AURORA | If you peered through the window at 9735 E. Colfax Ave. last week, you didn’t see much beyond a battered linoleum floor, dusty old countertop and a wall-mounted television stand without a TV.
But when Nathan Flatland stands in that barren room, he sees a brewery — and a pretty great one at that. The devoted brewer looks right past the building’s current state to the shiny new brew pub set to open later this year.
“We’re gonna open this up with a garage door here,” he said, enthusiastically pointing to the big front window. Maybe a grain silo will reside near the garage door, he said, letting passerby know what’s there, and a bar near the front will serve Mu’s finest while brew tanks in the back craft whatever Flatland dreams up.
“We’ll have optimum room to make this a pretty awesome brew house,” he said.
When it starts, Mu’s taps will serve a maple cream porter, raspberry red ale, pilsner and an English style brown ale, as well as some other yet-to-be-determined brews.
Flatland signed the lease on the property in April and plans to open Mu Brewery and tasting room by early September.
Flatland, who grew up in nearby Castle Rock and moved to Aurora in 2006, is a relative newcomer to brewing, having just started crafting his own beer at home a few years ago. But he took to the hobby quickly, and in recent months had been shopping around for a good spot to locate Mu’s stand-alone brewery.
The storefront near Colfax and Dayton Street is an ideal fit, Flatland said, because the surrounding Aurora Cultural Arts District is a burgeoning hub of creativity. Across Colfax sits the Aurora Fox theater, a half block down Dayton is the Vintage Theatre, and several art galleries dot the other storefronts along Colfax.
“That’s exactly what we want to be a part of,” he said.
Art and good beer, Flatland is quick to note, pair well.
Tracy Weil, managing director of the Aurora Cultural Arts District, agreed.
“Food and wine and beer and art all go together,” he said.
Combined with longstanding businesses like La Cueva Mexican restaurant, Weil said Mu will provide much-needed pre- and post-show opportunities to theater goers looking to wind down.
“They all really work together and it makes it more of a destination,” he said.
And, Weil said, the creative nature of brewing craft beer will fit in nicely with the rest of the arts district.
“Whether they are a graphic designer, or a craft brewer, or somebody who makes handmade jewelry, it’s all a creative industry,” he said. “Whatever we can do to promote that artisan nature is a great thing for the district.”
But before Mu can start serving beers and really make its mark on the city’s art scene, Flatland has a mountain of work ahead of him at the 1,800 square-foot storefront.
“We are going completely down to the studs,” he said. “And we’ll build up from there.”
Flatland, who has spent most of his career in the telecommunications industry, has some construction experience, so he’s planning on getting his hands dirty during the remodel.
But, he said, the project ahead of him is a big one.
“It’s a scary thing when you look at all the numbers,” he said. “It’s a daunting task.”
Still, with that vision of a vibrant new brewery and tasting room in the front of his mind, Flatland won’t mind the long hours.
“No matter what, at this point any ounce of energy that goes into this is all for doing something I love,” he said. “So it’s hard to say no to that.”