These four Tucson breweries are slated to launch in 2017

Craft beer continues to expand its already sizable footprint in Tucson, with four breweries slated to open in 2017.

While one, Copper Mine Brewing Co. at 3455 S. Palo Verde Road, is new to the scene, the other three have been working toward launch for several years now.

BlackRock Brewers, Button Brew House and Harbottle Brewing all signed leases on locations at the tail end of 2016, taking the next big step on the way to production.

Here’s what we know:

BlackRock Brewers

1664 S. Research Loop

When the owners of BlackRock Brewers finish the build-out on their 3,700 square feet of space near East 22nd Street and South Pantano Road, they will have the distinction of being the only brewery on Tucson’s east side, where proper zoning is difficult to find and even harder to secure.

Tony Williams and Chuck Boyer started their journey to open a brewery nearly five years ago, taking on Gene Sandoval as brewmaster and as a third partner along the way.

Tucson’s craft-beer boom was just getting started at that point. Now the city is slated to have more than 20 by the end of 2017.

Williams shows no fear as BlackRock aims for a March opening date.

“Tucson still has plenty of room,” Williams said. “They have like, 45 in San Diego and they are doing fine there.”

Williams said they chose the bigger space because they will be “the only game” on the east side, where locals generally flock to BZ’s Pizza on East Broadway or Arizona Beer House on South Kolb Road to get their fix.

BlackRock will run on a three-barrel system. The taproom will feature six taps, sporting four flagships, one seasonal and a “foreign exchange” beer from Dragoon, 1912 or any one of the other breweries in town, Williams said.

“That is the fun thing about craft beer,” he said. “We collaborate, work together. At the end of the day, if one of us succeeds, we all succeed.”

Button Brew House

6800 N. Camino Martin

After three years on the hunt, Todd and Erika Button have finally found a forever home for their aptly named Button Brew House.

The couple signed a lease for a space at 6800 N. Camino Martin in December. It’s right around the corner from Catalina Brewing Co., sparking the potential for a brand-new brewing district on Tucson’s northwest side.

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For Todd, who left a 20-year career in the printing industry to enter into brewing, this next step is a big deal.

“To me it feels like a dream,” Todd said. The space is a little more than 3,000 square feet.

He added “It is one of the scariest things that I’ve ever done in my life. I am really excited about it, but the other side of me is just terrified.”

The Buttons have already put a down-payment on a 10-barrel system. Todd Button said the quality of the beer will be his primary focus.

“We want to make good, world-class beers,” he said. “I want to make sure we do it the right way. Quality is important. We don’t want off-flavors.”

The Buttons hope to be brewing by mid-May.

“We are putting everything on the line to do this, but we also believe in it,” Todd said.

Harbottle Brewing Company

3820 S. Palo Verde Road

When the owners of Harbottle started their journey to open a brewery in Tucson, they were known by a completely different moniker: Flux Brewing.

Then came the roadblocks in the trademark process. A brewery in Maine had a product with a similar name, as did a winery in California.

Owners Michael Figueira, Andy Shlicker and Sam Kroack came to agreements with both businesses, but “we eventually made the decision that if we couldn’t trademark it, we would have no potential for growth outside the market,” Figueira said.

Thus Flux became Harbottle, named for Figueira’s distant relative, John Harbottle, a British naval officer who, as the story goes, helped King Kamehameha assert his claim to Hawaii’s throne.

The brewery is moving into the former home of Mexico in Season, a Mexican restaurant that included vegan offerings but was only open for a short time at 3820 S. Palo Verde Road.

“Once we looked at it, we knew it was the right fit,” Figueira said. The location is just shy of 4,000 square feet, with good visibility from the street in a high-traffic area.

“It was perfect,” he added.

Harbottle, which will run a seven-barrel system purchased from McFate Brewing in Scotts-dale, opens down the street from several breweries, including Green Feet Brewing, 1055 Brewing and Nimbus, all of which are on East 44th Street. Copper Mine Brewing, mentioned earlier in the story, can be found between 44th and Harbottle, and plans to open in February.

“We are now able to be part of that local community,” Kroack said. “It is a perfect fit for what we are trying to accomplish.”