Stumptown Ales to be featured at new Kanawha County sports bar

Trey and Steve Frame received approval yesterday from the Kanawha County Commission to continue their development plans for The Pitch Sports Bar & Grill at the county-owned Shawnee Sports Complex in Institute, WV. The owners say one part of the restaurant will feature beer from Stumptown Ales in Davis, WV. The sports complex has been without a sit-down restaurant since the late 1990s.

The new restaurant would feature table seating and a food menu being developed in consultation with Paul Smith, a popular Charleston area chef. It will be built inside the existing Shawnee clubhouse facility, which will require extensive remodeling. The total project investment is estimated by the Frames to be $376,000. After receiving the county commission’s sign-off on the project, all the lease and contract agreements are expected to be finalized soon. The brothers say their target opening date is February 2020.

One notable feature of the new Pitch Sports Bar & Grill will be the inclusion of an upstairs bar area called the Stumptown Loft. The loft will have eight taps serving beers from Stumptown Ales of Davis, WV. The bar owners say they are fans of the brewery, but you often don’t find many of their beers in the Charleston market. They approached Stumptown Ales’ owners and asked if they would be interested in committing to supply beer to a special bar section that would exclusively serve their products. The brewery agreed to the idea. Even though the Pitch Sports Bar will have a larger main floor bar selling many other brands of beer, the inclusion of a Stumptown Loft will be a welcomed addition.

“Their beer is fantastic, and they have a really big following in the Charleston area,” Steve Frame said of Stumptown Ales. Trey Frame said the bar will also have a growler and Crowler filling station on site.

This is the first arrangement of this type that we have heard of in the state. We see no reason why there could not be more set ups like this developed between willing parties. State law does not permit a brewery to make any payments or provide anything of value to a bar or retailer in order to have its beer sold there. However, a bar owner, who wants to feature and promote a particular brewery’s beer just because they like the product, is always free to do that. Just think about all the bars and retailers that have featured Bud Light for decades and displayed signs promoting the brand.

Stumptown Ales has been making every-other-week deliveries to the Charleston market for a while, but only a handful of Kanawha County bar accounts seem to get their products. Even then, you normally see no more than three or four of their brands in the market at any one time. Committing to provide enough beers to keep eight taps full at all times is a big step up for the brewery in the Charleston market.

Stumptown known for hoppy beers

Stumptown is primarily known for its hoppy beers, especially IPAs. They have developed a strong following among craft beer fans in the areas of the state where they distribute their beer. Brilliant Stream name the Stumptown Ales as WV Brewery of the Year in 2017. With the strong popularity of Stumptown Ales beer, it appears that it could be a win for both the brewery and the sports bar.

The Stumptown Ales’ owners say they are also open to other types of Stumptown pub opportunities, where their beer is featured. Over the past year the brewery owners have been exploring expanded business opportunities much in the vein of what the Mountain State Brewing Company owners did with their Mountain State Brewing pizza pubs in Morgantown and Bridgeport. These facilities have no brewery, but their taps feature the beers of the brewery. “We are constantly looking for available sites around the state that would suit our need and meet the size and style we are looking for,” said Stumptown Ales owners Jon and Cindy Robeson in an email communication to Brilliant Stream.

The Pitch would be the first restaurant and bar venture for the Frame brothers. They currently own and operate Hidden Trails Motorsports in Charleston. It is a business that sells and services ATVs, motorcycles, and personal watercraft.

The Shawnee Sports Complex, which was formerly a golf course, was completely rebuilt two years ago. Now, with six soccer fields and four baseball/softball fields, the complex has proven to be very popular with sports leagues and tournaments. The new restaurant would be located just a few blocks from the campus of West Virginia State University, which could send a lot of business its way.