Gathering Place Acquires Grafton Brewery

Gathering Place Brewing Company beers. Photo courtesy of Gathering Place Brewing Company.

Grafton, meet Gathering Place. The Milwaukee-based brewery, with locations in Riverwest and Wauwatosa, finalized its purchase of Sahale Ale Works at 1505 Wisconsin Ave. earlier this month.

Sahale’s three-barrel brewing system and 2,700-square-foot taproom, which opened in 2019 under Matthew Hofmann, are now managed by Gathering Place’s Joe Yeado, who completed the acquisition Dec. 16.

Amid the transition, customers can rest assured that the taproom experience will remain largely the same, Yeado said, noting that plans are in place to preserve the business’s name, branding, and recipes.

“We’re going to continue brewing things that are fan favorites, but we’ll also introduce new beers under the Sahale brand,” he said.

Eventually, customers might be able to find a Gathering Place lager or two on tap in Grafton. “We still very much want it to be a home for Sahale and those beers, but the chance to mix in some Gathering Place options is really interesting.”

Brewing will continue on-location in Grafton, though high-capacity batches, such as year-round beers and popular seasonals, may be brewed at the larger Riverwest facility, 811 E. Vienna Ave.,

Along with exposure to a new customer base, Yeado views the expansion as an opportunity to embrace new and exciting challenges. While the two breweries share similarities in size and character—both offering a family-friendly atmosphere and strong community ties—there is one key difference: the beer itself.

“The Gathering Place lineup includes a lot of lagers,” Yeado said. “We don’t make too many beers with fruit in them and we don’t make too many beers that are sours, but Sahale does. Their beer lineup is strong where ours is a little weak, and vice versa.”

He added that Head Brewer Matt Cisz and Assistant Brewer Nick Salo are looking forward to diving into the new recipes. And customers will be equally pleased.

“Any time a brewer has more time and space to play around they tend to be happy,” Yeado said. “And we’ve gotten requests for more fruited beers, more sour beers, from the Gathering Place customers. So this is a really great way for our brewing team to kind of stretch their creative muscles and also give our customers more of what they want.”

Gathering Place launched its Riverwest brewery and taproom in 2017, later expanding with a second location in Wauwatosa in October 2022.

Sahale, which features a large patio and retractable garage doors, is situated on the first floor of a four-story apartment building, next to Fiddleheads Coffee.

Yeado is able to describe the place in vivid detail, having spent much of the past two weeks on-site. “It’s been really great to get to know the regulars and have conversations with them and see what they love about Sahale and how we can continue to provide those things while also welcoming in new guests,” he said.

As he leads the operation into 2025, Yeado said he’s focused on broadening Sahale’s scope, also praising Hofmann for his successes thus far.

“Matt and his team have done such a great job building the brand and creating that strong foundation,” he said. “I think our involvement as a larger, combined company is to bring resources, support growth and continue to accelerate what’s already working well to help Sahale become better known in Milwaukee proper and maybe the suburbs to the south and west, because they’ve already done a great job establishing themselves to the north.”

Sahale Ale Works is open 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday, 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 7 p.m. Sunday.

The taproom, typically closed on Tuesdays, will open from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Dec. 31 for New Year’s Eve, with a toast at 6 p.m. (midnight in Dublin).

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