Main Street News

The Hudson Valley is a great place to be if you’re a beer lover. The region is brimming with breweries, and in Tivoli, Lasting Joy Brewery just celebrated its second anniversary in June. 

Lasting Joy owners Alex and Emily Wenner opened the brewery on 31 acres off of Lasher Road in Tivoli, NY. The brewery boasts a tasting room with floor-to-ceiling windows that offers panoramic views of the farm and features a hexagon-shaped floating bar that seats up to 60 people. 

Alex started brewing beer at home when he was in college and hasn’t stopped since. He worked his way up through the business at breweries in New York City and even attended the Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago to get his degree in brewing. The goal was always to find a place where he and Emily could have their own brewery. 

In 2018, they moved their family upstate and began searching for land to start Lasting Joy. The brewery would officially open its doors to the public in June of 2022. 

What’s on tap?

The main ingredients for brewing beer are barley, hops, water, and yeast. Lasting Joy is a New York State Farm Brewery, which is a special license that requires it to use 60% New York State hops and other ingredients. Going above and beyond, Emily said that Lasting Joy sources close to 90% of its ingredients from New York State. 

Lasting Joy has five signature beers on tap year-round.

Clouds Over Clermont is a hazy IPA with a citrusy, hoppy taste. It uses New York-grown Cascada, Chinook, and Columbia hops to bring a flavor that is a delicate balance between citrus and pine, with hoppy bitterness and malty sweetness.

Two Rivers Pilsner is a crisp, classic take on a traditional Czech Pilsner. The beer is light in color and combines Saaz and Sterling hops with local Pilsner malt to create a drinkable and light-bodied brew that pairs well with a variety of foods. 

The ILOVIT Lager, which is Tivoli spelled backwards, is an amber, malty Vienna-style Lager that is light and crispy but has a malty, distinct backbone. 

Heartbeet of the Hudson is a dark, earthy brew that highlights the New York farms that produce a third of the country’s beets. This English Stout is full-bodied, malty, and bittersweet with hints of chocolate. 

Beekeeper’s Bliss is a refreshing and fruity brew with a hint of honey. This beer was initially created to celebrate a family wedding and was a nod to the Nordic “honeymoon” mead that inspired it. A Belgian-style wheat ale, it combines New York grains with notes of orange and honey.

“These are styles that we like, that are easy to drink, and that Alex worked really hard on, specifically created with New York State ingredients,” Emily said. 

Lasting Joy also keeps a variety of seasonal beers on rotation. In the fall, it focuses on heavier, richer beers – a lot of Oktoberfest and pumpkin flavors – and in the winter, it runs a Finnish beer called Sinterklaas, which is a nod to the Dutch heritage of the land on which Lasting Joy operates, as well as the celebration of the same name that occurs every December in Rhinebeck. 

In the spring and summer, Lasting Joy focuses on brewing beers that are lighter and “easier to drink.” It’s running a Pick-Your-Own Berry Brut IPA this season, which is an ode to one of the Hudson Valley’s favorite summer activities – fruit picking at local farms. It’s a drier IPA style that’s fruited with strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries from local farms. 

Also on tap this season is the County Route 4 Kolsch, which is a classic Kolsch-style ale with the addition of locally grown rye. Lasting Joy also ran a special Pride & Joy pale-ale in honor of Pride Month this past June. This brew is a golden-hued ale with bursts of citrus and floral aromas. It delivers a crisp, refreshing taste with hints of grapefruit and pine. 

Finally, Lasting Joy has Sophomore Slump on tap, a sour blonde ale, aged on oak for an entire year. This beer was brewed in celebration of the business’s second anniversary: “We started this tradition last year. We had a beer that had been aging for a year, and we released it on the anniversary,” Emily explained. “It’s cool to have something that’s been fermenting and changing throughout the year as we’ve also been fermenting and changing.” Sophomore Slump is infused with peach puree, which results in a tangy sourness that intertwines with the subtle sweetness of the peaches. 

“Overall, we like to stick closer to the classics and work on executing them with local ingredients,” Emily said. “We always keep our beer menu approachable. We always have something that’s not too bitter, not too high alcohol content, and that is easy to try.”

Emily and Alex are open to feedback from the community, so if there’s something that you want Lasting Joy to brew, feel free to drop them a line and make the suggestion. 

In addition to its beers, Lasting Joy also carries a selection of alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages on the menu so that it can effectively cater to all customers. It has wine selections from Fjord Vineyards and Millbrook Winery, cider selections from Nine Pin Cider Works, Abandoned Cider, and King’s Highway, and cocktails from Liquid Fables. Nonalcoholic beverages range from kombucha and N/A beer to coffee and tea. 

“We carry a variety of beverages for people who aren’t beer drinkers. We wanted to have a brewery where everyone is comfortable, can find something to drink, and wants to come back to again.” 

Comfort and connections first

At the brewery’s second anniversary celebration in the beginning of June, Emily had a moment of intense gratitude for the community and the support that she and Alex have received over the past two years. “We live in this really special area that’s tight knit. We wanted to make a place that caters to everyone, which can be challenging, but we’ve had so many people affirm that they feel comfortable here.”

She shared that recently, they had a customer come in and tell them that his great grandfather was a part of the Lasher family and used to own the land that Lasting Joy operates on. 

“It felt very full circle in a way,” she said. 

In addition to creating a welcoming environment for their patrons, Emily and Alex also wanted to ensure that the work environment was comfortable for their employees. 

“We try to run things a little differently and be very proactive about communication. The craft beer industry is ripe for change when it comes to the work environment and we hope to be a part of that change,” she said. 

Going forward, Emily and Alex hope to continue serving the local community with Lasting Joy and have it be a space where people enjoy spending time. 

While they started to distribute their beers, they quickly found that they were losing money instead of gaining it. For small breweries, keeping up with the costs of brewing, canning or bottling, labeling, etc. can often cause them to lose significant money while trying to distribute their beers. 

“I think what it means to be a regional brewery is changing. We have great community support here, so we’re focusing on production and networking with restaurants before we start expanding into shelf space again,” Emily explained. 

She is also interested in growing their events business and wants Lasting Joy to become a go-to space for those looking to host parties, brunches, weddings, and so on. 

Emily and Alex are also looking for new ways to dial in on their brewing process, as well as continuing to grow their relationships with local farmers and malters in the region. “We want to keep supporting New York State agriculture and turning people on to what grows in this region,” she said. 

“When you write a business plan, you’re kind of just hoping that it’s a good idea and that it will work out. Our idea that a brewery can draw people from all walks of life and backgrounds to check it out and create a community space has really been validated over the past two years. We’re so grateful.” •

Lasting Joy Brewery is open seven days a week at 485 Lasher Rd. Tivoli, NY. It’s family and dog friendly but occasionally host 21+ hours on select Friday evenings. To learn more about Lasting Joy, visit its website at lastingjoybrewery.com or check it out on Instagram @lastingjoybrewery.