Beer, Wine, Ice cream, and Fried Chicken: Upper Depot Brewing, Dyad Wine, and Del’s Roadside Launch Delicious Collab
A new taproom blends Upper Depot’s award-winning beers, Del’s ice cream and burgers, and Dyad Wine Bar’s hospitality roots
From left: Aaron Maas of Upper Depot Brewing, Alex Van Allen of Dyad Wine Bar, and Cody Williams of Del’s Roadside
The Hudson Valley’s food and drink scene thrives on collaboration, and a new project in Kinderhook is proof. In late September, the back room at Del’s Roadside’s Kinderhook location—the beloved ice cream and burger stand—will open as a satellite taproom of Upper Depot Brewing of Hudson. The venture brings together three familiar local names: brewer Aaron Maas of Upper Depot Brewing, Del’s owner and dairy farmer Cody Williams, and Alex Van Allen, who operated Dyad Wine Bar in Kinderhook for nearly nine years before it closed in 2024.
For Kinderhook locals, the Dyad name still carries weight. Van Allen opened the wine bar in 2015 at just 24, bringing his sommelier training home to Columbia County. Dyad became known for its curated, ever-changing wine list, its sleek yet historic setting, and the menus designed by Van Allen’s mother, chef Michele Genovese. The restaurant weathered the pandemic with agility—changing the menu daily, balancing takeout with in-house dining—and built a loyal following before ultimately closing its doors last year.The new project grew naturally from those roots. When Dyad closed, Van Allen stored his bar and furniture in Del’s back room, thanks to his longtime friend Cody Williams. Earlier this year, Williams asked Van Allen if he might create a bar program at Del’s. By then, Van Allen was already working closely with Maas at Upper Depot, helping expand the brewery’s beverage offerings. Together, the three saw an opportunity: blend Upper Depot beer, Del’s food and ice cream, and Dyad’s hospitality DNA into a new gathering place for Kinderhook.
“Mom’s Fried Chicken”, an old crowd favorite at Dyad, is among many specials that will be making a return.
The result is a three-way collaboration. Upper Depot will pour its award-winning beers (the brewery took home two silver medals at this year’s Tap NY competition), while Del’s contributes its beloved smashburgers and house-made ice cream.Van Allen brings Dyad’s spirit into the mix—not just through the bar and decor, but by curating a rotating wine list, building out cocktails, and drawing on his hospitality background. Genovese, now operations manager at Del’s, plans to revive fan-favorite dishes like lobster rolls, pastas, and Mom’s Fried Chicken, a crowd favorite at Dyad, as specials.
Boozy shakes and beer floats will tie in Del’s ice cream, while wine and cocktails broaden the offerings, including a pair of playful beer cocktails set to debut at launch. Two playful beer cocktails will debut at launch: Shop the Liquor Cabinet, a rich, boozy blend of Upper Depot’s Shop the Cooler Stout, Hillrock “Double Cask” bourbon, maple syrup, bourbon cream, egg, and nutmeg; and the Depot-lada, a spicy-refreshing riff on the michelada with Upper Depot Pete’s Pilsner, lime, hot sauce, Heinz 57, Worcestershire, and chili salt.
The “Depot-lada”: a play on the michelada: Upper Depot Pete’s Pilsner, lime juice, hot sauce, Heinz 57 sauce, Worcestershire sauce, chili salt.
“Cody has been incredibly open to ideas,” Van Allen says. “We’re hoping to use the space to try out unique events—cheese pairings with wine and beer, maybe other collaborations that push the drinks in creative directions.”
The collaboration also extends beyond Kinderhook. At Upper Depot’s Hudson taproom, furniture from Dyad now shapes a mezzanine lounge space, while some of the brewery’s tables and chairs have been moved into Del’s—giving the two locations a shared character. The Kinderhook taproom will also serve as a testing ground for new offerings, including an expanded wine list and a slate of classic cocktails, which Upper Depot hopes to eventually bring to its Hudson home once its retail license is finalized.
Set apart from Del’s main dining area, the taproom will operate as its own evening bar, with later hours than the ice cream stand. Designed to accommodate 25 to 30 guests, the room blends the industrial edge of American craft breweries with the warmth of a cocktail lounge. Metal details nod to brewing equipment and Upper Depot’s railroad heritage, while rich wood and dark leather create a sense of comfort. The result is a space that feels both communal and elevated. In warmer months, the glass garage door at the back will be pulled open, connecting the room to the outdoors; in winter, it frames snowy Kinderhook nights. Behind the building, a yard space will extend the fun outside, with cornhole tournaments and other lawn games. “It’s like a sandbox for us to experiment—with beer, with cocktails, with food,” Maas says. “Our philosophy is that if it’s not fun, we don’t want to do it.”
The exterior of the new Kinderhook taproom at Del’s Roadside, with outdoor seating and a glass garage door.
The opening coincides with Upper Depot’s annual Oktoberfest on October 4, when 13 breweries will gather in Hudson. A new Marzen, a traditional German lager, brewed for the season will pour at both locations.
For Maas, it’s important that the space feel rooted in Columbia County and genuinely community-driven — a place where Hudson and Kinderhook locals can sit down and share a pint together. For Van Allen, the project is a full-circle return. “Dyad was always about connection,” he says. “This is just another way to build on that — bringing friends, family, and community together around the table.”
