Roar Brewing Co., Detroit's first Black-owned brewery, set to open Sunday
Roar Brewing Co., owned by Evan Fay, is hosting a soft opening Sunday at 666 Selden Street in Midtown, with a grand opening slated for summer. The new brewery will launch with its flagship Honey Oat Stout and is billed as a place for 'great beer and great company.'
According to a news release, Roar Brewing's name is a take on Detroit being a city that 'roars' from its sports teams to music and more.
"Detroit is home to the Lions, the Tigers, the Pistons, and the Red Wings — teams that roar with pride. But the roar isn't just in sports. It's in the city's engines, its music, its industry, and its people. We wanted our brewery to be a tribute to that spirit," Fay said in a news release.
Fay is a U.S. Air Force veteran who also co-owns Detroit's Café Noir and its next-door neighbor Chole Monroe Galleries on John R. Reached by phone Friday, Fay told the Free Press he purchased all of Nain Rouge Brewery assets such as its beer equipment.
According to its mission statement, Roar's name 'embodies the energy, strength, and spirit that define both our city and our craft.'
Making craft beer approachable to everyone is Fay's goal.
"We're not trying to be everything to everyone, but we want our beer to be accessible and easy to enjoy," Fay said.
Aside from the brewery's Honey Oat Stout, other beers in the lineup include the Roar Pilsner, Roar Wheat Beer and Roar Saison.
The brewery is set to be a community-driven social space where people can connect. Interactive brewery tours, entertainment and live music, and social events including karaoke and sports watch parties are on tap for the space. The overall property also includes an outdoor plaza and a three-and-a-half-season room in the works.
Roar Brewing's community vibe is based on Fay's first experiences with the craft beer culture in Fort Collins, Colorado.
"When I was in the military and stationed in Wyoming, I would visit breweries in Fort Collins, and I realized they weren't just places to grab a drink — they were community hubs," said Fay.
Roar Brewing is where Fay expects people to gather to 'watch a game, have a conversation, or experience craft beer for the first time."
According to Roar Brewing Company's news release, Black-owned breweries represent less than 1% of all U.S. breweries. Michigan's first fully Black-owned brewery, Black Calder Brewing Co., opened in 2020 in Grand Rapids.
Roar Brewing Co. worked with the National Black Brewers Association for guidance.
"There's a great ecosystem in Detroit to support small businesses, but in craft brewing, there aren't as many direct pathways," Fay said. "Typically, you turn to people in your community who have done it before, but with no Black-owned breweries in the city, we had to look outside our immediate circles for guidance."
Fay believes the industry will become more diverse.
'The challenge is that for a lot of Black entrepreneurs, luxury industries like craft beer haven't been a priority because people are often focused on essentials first," he said. "But we want to change that by making craft beer a space that is inviting, exciting, and approachable."
Roar Brewing's Sunday opening also coincides with the annual Marche du Nain Rouge parade in Midtown. Nain Rouge, which translates to 'red dwarf in French, is an urban legend in Detroit's history where sightings of the storied red demon dwarf preceded disasters. The parade is a celebration where revelers similar to Mardi Gras fashion don costumes, masks, and other adornments and chase and banish the nain rouge, or red dwarf, from the city.
At the Sunday launch, Fay said the remaining Nain Rouge beer and merchandise will be sold. According to the Nain Rouge Brewery Facebook page, after the parade, pints will be $3 and merchandise will be 50% off from 12:30-7:30 p.m.
For information, go to roar.beer.
Contact Detroit Free Press food and restaurant writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news and tips to: sselasky@freepress.com. Follow @SusanMariecooks on X. Subscribe to the Free Press.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Roar Brewing Co. to open in Detroit's Midtown neighborhood
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