This month a new brewery called Species X Beer Project opened in the former Platform Beer Co. space on Sixth Street downtown! They’ve reinvigorated a long-empty taproom and brewery that was once a hopping spot.
Platform went dormant early on in the pandemic, before the Cleveland-based company eventually closed completely. Now Species X has given it a fresh coat of paint and started brewing one of the city’s most unique line-ups of beer.
Species X brews beer in two separate categories of “species,” Carbon and Silicon. Both are brewed using experimental recipes, ingredients, and techniques.
Carbon beers are built around novel biological microorganisms, particularly hybrid or mutated yeast strains.
Silicon beers, meanwhile, are developed using AI!
Owner Beau Warren runs a series of algorithms that develop the Silicon recipes within certain parameters.
Beers on the menu are labeled as Carbon and Silicon, with the Silicon ones identifying the models that created them.
For those who never visited Platform, the taproom is long and open, with a bar running along most of the space and a patio (as well as a small rooftop patio). The brewery itself sits toward the back.
Warren brews on a 3.5-barrel system, already producing an ever-changing menu of about 6-7 beers, as well as canned four-packs. Eventually, though, they’ll be filling the more than two dozen tap handles with house beers.
On our visit I sampled a beer from both the Carbon and Silicon species. The Lunar Base (pictured here) is a lager-conditioned blonde ale, crisp and a little grassy.
The Sp3ktral IPA (pictured up top) is designed by their Gh0st model, and is rich, hazy, citrusy.
Species X also offers a small food menu of salads, sandwiches, and pizzas. The pepperoni pizza uses a tall but light and crispy crust, and is topped with pepperoni, ricotta, basil, and hot honey.
The kale Caesar salad is tossed in a lemon-garlic dressing.
Shelves and coolers offer Species X beer and swag for purchase.
Species X is currently open:
- Wednesday-Thursday, 3-9 p.m.
- Friday, 3-10 p.m.
- Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Species X Beer Project
408 N. Sixth St.
Columbus, OH 43215
Web: speciesxbeer.com
IG: @speciesexbeer
