Farming and Brewing

Front view of Wood Ridge Farm Brewery

As many of you know, Clay is now working for Wood Ridge Farm Brewery. It's a new operation but they will soon be announcing an opening date, which will be later this summer. Although the brewery is a new operation, the farm that it's attached to has been owned and operated for nearly 200 years by the same family. The owner built a malt house a couple years ago and has been growing barley and making malt to sell to other breweries for the past several years. Now he has built his own brewery and will be making his own beer, operating under the motto: "From the dirt, to the glass."

And I do mean that he built the brewery himself. The taproom is a two story, log framed structure, built from timber grown and milled on the property. The building is rustic, rough hewn, and hand-made from pine and red cedar harvested from the property. It's unique in the truest sense of the word. It's also perfectly blended with its setting, in the middle of the Nelson County farm with a view of the mountains.

The taproom bar, all hand made

In addition to fields of wheat, barley, corn, peanuts, and sunflowers, there are greenhouses, hop fields, and a produce garden located on bottom land next to the Rockfish River. There are also multiple hand built cabins on the property that can be rented out.

Red cedar stairs ascend to the second floor.

The brewer learned the craft in Germany. He will be using ingredients grown on the farm and well water from the property. The owner has ambitious future plans for a vineyard, winery, and a restaurant, just to name a few. Based on his track record and love for building, there's good reason to think they will come to fruition as well.

The second floor is all open space, suitable for a variety of
events. Notice the window trim and baseboard.

It's an exciting opportunity for Clay, who is the general manager and taproom manager. It's located near Rts. 6 & 29 in Nelson County and will be opening as soon as the beer is ready. It's going to be a beautiful place to spend an afternoon, sipping a beer while sitting in a rocking chair, enjoying the view.

This is just one view from the second level balcony that wraps the taproom on three sides.

Imagine how good beer will taste with this view to accompany it.

Even the doors are hand made. 

One of the cabins that sits next to the river.

The Rockfish River, swollen with recent rain.

There are a number of places that like to call themselves "farm breweries," but this is the real deal.