EDITOR’S NOTE: The Aurora Sentinel is following Mu Brewery officials in their odyssey in becoming craft brewers
AURORA | Nathan Flatland had hoped Mu Brewery would be up and running by now, pouring tasty craft beers to a loyal following on East Colfax Avenue.
At the least, Flatland had hoped to have beer flowing at his new brewery and tasting room in time to celebrate Oktoberfest, one of the more-festive times on beer lovers’ calendars.
A handful of recent delays — most notably a longer-than-expected bidding process with prospective general contractors — means Mu didn’t get to celebrate Oktoberfest this year. And they won’t be pouring beers for Thanksgiving or even New Year’s.
Now, the target date for the brewery and tasting room’s opening is early February.
Flatland said there’s some disappointment that Mu missed out on Oktoberfest and that they won’t be open for another few months. But, he said, the bustling Aurora Arts and Cultural District is becoming a year-round hub of activity, with the nearby Fox Theatre and Vintage Theatre cranking out performances on a regular basis.
That means there will be plenty of opportunities to partner with those organizations and draw beer lovers to the brewery’s new home at 9735 E. Colfax Ave.
“Because of where we are at, I don’t think we need to worry too much about when we open because they have stuff going on year-round,” Flatland said.
Flatland has always been prepared for these types of delays that often slow down new small businesses. And while there have been some frustrating moments as the process has dragged on, Flatland said he never doubted that one day soon Mu will be open for business.
“The more troubles came up the more everybody dug in,” he said.
Tim Gonerka, the city’s retail specialist who has worked closely with Flatland on the project, said delays can be frustrating, but they are pretty typical when launching a new business.
“Anymore, getting from the moment you decide this is the spot I want to be in to getting the store open can take as much as a year for even the most experienced retailers,” he said.
But, Gonerka said, the project is a crucial one for the burgeoning arts district on Colfax.
“It’s clear that if we are going to have a successful arts district we need to build a backbone of strong restaurants and retail to be there as the artists and the public start to come,” he said.
The hope is that a successful Mu brewery will attract other bars and restaurants to the area, Gonerka said.
Mu’s development has always happened on two parallel tracks — one where Flatland is trying to get the tasting room and brew house complete, and one where he is trying to perfect his beer recipes.
That means that even though the first part has moved slow, Flatland has always been able to immerse himself in that second track, getting the subtleties of each recipe just right.
“I think we have them all honed in,” he said.
Crafting those brews has also been almost therapeutic for Flatland, allowing him to focus on an aspect of the business that is progressing according to plan and ignore for a few hours the slow-moving construction process.
“It definitely helps,” he said. “If nothing else it was more just a way to keep your eye on the prize.”