Open nearly four years, Cultivation Brewing Co. in Norcross is a bit off the beaten path, but once you navigate the winding road to the top of a hill, you’ll find a surprising beer oasis.
Founded by Britt Lancaster and Paul Bennett, partners in a landscape and tree service business, the brewery serves a dual purpose, for work and play.
Credit: Courtesy of Cultivation Brewery Co
Credit: Courtesy of Cultivation Brewery Co
“We’re the owners there, but we’re also very much patrons,” Bennett said. “In the beginning, we were more about making craft beer. Now, that sometimes feels like it’s secondary to the people we are meeting and the fun that comes along with that.”
“It’s my favorite place to hang out,” Lancaster said. “I’ve gone to a lot of breweries in my life, and there’s just something special about this place. It’s not just the fact that we own it, it’s the community. I never appreciated that until we opened.”
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Employing a five-barrel Alpha Brewing system, Cultivation usually keeps 12 beers on draft. Recently, that included an amber lager, a cream ale, an Oktoberfest märzen and a barrel-aged stout.
Look for some alternative beverages, too, including a popular seltzer and a seasonal kettle sour made with muscadine grapes from Adams Vineyard in Norcross.
“We’re not making a massive amount of beer each time we brew, so we’re always keeping it new and fresh,” Bennett said. “It keeps our draft board changing pretty frequently, which I think our customers — and definitely the craft beer community — enjoy and look for.”
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
New head brewer Britt Teusink, who has worked at several breweries in Georgia, including Cherry Street and Gate City, has been tasked with developing a new lager program.
“We’ve made lagers through the years, but I admire guys like Todd (DiMatteo) at Good Word and his lager program,” Bennett said. “And the guys down at Halfway Crooks have got it down. I think the trend is for lower alcohol and lager beer.
“We had the IPA explosion with the hazes. Don’t get me wrong, from our sales perspective, IPA is still king. But lower alcohol, clean and crisp, is what I like to drink.”
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Lancaster recalled that the beginning of Cultivation often was difficult.
“Norcross didn’t know a lot about craft beer,” he said. “We had to get the city on board, and eventually they passed an ordinance for craft beer to come into the city. It took us a long time, with permitting and construction, to finally get the doors open. And then there was the pandemic, and all these breweries were shutting their doors. Near us, Anderby closed in 2023 and Kettlerock closed in 2024.”
On the bright side, Lancaster said he is grateful for the community’s embrace of Cultivation Brewing.
“We’re just forever grateful to keep the doors open,” he said. “We have this family-friendly side area that’s been amazing for birthday parties and special events. It’s been very organic to see how the customers kind of help create these areas around the brewery.”
Cultivation Brewing Co. 650 Langford Drive, Norcross. 770-696-5407, cultivationbrew.com
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