The story of Twisted Barley Brewing in Jasper, Alabama, means a lot to several people. However, it may be most important to the city itself as Mason Boren opened the first brewery in his hometown and has been credited with helping revitalize the city’s downtown. Brewery’s history As a 21-year-old, co-owner Mason Boren Googled “how to make beer.” After taking his homebrew to parties and using his Uncle Jim’s equipment, he joined the Tuscaloosa homebrewers club. Eventually, Boren and his wife Courtney sought advice from the Alabama Small Business Development Center at the University of North Alabama to create a business plan. Ultimately, the couple sold virtually everything and moved…
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A pint at Black Warrior Brewing in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
People are quick to associate Tuscaloosa, Alabama, with the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide football team. However, there is a lot more to the city and its history than an iconic football team. The landscape includes several local landmarks, which the ownership group of Black Warrior Brewing wanted to bring front and center when they opened their brewery in 2013. Brewery’s history In 2011, three friends who worked at the BFGoodrich tire manufacturing plant in Tuscaloosa and shared a love of homebrewing and mountain biking decided to open a craft brewery. While perfecting recipes, Joe Fuller, Eric Hull, and Jason Spikes met Wayne Yarbrough, who became the fourth member of…
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A pint at Druid City Brewing in Tuscaloosa, Alabama
There are a lot of ways to measure when a town “has made it.” For Bo Hicks and Elliott Roberts opening a craft brewery in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, was their way of putting the city on the map. In 2012, the pair opened Druid City Brewing in a refurbished butcher shop. Several years later the brewery continues to be an integral part of the community. Brewery’s history Co-owner Bo Hicks began working in craft beer at Hales Tavern on The Strip. Eventually Hicks and Roberts started homebrewing together. Like many homebrewers, the duo joked about opening a brewery together. Eventually Roberts had a friend draft a business plan and the pair…
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A pint at Mazama Brewing at Orenco Station in Hillsboro, Oregon
Mazama Brewing at Orenco Station is a year-old gastropub. However, there is a lot more to the taproom and New American restaurant. It is part of Mazama Brewing, a family-owned brewery in Corvallis, Oregon, that opened in 2013. The current location opened in April 2019 with an emphasis on contemporary food and craft beer. Despite the name there is no beer brewed at Mazama Brewing at Orenco Station, although it serves an extensive list of Mazama beers. Brewery’s history Jeff and Kathy Tobin began homebrewing in the 1980s, but did not initially plan to open a brewery. After a trip to Belgium in 2011, the couple decided to pursue opening…
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A pint at Vertigo Brewing in Hillsboro, Oregon
It is difficult starting, building, and maintaining a small business, let alone a craft brewery for over a decade. However, that is precisely the story of Vertigo Brewing in Hillsboro, Oregon. Brewery’s history The tale of homebrewers turned commercial brewers is nearly as old as the beer industry itself, but that does not make the story any less interesting. Mike Kinion and Mike Hanes worked together in the tech industry for nearly 30 years and brewed beer together for several years before entering competitions for feedback on their brews. The pair honed their brewing skills through trial and error with feedback from these competitions over ten years before opening Vertigo…
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A pint at Ridgewalker Brewing in Forest Grove, Oregon
It takes a team effort for any business to succeed. That is especially true in craft beer, which is why the partnership behind Ridgewalker Brewing in Forest Grove, Oregon, has done so well. Brewery’s history The team behind Ridgewalker Brewing includes Chris and Jason Cirlincione, Jeff Farrar, and Justin Marble. Chris and Jason Cirlincione bring a background in real estate and flipping properties to the team, which was critical in overhauling the brewery’s main property, the 1921 Public House. Their experience also allowed the team to find and renovate the city’s former post office and convert it into an event space known as The Mail Room. Farrar’s experience in food…
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A pint at Sun King Brewery in Indianapolis, Indiana
The ownership group of Sun King Brewery includes five people, but Dave Colt and Clay Robinson stand front and center as the pair who drive the bus. The pair’s long history in the Indianapolis beer scene led them to start their own brewery in 2009, which is now the second-largest brewer in Indiana. Brewery’s history Colt and Robinson met while working at Ram Restaurant & Brewery. Eventually Robinson quit his job and turned his attention to opening a production brewery. In search of a head brewer, Robinson turned to Colt and the duo began developing what would become Sun King Brewery. The ownership group expanded to include Clay’s father Omar,…
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Pacific Northwest baseball road trip preview
With my wife Katie enrolled in a graduate certificate program, we knew that our summer travels would take us to the Pacific Northwest. Naturally this meant I got to plan a Pacific Northwest baseball road trip! Katie will spend a month in Portland, Oregon, before I meet her there. We will spend a week together in Portland before traveling to Seattle, Washington. In Seattle, we will work together at a sports camp, and she will do more work to complete her certification. So our Pacific Northwest baseball road trip will span two states and four weeks. Baseball games Our travels in Oregon and Washington are built around my wife’s academic/work…
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A pint at Urban Artifact in Cincinnati, Ohio
There are a lot of spaces that are ideal for hosting a brewery. Opening a brewery in a former church continues to be more common. The space is usually quite large, which is ideal for brewing beer. The group behind Urban Artifact initially planned to open its facility in a former brewery. However, the current space allowed the group to open significantly earlier, which led to the change of plans. Brewery’s history Urban Artifact encompasses many things. It includes a brewery, an event space, a music venue, and a radio station. Bret Kollman Baker and Scotty Hunter, who attended Ohio University together and studied engineering, oversee the brewery. Eventually they…
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A pint at 3 Points Urban Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio
An equilateral triangle possesses three sides of equal length and three congruent internal angles. 3 Points Urban Brewery brings together three equally important components to offer craft beer drinkers a unique experience in the up-and-coming neighborhood of Pendleton in Cincinnati, Ohio. Brewery’s history A few years ago development firm Model Group and hospitality group Hickory Wald sought to open a brewery in Pendleton. Ultimately that led to a pair of brewers from Cincinnati mainstay Rhinegeist Brewery seeking to make their own mark to join the yet-to-be-named brewery. Head brewer Patrick Mulrey and brewer Caleb Ochs-Naderer are responsible for the beers people consume at the brewery. Despite the notoriety the brewers…