The craft beer industry is booming in Colorado. Now, one local brewery is hoping to expand its product to a bigger marketplace.

Kannah Creek Brewing Company has operated off of 12th Street in Grand Junction since 2005. But, the company's recently broken ground on its new location, which will house a facility allowing them to produce a whole lot more beer.

The new facility will be located near the intersection of 9th Street and Riverside Parkway.

The company continues to win national awards for its craft beer, but it's only able to produce about 1,100 barrels of beer annually, according to owner and general manager Eric Ross. (A barrel is equal to 31 gallons)

Ross says the new production facility will allow them to make closer to 6,000 barrels a year, and the 14,000-square-foot building will be more than three times the size of the current restaurant and brew pub on 12th Street.

"For us it's really kind of a nice...yin and yang. We have both the production facility that we'll be moving into, as well as maintaining this location here [12th Street and Orchard], where we can experiment with some different seasonal stuff and expand our repertoire," said Ross.

Owners are hoping that a mix of creative craft beer, with a high-production facility, will bring the best of both worlds together.

They also feel it's a necessary move if they want to start bringing their beer to larger markets.

Ross said their two most award winning beers, Lands End Amber and Standing Wave Pale Ale, will be the main focus when they begin brewing at the new facility.

He said one of the goals for expansion is to begin bottling their beers to make it more accessible throughout the country.

The new production facility will also have a small restaurant and a beer tasting room, according to Ross.

Kannah Creek currently employs about 40 people, but Ross expects to add 20 more workers when the new facility opens early this May.

For more on this story, be sure to check out a copy of this week's edition of The Business Times.