Customers at Downstream Casino Resort in Quapaw, Oklahoma received a free pint glass or a t-shirt honoring the first day Downstream Crafted Brewing Company recently was served at the Legends Sports Bar and Restaurant. Two varieties currently are available on tap: Flat Rock Red, an American red ale, and Craft House Kolsch, a European pilsner.
Food and Beverage Director and Executive Chef Lucas Setterfield said the brewery occupies a 120 square foot former nonsmoking gambling area next to the Legends Sports Bar and Restaurant. Outfitted with the House Brew System by Reno, Nevada-based Global Beer Company, which Setterfield saw at a gambling expo, the operation puts out about 400 gallons of beer every 10 days at full capacity. The computer-controlled system, which uses premixed ingredients, cost $90,000 versus $1 million for a more traditional brewing setup. “It’s just about perfect for us,” he said. Two Downstream employees have become certified brewers and now oversee the brewing process.
American Casino Guide Editor Steve Bourie said a few commercial casinos brew their own beer, but Downstream’s operation is rare among tribal casinos. Brewer’s Association Chief Economist Bart Wilson said he knows of only one other tribal casino craft brewery, the Feather Falls Brewing Company in the Feather Falls Casino and Lodge, run by the Mooretown Rancheria of Maidu Indians in Oroville, California.
