Park City Brewing to bring locally brewed beers to Deer Valley Beer Festival

Photo: Park City Brewery’s Micro Brew Lab

PARK CITY, Utah — Park City Brewing is planning on bringing some of its most popular “Research and Development” beers to Deer Valley Mountain Beer Festival this weekend on September 18 at the Silver Lake Lodge in Park City. The brewery will bring totally unique Park City-brewed beers to the festival for patrons to sample and enjoy.

TownLift spoke with Elias Fairman, president of Park City Brewing, and brewmaster Troy Higgins.

Park City Brewing is unique for Park City in that it has its own small “lab” for devising and brewing totally bespoke beers right in view of the restaurant’s customers. This lab is Higgins’ domain, where he experiments with different flavors, styles, and ingredients to serve in small batches in the brewery.

When asked what it’s like to be in charge of a small, local, experimental brewery, Higgins said it’s always been a dream of his.

“I get an idea about a style I haven’t done, do a little bit of research, and go for it,” continued Higgins. Most of these ideas end up being “one off” batches that are only available for a single weekend at the Brewery. A few, such as Higgins’ famous “Coffee Porter,” are repeated and improved upon based on popular feedback from patrons.

Higgins first came to Park City as a travel nurse working during the winters. “Every time I left in the spring, I always wanted to come back. Eventually, there was some room for me to start brewing on the small system in the back here.” When asked if he thinks that his background as a nurse might seem strange for a full-time brewer, Higgins responded by saying that “the best part of brewing is that it is a right brain and left brain process. There’s a creative side to it and a quantitative, scientific side to it.” After all, beer fans should be able to appreciate the precision and safety expertise that a medical professional brings to the brewing process.

From Pennsylvania originally, Higgins said that brewing with a strict 5% ABV limit in Utah was a “red flag” at first. Over the months he’s worked at Park City Brewery, he has begun to see it as “a fun challenge, finding ways to put as much flavor in 5% brews.” Higgins did praise the availability of great local ingredients for his brews, including from Salt Lake City’s local Beer Nut brewing supplies store.

Fairman spoke with TownLift about the brewery’s history in Park City. Originally started in 2013, Park City Brewery was sold to a group of local investors in 2019. “Then COVID hit, and everything kind of died,” said Fairman, “Since then, the relaunch and rebrand have allowed us to really try to position ourselves as a place run by locals, owned by locals, and serving locals. That’s how we try and differentiate ourselves a little bit.”

Fairman then explained how Park City Brewery has five core beers that are available all year round. “All of them are named after something that represents Park City and its culture.” He continued by emphasizing that while the Brewery does have a big emphasis on beer, it’s a “family-friendly restaurant.” “I think Park City lacks some of those places where it’s a little bit more laid back and chill, where you can bring your family and have a beer.”

As far as the future of the brewery, Fairman says they are constantly trying to improve their food selection as well as the beers produced by Higgins to create a full restaurant experience. They hold trivia nights and NFL nights every week, both of which pull fun crowds, according to both Higgins and Fairman.

Regarding the brews at Park City Brewery themselves, TownLift can confirm that they are indeed delicious and unique. Even the Coffee Porter, which was met with some skepticism, impressed in a big way.