Open Space Brewing
By Jennifer C. Olson
Photos by Stephanie Cameron
Open Space Brewing owners Matt Leef and Alexa Tubbs.
It was standing room only at the Open Space Brewing taproom when Nuestra Tierra Conservation Project held the Gila River Legacy and Reconciliation Gathering. The line at the bar extended out the raised garage door on the afternoon of packet pickup for the Tommy Knocker 10 mountain bike race. And during the release party for a beer collaboration with New Mexico Wild, the story was much the same.
Wherever there are outdoor festivals and events in southwest New Mexico, you’ll find Open Space Brewing. Owners Matt Leef and Alexa Tubbs flit around Continental Divide Trail Coalition Trail Days in Silver City, float Frisbees into metal baskets on the disc golf course near historic Fort Bayard, and fly through the finish lines of the Tour of the Gila citizen fun races. That’s not to mention the buzz of events at the nano brewery’s taproom in a former National Guard Armory in Santa Clara, a small mining community situated outside Silver City and near a network of multiuse trails.
Beer flight featuring a rotating selection and Open Space Brewing’s window into the Gila wilderness.
Reserving favorite concoctions for other organizations is a habit at Open Space Brewing, which aims to cultivate community around the region’s abundant outdoor resources and nurture local organizations that enrich outdoor recreation. Whether in their taproom or around town, Leef and Tubbs go out of their way to redirect the spotlight from their brewery to the aforementioned organizations as well as the likes of Gila Back Country Horsemen. “We’re trying to give back to the community outside of the beer community,” says Tubbs, who leads occasional group bike rides and hikes before opening hours.
Indeed, going from outdoor event to outdoor event proves fruitful. “It’s resonating with the community,” Leef says. “Those who are already outdoorsy really are vibing with the brewery concept. Those who maybe aren’t so outdoorsy are getting inspired to get out there and go explore their backyard.”
Perhaps in response to the brewery’s efforts, Grant County is in talks about adding a frontage road to the nearby Bataan Memorial Park with a parking lot “plus hopefully a trailhead” providing an even more direct connection between the taproom and the Fort Bayard / Dragonfly Trail system, Tubbs says. An unofficial approach trail exists behind Open Space Brewing now. “You can park at the brewery and access the trail system,” she adds. “It’s sort of a two-track right now. When people come and ask where the trail is, I just tell them to follow the fence.”
Brews in the making.
A more official approach trail that provides another access point may distribute the users along more areas of the system, she says. “A lot of people have parked at the Dragonfly Trailhead and done loops there. This side of that whole system of trails is really nice; it just doesn’t get a lot of use yet,” she says, noting that the brewery functions as a trailhead for some. “It’s great to see people out on Saturday-
morning hikes park in our parking lot, and then we open our doors when they finish here. People would not be doing that if not for the space we’ve created.”
This summer, the taproom is open Thursday and Friday from 2 to 8 pm and Saturdays from noon to 8 pm. While Tubbs and Leef dream of bringing on employees and creating jobs with Open Space Brewing, it is now run by a small team. “You saw Jerry and Bobby running around,” they joke, referencing their black cat and lovable mutt.
Matt Leef and Jerry the cat.
Tubbs’s brother Spencer helped build out the armory as an attractive gathering place with a brewhouse. Friends contributed the ponderosa pine slabs making up the bar top. The Fort Bayard Historic Preservation Society donated unused tables and chairs. And, since the brewery doesn’t have a kitchen, a pair of food trucks have established themselves on site.
The plan is for Open Space Brewing to continue as a destination brewery where residents and travelers can come together. With a rotating selection of staple beers, three or four seasonal beers, plus two designated nonalcoholic taps, the taproom offers variety for their patrons. And customers won’t find their products in the liquor aisle. “It’s all about bringing people here,” Leef says.
11990 US Hwy 180, Santa Clara, openspacebrewing.com
Jennifer C. Olson
Having grown up working and playing in her family’s orchard in the Mimbres River Valley, Jennifer C. Olson made a childhood vow to never eat store-bought apples. What she meant was “Eat local whenever possible.” When the family moved on from the year-round responsibility of tending 950 trees, she began relying on other means of acquiring produce grown close to home. The Frontier Food Hub is one of those avenues.
