The year in West Virginia beer – Part One
December 30, 2016
Yes, 2016 was quite a year in West Virginia beer. So many things were going on that it’s hard to decide where to start when picking out the highlights.
Part One focuses on the most notable news and occurrences at West Virginia breweries. And there were many. Here they are in alphabetical order by brewery.
Bad Shepherd Beer buys Charleston Brewing. In the state’s first brewery buyout since 2009, Charleston Brewing sold all its brewery equipment to Bad Shepherd. The new brewery is affiliated with the Black Sheep Burritos & Brews chain, which, for the past couple of years, had been serving as Charleston Brewing’s de facto taproom. Patrick Guthrie has an exciting vision for his brewery that cuts a different path from what we’re used to seeing in the state.
**BrilliantStream wrote about this here**
Berkeley Springs Brewing invests in a much larger capacity brewing system and introduces some excellent new brands. This is allowing them to move up and receive more deserved notice in the craft beer world. Karl and Denise Wagenbrenner also took a leadership role in the revitalized WV Craft Brewers Guild. They are among the state’s most community-spirited brewery owners.
**BrilliantStream wrote about this here**
Big Timber Brewing becomes the state’s most influential brewery. This brewery seemed to move ahead on so many fronts. They purchased a large old building and began renovations on what will become a showcase new brewery in downtown Elkins. Already the state’s best marketed brewery, the guys successfully transitioned to selling through distributors rather than selling direct. They were a leader in efforts to revitalize the WV Craft Brewers Guild, and Big Timber co-owner Sam Mauzy was selected its president. Something that we don’t want to let slip by unnoticed is that we think their beers are getting even better. Brewer Matt Kwasniewski is good at making little adjustments that lead to improved products.
**BrilliantStream wrote about this here**
Blackwater Brewing gains a restaurant partner. When Barrels Brewhouse restaurant and pub opened at Blackwater’s facility in Davis, this year, Lincoln Wilkins finally gets to move out of the restaurant business and put all his focus on brewing Blackwater beers. If initial reviews are an indicator, Barrels Brewhouse could vie for the title of the state’s best brewery restaurant.
Bridge Brew Works re-energize its brewing program by bringing in an additional experienced brewer who introduced new styles to the BBW portfolio. Adam Herrold joined his brother Nate and Ken Linch to beef up BBW’s brewing talent. Following his arrival, two new beer styles quickly appeared — a gose and a saison — and both were solid. Some of their existing brands also received tweaking from the new synergy created by Adam’s arrival. A second thing to note is the brewery’s barrel program firmly established itself as the best in the state during the year.
**BrilliantStream wrote about this here**
Chestnut Brew Works continues to demonstrate that you don’t have to make a lot of noise to make great beer. Ask other brewers what brewery they most respect in WV and you’ll most often hear the name Chestnut Brew Works. Bill Rittenour makes the state’s most respected pale ale in Halleck and his other brews are all solid. All Chestnut does is quietly and consistently sell all the beer they make, week after week, month after month, to an enthusiastic following. If they had a larger brewing system, they could certainly sell a lot more.
Morgantown Brewing begins distribution in Pittsburgh. Now all the Mountaineer grads and other transplanted West Virginians will have something appropriate to drink. Kudos to Art Gallagher for giving the Pittsburgh market some real West Virginia goodness.
Mountain State Brewing opens the state’s largest brewery and a beautiful facility it is. When Mountain State Brewing began brewing on its 30 barrel brewhouse and filling its 120 barrel fermenters in its spacious new facility, West Virginia can finally brag that we have a serious brewing operation with the capacity to sell its products regionally. Add to that the beautiful new fully automatic canning line. Brian Arnett and Willie Lehmann really stepped it up by investing in this impressive facility. Another impressive accomplishment was conducting their best yet Brew Skies music and WV beer festival.
**BrilliantStream wrote about this here**
Screech Owl Brewing ups its capacity. When Roger Johnson added a new professional brewing system to his operation, he enlarged his output capacity by many times. He also added more tasty beer styles to his portfolio. This investment will allow Screech Owl to expand distribution outside Preston County.
Stumptown Ales grows exponentially. There is no more buzz around a West Virginia brewery than you’ll find around Stumptown. Their New England-style IPAs have got the state’s hop-heads all excited. Late in 2016, Jon and Cindy Robeson invested in a much larger brewing system that will finally allow them to meet the growing demand at their pub and hopefully even send a little beer out to other parts of the state.
**BrilliantStream wrote about this here**
New breweries open for business. We had a record six new ones open their taps in 2016.
- Brew Keepers in Wheeling
- Parkersburg Brewing in Parkersburg
- Sophisticated Hound in Princeton
- Pubstomper in Morgantown
- Brewstel in Elkins
Welcome to the fold fellows.
Brewers on the move
While we had one turnover in breweries in 2016 (Charleston to Bad Shepherd) , we had four brewers change breweries during the year.
- In September, head brewer Brian Reymiller left Greenbrier Valley Brewing to become Lead Brewer at Devils Backbone Brewing in Lexington, VA.
- In October, lead brewer Jesse Sedlock left Morgantown Brewing to become a brewer at Devils Backbone Brewing in Lexington, VA.
- Last spring, head brewer Josh Clarke departed Wheeling Brewing to become Head of Production at Pinchgut Hollow Distillery in Fairmont.
- In November, Ross Williams left Morgantown Brewing to become head brewer at Bad Shepherd Beer Co.
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