Luppoleto Brewing Company has planted its flag in a new town, trading a modest Windsor Locks storefront for a sprawling East Granby facility with more than four times its old brewing capacity and what the owners call a huge outdoor space. The move puts Luppoleto at 17 Kripes Road, a site that until recently belonged to a different Connecticut craft brewer entirely.
That building formerly housed Almost Famous Brewing Company, which permanently closed its East Granby location on December 28, 2025, after operating there since 2021, according to the Hartford Business Journal. Almost Famous had its own winding history, having originally launched as Blind Faith Brewing in 2018 before rebranding in 2022 due to trademark issues, per the same outlet. Luppoleto soft-opened its expanded taproom in the former Almost Famous space in June 2026 after securing its Connecticut liquor permit, as reported by Patch, with soft-opening hours initially limited to weekends while finishing touches were completed inside.
Co-owners James and Jen Wright founded Luppoleto Brewing Company in late 2019, choosing a name that translates to “hop farm” or “hop yard” in Italian as a nod to James Wright's heritage, Patch reported at the time. James Wright, who serves as co-owner and head brewer, started out as a homebrewer in Windsor before winning a Sierra Nevada Beer Camp contest, according to that same report. He has said Windsor Locks was the brewery's original location because of its small startup budget, per the Hartford Courant.
A Downtown Market That Never Broke Ground
Luppoleto's Windsor Locks plans were originally tied to a much bigger municipal vision. The brewery had planned to open in a custom-built space within Windsor Locks' proposed downtown public market, a project backed by roughly $7 million in federal support meant to fund the market alongside a relocated Hartford Line train station on Main Street, according to the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations. That project stalled when COVID-19 hit, per the Courant, forcing Luppoleto to keep brewing out of its Dexter Plaza spot on Main Street instead.
While waiting out the delay, the brewery built a loyal following in Windsor Locks through indoor bocce, a run club, brewing classes and knit nights, the Courant reports. Luppoleto also partnered with local charitable organizations to provide school supplies, food and Christmas presents to families in need. Once it became clear the public market wasn't materializing on any predictable timeline, the owners began weighing their options for expansion.
Why East Granby Won Out
The brewery considered a rural farm-brewery project at one point but judged it beyond its financial and logistical reach, per the Courant. Instead, the Wrights looked at locations within a radius of their Windsor Locks shop, ultimately settling on East Granby, roughly a 10-minute drive away, a town where the owners had already lived for 10 years. They identified potential customers both near Bradley International Airport and throughout the Farmington Valley, the paper reports.
When Luppoleto heard Almost Famous was closing, the brewery initially considered simply buying its equipment, but ultimately decided it was more cost-effective to keep the East Granby facility and equipment in place rather than relocate everything, according to the Courant. The owners have said the facility ended up being much larger than what they had originally sought. The site sits in an industrial park near Bradley International Airport that also hosts craft beverage operations for Two Roads Brewing Co. and Samuel Adams, per the Hartford Business Journal.
The space comes with an unusual design pedigree. Custom woodwork throughout the taproom was built from repurposed wooden bowling alley lanes sourced from Blue Fox Rock N' Bowl in Simsbury and Willi Bowl in Willimantic, according to Visit Connecticut, with Almost Famous's original owners having installed the bowling-lane bar tops and tables during their initial buildout.
Permits, Paperwork And A Collaborative Handoff
Opening a liquor business in Connecticut is not a quick process. It requires extensive paperwork and sequential approvals, the Courant reports, with government review taking up to 60 days and subsequent application processing adding another two to four weeks. Under Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection rules, a manufacturer permit for a craft brewery costs $1,500 annually and typically requires a 60- to 90-day review period, according to StartBusinessByState.com, and permittees must also complete public placarding requirements as part of the approval.
Before the full transition, Luppoleto and Almost Famous collaborated on joint brewing batches at 17 Kripes Road, including a 5.9% ABV session IPA named Almost Bounce Haus, according to Luppoleto Brewing Company. That collaborative brewing let Luppoleto adapt its recipes to the larger brewhouse system and local water chemistry. Almost Famous staff also helped Luppoleto with its first batches on the new system, the Courant reports, and Luppoleto made only limited paint and style changes to the space, while working with two local artists on new artwork.
What's Pouring And What's Next
The East Granby taproom now holds 150 or more people and includes private rooms sized for 15 to 20 and 40 to 75 guests, per the Courant. Behind the building sits a grassy area with cornhole and bocce, alongside what the owners describe as a huge outdoor space. Luppoleto has moved its live music, indoor bocce and crafting classes to the new location, with music now happening every Sunday and occasional Friday and Saturday nights, plus a Wednesday bocce league the brewery is working to expand with a Thursday division. The brewery is also developing Trivia and Thirst for Knowledge, a rotating lecture series.
On tap, Luppoleto plans to release Vesuvio, a smoked altbier, this week, along with Second Breakfast, a sour beer brewed with hibiscus and orange. Vesuvio and Hops in the Locks, a community-hop pale ale, will continue to be brewed on the smaller Windsor Locks system and offered at both locations, the Courant reports. The brewery recently released Koppar, an Oktoberfest-style märzen lager, and is building out an in-house food program featuring bar snacks like pizza, charcuterie pretzels, chips and nachos, with food trucks planned for special occasions and more regularly as traffic stabilizes.
Luppoleto also offers canned cocktails at Grande and is developing house-mixed cocktail specials, alongside Connecticut wine, Connecticut hard cider and soft drinks at both locations. Pets are allowed on the East Granby patio but not inside, per a local health board order. The brewery is organizing up to three winter markets on Saturdays between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Windsor Locks Isn't Closing Just Yet
Luppoleto plans to wind down its original Windsor Locks operation by the end of 2027, according to the Courant, rather than closing it immediately. The brewery is developing a brewer-in-residence concept for the Windsor Locks space with a local brewer, who has asked to buy Luppoleto's 3.5-barrel brewing equipment once that location eventually closes and has already asked to brew a few batches on the Windsor Locks system.
The expansion lands amid a broader surge in Connecticut craft brewing. The state was home to 121 active craft breweries in 2025 that generated an estimated $835 million in total economic impact, according to the Brewers Association, ranking Connecticut 27th nationally in total brewery count. Those breweries collectively produced 450,232 barrels of beer in 2025, per Visual Capitalist — a figure that works out to roughly 330 twelve-ounce cans per barrel. For now, Luppoleto's focus remains on promoting the new brewery, building out activities, and expanding its food and beverage offerings as it settles into its much larger East Granby home.
