Two former science teachers, Thomas Monti and Justin Waller, opened Schoolhouse Brewing in Marietta in May of 2019.
In November 2022, the duo opened a second Schoolhouse location in the former Papi’s Cuban & Caribbean Grill space at Emory Point, across the street from the CDC.
Recently, I caught up with Monti at the new brewery and tasting room, dubbed the Gymnasium.
“Because of COVID, Papi’s had been shut down,” Monti said. “So it was a lot of demo, and a lot of build-out, but I think we created a space that brings the indoors and outdoors together.”
The sports-themed, 4,000-square-foot-plus space includes two bars, a covered patio, rows of big-screen TVs, and plenty of team memorabilia on the walls.
What makes Schoolhouse distinctive, though, is that it never makes the same beer twice.
“We never have, and we never will,” Monti said. “We have no core brands, but it works for us, and I think everybody enjoys that. We’ve had a couple of series, but they were still all unique beers.”
Another interesting twist to the Schoolhouse story goes back to the days when Monti first opened a combination growler/bottle shop and homebrew supply store in Marietta.
“Our model is open-source, meaning we give away all our recipes,” Monti said. “If a home brewer wants a recipe, we scale them down every single week when we release a new beer. It’s paying homage to our homebrew roots.”
Credit: Bob Townsend
Credit: Bob Townsend
The Marietta brewery has a seven-barrel system that allows Schoolhouse to transfer beer to Emory Point, both in cans and kegs. But Monti is also brewing one-of-a-kind beers at the Gymnasium, where he has a new two-barrel brewing system.
“We can do some unique stuff here,” Monti said. “And we’re trying to turn this into an incubator. So maybe a restaurant wants a beer that’s just made for them. We can do that here. The General Muir is right next door, and I’d like to do a bagel beer for them.”
In addition, the Gymnasium has a barrel-aging program that Monti hopes will soon lead to a new release every month. Currently, HE’S AGING everything from a rye Extra Special Bitter and a port Belgian-style quadrupel , to a pineapple gueuze aged in a rum barrel.
Each of the two bars has eight taps featuring that moment’s rotating beers, plus cider and wine on draft.
“We do have a wine license, and we’ve been making wines for almost two years,” Monti noted. “We focus on having options. Our sangria and our cider are gluten-free, and for all of our lagers, we’re using a gluten-reducing enzyme.”
With all that going for it, Monti has been somewhat disappointed with the turnout for the Gymnasium, so far.
“We would really like to see more foot traffic, and get more people to know we’re here,” he said. “But on Mondays we do trivia, and we’ve started a running club on Wednesdays, and we’re seeing more traffic from Emory and the CDC.”
Noon-9 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, noon-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, and noon-6 p.m. Sundays. 1540 Avenue Place, Atlanta. 404-549-9140. Noon-9 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, noon-11 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays and 1-6 p.m. Sundays. 840 Franklin Court, Suite A, Marietta. 770-361-5247, schoolhousebeer.com.
Sign up for the AJC Food and Dining Newsletter
Read more stories like this by liking Atlanta Restaurant Scene on Facebook, following @ATLDiningNews on Twitter and @ajcdining on Instagram.
About the Author
