Robin Shepard
Chris and Colleen Welch
Growlers to Go-Go’s grand opening starts at noon, April 23, at 2927 E. Washington Ave., next door to Trixie’s Liquors. This east-side growler filling station is owned by Chris and Colleen Welch, who also own Trixie’s.
The shop will pour fresh tap beer into 32-ounce or 64-ounce growlers, or 32-ounce cans (crowlers) for home use. There’s also a small (6-8 barstools) area where customers can sample or try a pint on-site. Welch has plans to sell pressurized growlers, and eventually mini kegerators.
Beers include local, regional and national brands, from at least 18 tap lines. Chris Welch says he’ll be choosing his rotating lineup with the ultimate beer geek in mind. “We’ll have high-end stuff, and [some] usually found as brewery-only beers,” he says. “They won’t all be hits — sometimes a miss, and sometimes off the wall,” he adds. Some of the initial beers include Naughty 90 Oaked IPA from Toppling Goliath and Dragon's Milk Reserve Vanilla Chai from New Holland Brewing.
The shop joins a growing number of grocery stores (Fresh Market, Festival Foods) that have growler filling stations, which became possible in Madison only after an ordinance change in July 2014.
Growlers to Go-Go will be open noon-9 p.m. Mon.-Sat. and noon-7 p.m. Sun.
