ARLINGTON — Things rarely go as planned when building a brewery business. Permits get delayed, equipment breaks down, beers go bust.
Cole and Sarah Rinehardt faced these challenges opening and closing breweries. It’s been a long road for the owners of In The Shadow Brewing and the launch of their first off-site taproom in Arlington.
After running a Granite Falls brewery for two years, the Rinehardts took a hiatus after moving to Arlington in 2016. Three years later, in 2019, they reopened as a backyard beer joint at their home off Old Burn Road in Arlington — just in time for a global pandemic.
Throughout their journey they’ve dealt with the usual business issues and family demands: raising a pair of boys, keeping a household running and, in the case of Cole, working a full-time job. There was even a courageous battle with cancer.
“It’s been a very windy path,” Cole said.
But everything seems to have fallen into place at their new taproom location in downtown Arlington. The building was a good fit from the start.
They got in early when it was still being built out, allowing them to design the space to their specifications. They put in a garage roll-up door to connect the outdoor patio to the inside. Best of all, they were able to keep the taproom dog and kid friendly.
“The building had everything we wanted,” Cole said of the new four-story, multi-use building right off Olympic Avenue. “We were able to tailor it to our needs and cross almost everything off our wish list. It’s been such a blessing.”
They were even able to open by their target date — Fourth of July weekend, just in time for the big downtown parade.
“The parade started right out in front of our door,” Sarah said. “It was a great way to open the new taproom.”
Located on the ground floor, the new taproom is about 1,100 square feet, with indoor seating for about 50 and a small outdoor patio with heaters. A colorful, hand-painted mural depicting In The Shadow’s original location greets visitors.
“We wanted to bring some of that feeling downtown,” said Sarah.
Cole continues to do the majority of the brewing at the Old Burn Road location. His new setup is a 4-barrel system that, despite a few hiccups, is up and running. It allows him to keep the 16 taps at the new taproom flush with as much ITS beer as possible.
In The Shadow and the Rinehardts are already becoming a staple in the city’s downtown core. Just a stone’s throw from the Centennial Trail, they serve as the after-run watering hole for a local women’s running club. They’ve also brewed an official beer — a citra-hopped hazy IPA called The Alley — for The Alley Bar & Grill, a restaurant and bowling alley just down the street.
ITS has also started a friendly rivalry with crosstown brewing compatriots Skookum Brewery. To counter Skookum’s popular Murder of Crows stout, Cole brewed his own American-style stout and called it Unkindness, the term for a group of ravens.
“We love what Ron (Walcher) is doing over at Skookum,” Cole said.
A longtime member of the Stillymashers Homebrewing Club, Cole has welcomed a number of his old homebrewing buddies to the new location. On a recent night, club members, with numbers upwards of 40, were sharing a round of cold ITS brews — many bearing their names. There’s Jeff’s Porter, the Birdsong Session IPA, named after Jon Birdsong, and Welle Wee Heavy, named after Jason Welle.
“It’s a way for us to pay tribute to the people who have walked alongside us on this journey,” Cole said. “They’ve also helped create some of the recipes.”
The opening of their new taproom is a culmination of many journeys, including Sarah’s battle with cancer. Diagnosed in 2021, Sarah has gone through chemo, radiation, surgery and immunotherapy, and come out the other side to put cancer in the rear view mirror.
“Through the whole journey, we were both blessed and overwhelmed by the support and kindness of the brewing community,” Sarah said. “From people we had never met to our closest friends, we were covered in love and prayers, and encouraged from all sides. They held me up when I couldn’t do it myself.”
Of course, in the brewing world, there’s always an occasion to brew a beer.
To help raise funds for the Rinehardts, 5 Rights Brewing owner and close friend R.J. Whitlow brewed a hazy IPA — Sarah’s Hazy IPA — and organized a fundraiser. He later gifted the recipe to Cole, who is kicking around the idea of brewing it for Sarah’s upcoming birthday in September.
Try this
In The Shadow’s HBL, or Honey Basil Lemon, is a two-time winner at the Washington Beer Awards and worth a try. This refreshing blonde ale is made with four pounds of basil to give the beer a unique flavor.
Do this
Ride the Centennial Trail and grab a beer.
Start out at the Bryant Trailhead to the north or Armar Road Trailhead to the south and enjoy a leisurely ride toward downtown Arlington. Stop at N. West Ave., hop off your bike and walk a block east to In The Shadow Brewing. Lock up your ride, order a beer on the patio and cheers to long summer days.
If you go
102 E. Division St., Suite 102, Arlington
Open 2-8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; noon-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Kid and dog friendly.
Contact writer Aaron Swaney at thesplitpint@gmail.com.
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