Norwich – Downtown Norwich will soon get its second craft brewery, and it will be located next door to the first one.

Three couples from eastern Connecticut announced they have signed a five-year lease for 5,000 square feet of space in the former Norwich Bulletin building at 40 Franklin St., which will house Epicure Brewing. The brewery and tap room will not serve food, partner Jason Vincent said, but instead will invite patrons to bring in food from nearby restaurants to eat at the Epicure tables.

Vincent, the former vice president of the Norwich Community Development Corp. and current director of planning in Stonington, said he started inquiring about craft breweries in downtown Norwich when he was at NCDC. He said he felt the low rents and historic downtown buildings would be an ideal setting for small start-up breweries.

It proved more complicated than filling a void, however. Vincent and his wife Jennifer, of Griswold, and co-partners Jobina and Robert Miller of Canterbury and Kerrie and Ken Thiffeault of Brooklyn, have talked about starting the business themselves since 2011, Vincent said.

The new brewery plans to be open Wednesday through Sunday, with Ken Thiffeault serving as the head brewer. The other partners plan to keep their current “day jobs.” 

Vincent said the fledgling partners were not discouraged when These Guys Brewing Co. announced last summer its plans to open a brew pub and grill at 78 Franklin St., literally next door to the Bulletin complex.

“When we heard These Guys was coming, I was ecstatic,” Vincent said. “The tourism business goes up when you have multiple attractions.”

Jobina Miller, CFO of Epicure, called Norwich “a natural location” for the brewery, with the region's two casinos nearby and large and small businesses throughout the city and region.

“It has a compelling history, the downtown has amazing buildings and spaces, the local business community is very supportive and the city has been great to work with,” Miller said.

The space they will occupy is the former printing press area of the Bulletin. When patrons arrive, they will enter the tap room, with taps protruding from a half wall in front of them. Tables will occupy the front section to the left, and the brewing equipment to the rear.

While the brewery won't serve food, Miller said, they plan to offer local wines to help promote other local businesses.

Vincent described the planned décor as “industrial chic.”

Currently, the space looks more like industrial neglected. On Thursday, several puddles had formed on the bare concrete floor after a rain storm a couple days earlier. Pipes and duct work are visible inside the roof, with no ceilings or drywall.

But Miller and Vincent said the changeover will happen quickly now that the partners have signed the lease and have financing in place through Eastern Savings Bank. Vincent met with local building inspectors Friday. He said a handicapped ramp and new walls will be built, and brewing equipment should be arriving soon.

Miller estimated permitting, including state and federal liquor and brewing licenses, should take about six months.

The group picked the brewery name from an internal joke. An epicure, Vincent said, is someone who enjoys good food and spirits. The partners like to say the food they grill at their barbecue parties is “epicu barbecue,” so when they came around to picking a name for the new business, it was a natural choice.

c.bessette@theday.com