Craft Beer Store Granted Liquor License for Landing Location

Braintree officials approved an all-alcohol retail license Tuesday for the Craft Beer Cellar, the newest addition to a small, local chain that offers hard-to-find brews and specialty wines and spirits.

The store will open at 28 Commercial St., where Lotus Salon is now in the Landing. Owners Kay Lorenz and Matt Young told the Board of License Commissioners that they plan to open by mid-November.


Board members voted 3-1 to grant the license. They also unanimously appointed Lorenz the manager of record and agreed to allow the pledge of the license to Holbrook Cooperative Bank. 

Craft Beer Cellar has two other locations, in Belmont and Winchester, owned by other individuals, with additional stores planned in Newton, Westford and Waterbury, VT. 

Chair Joe Powers was the sole vote against granting the license. He argued that Craft Beer Cellar does not satisfy a need in the community that is not already satisfied by the many package stores in the area, including one only 100 feet away in the Landing.

"I don't see that the need is there because the need is driven by the marketplace," Powers said.

He also said that he could not ignore the fact that traffic and parking would be problematic.

However, Russell Forsberg, the town's building inspector, said that Braintree needs to encourage "new and inventive businesses," and that he did not believe the need was being met.

Police Chief Russell Jenkins agreed, saying that even though he does not drink alcohol, he sees the benefit of bringing a specialty beer store to the Landing.

"The thing that makes us different from typical liquor stores," Young said, "is that we won't be selling Bud, Miller or Coors."

Craft Beer Cellar will stock craft beers, defined, in part, by the Brewers Association as coming from a brewer with an annual product of six million barrels or less. By contrast, companies like Anheuser-Busch and Coors brew tens of millions of barrels each year.

Education will also be a significant part of the experience at the store, Lorenz said. All employees will be certified beer servers, similar to a sommelier for wine, and they will teach along with selling.

"We value the education that our employees have," Lorenz said. "We go to great lengths to see that the customer receives an education as well."

Lorenz and Young also ensured the board that they would request off-peak delivery times from their vendors.