting environment.”
Smith, a Sumter Republican and the S.C. House Speaker, noted there has been a run of economic development announcements across the state recently and said Peak Drift is a part of that tapestry.
“I cannot tell you how excited I am to come and be a part of a celebration for a facility like this,” Smith said. “You look at what investments and businesses like this mean not only to the state, but the community. One of the goals of (Peak Drift) is to transform this area of Main Street and make it a thriving area like the rest of Main Street.”
The building at 3452 North Main was originally built in the 1940s and was operated for years by Stone Manufacturing. It was a garment factory for decades. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.
