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Iron Ox Brewing at the ballpark.
Vince Ferracuti, CEO, and Matt and Alex, brewers for Iron Ox Brewing Co. join Herlinda Heras on Brew Ha Ha. This is their first time on the show.
Herlinda is just back from Tahoe Brew Fest, which is an emerging beer festival that benefits the Boys and Girls Club. Ski Run Blvd. runs down the mountain and straight through town. It was lined with brewers. They also staged an event called the Brewers Olympics, where the competitors did hilarious feats of strength and endurance, with beer stuff. They had both a men’s and women’s division and Herlinda’s friend from Crooked Goat won the men’s event.
Iron Ox Brewing Co. is located on Industrial just off of Piner Rd., across the street from Bottle Barn. They have a taproom and a beer garden, and food trucks that come by. In addition to Iron Ox, Matt has been running Three Disciples for the last five years. Some folks from Three Disciples were on Brew Ha Ha on this episode back on Dec. 1, 2022.
First they taste the 707 Sonoma County Ale, an easy-drinking light-bodied but big hoppy flavored beer. It is only 5% AVB. Matt says if you want a successful taproom you have to create an inviting environment and you have to make good beer. Alex started brewing for Bear Republic and has also worked in wine production.
Visit Russian River Brewing Co. in Santa Rosa on 4th St. and at their big Windsor location. Check out their website and socials for up-to-date hours, menus, beers and more.
The Growing N/A Category
Iron Ox Brewing also makes a non-alcoholic beer. Herlinda recently helped the Petaluma Music Festival organize a tasting booth for N/A drinks. As a beer judge for festivals and conventions, Herlinda has noticed how this category is growing. When she first started judging 14 years ago, nobody wanted to judge in the category but now judges are more interested in it as the category has grown.
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There is big news with N/A brewing. Iron Ox has recently acquired a reverse-osmosis system. They prefer this method because it is more delicate way to take the alcohol out. This method is more popular in Europe.
Iron Ox Brewing Co. has a family-friendly beer garden that is is built for fun. They have held rubber ducky races and Hot Wheels races. They have corn hole every Tuesday and open mic on Thursday nights. The schedule of food trucks is on their website. They are open Mon-Thurs 4-10, Fri 3-10, Sat 2-9 and Sun 1-7 (all times PM).