Greetings fans and followers! This is the fifth in a multi- part series of reviews highlighting the breweries I visited during the Great Beer Now Roses, Rivers, and Peanuts Beer Tour 2018. My visit focused on Santa Rosa, California and surrounding areas, which happen to rank among the best locations in the United States for craft beer. Sit back, open a bottle or can of your favorite craft beer, and follow me along on my journey. Cheers!
Breweries are often outspoken proponents of environmental protection. Beer, of course, relies on water, grains, etc. and is thus very much tied to the Earth and its bounty so having strong opinions about the planet and sustainability are important. There is one brewery that not only recognizes the importance of earthly health, it also named itself for the tools that help harvest the foods and make agriculture possible. The establishment is Plow Brewing, located at 3334 Industrial Drive, in Santa Rosa, California.
From the Earth
Plow Brewing is a small establishment. Founded in 2015, the operation is one of the more modest in the Santa Rosa area and it features a small but cozy taproom and knowledgeable staff.
The décor of Plow Brewing emphasizes the tools of the earth. On the walls, one will find various hand tools common to farms, including a creative spelling of the word “P-L-O-W” on one of the walls, using some of these manual tools or parts thereof. There is a farm/industrial look to Plow Brewing and it places guests in a down- to- earth state of mind.
Cultivate and Share
Plow Brewing can be counted on for about 6 to 10 beers on tap at any given time. Here is a summary of the beers I tried when I visited Plow Brewing, listed alphabetically by name, followed by the style and my Untappd rating on a five point scale:
- Muggins, American IPA, 4.25
- Newfangled, Double IPA, 4
- Ox, Imperial IPA, 4
- Scythe, Imperial Porter, 4.25
- Sonoma Coast, Pilsner, 3.75
- Steel Share IPA, American IPA, 4
Overall Average Rating: 4.04
Plow Brewing emphasizes IPA styles, which accounted for four of the six beers I sampled. Each was interesting in its own way with Muggins IPA ranking as the IPA standout. I also really liked Scythe Imperial Porter, a beer that features roasty coffee notes and doesn’t seem as strong as its 10 percent alcohol by volume would lead you to believe.
No Axe to Grind
Plow Brewing is one of Santa Rosa’s newer brewing operations. It was opened in the spring of 2015 and has been serving the residents and tourists of Santa Rosa ever since with its finely crafted ales and lagers and customer- focused friendliness.
This brewery makes for a cool pit stop for beer and conversation and I spent a good deal of time during my visit chatting with owner/founder/brewer Kevin Robinson. Among his many accomplishments, Robinson has had stints with Lagunitas, Speakeasy, and Russian River Brewing. He’s also quite the handyman, having constructed much of the brewhouse himself. I walked through the brewhouse to start my visit and soaked up many fun facts about Plow Brewing and its earthly inspirations.
Back in the taproom, I sampled a flight of beers and the thing that struck me before I took my first sip was the serving vessels. Rather than use the usual four or five ounce mini glasses, Plow Brewing decided to have some fun and instead serves the beer in mini beakers, reminiscent of your high school science class. This is not only unique among breweries, but it also has practical advantages. By using a beaker, guests can clearly see how much beer they have in their individual serving and can more easily pace themselves as the move from one beer to the next.
I already pointed out the emphasis on the IPA style here at Plow Brewing. IPA is, of course, the best- selling craft beer style so it isn’t too surprising that Plow would have so many IPA on tap. But the shocker is that none of these IPA is the brewery’s top seller. That distinction belongs to Sonoma Coast Pilsner, a fact that I find quite refreshing. IPA normally dominate in any brewery, but the pilsner is king of the farm at Plow Brewing.
Plow Brewing has a special occasion beer line called Divine Brew and it offers cans of beer to go. The place is very chill, as it is small and cozy and often quieter than other breweries. Talking to Kevin, he pointed out that the one thing he wishes was different is the size of the taproom. I can see how it would certainly benefit to have a larger space, as the taproom here is only designed for about 20 to 25 people tops. But as I said, it is still cozy, friendly, and a good incubator for conversation.
Brewery personnel agree that taking care of our planet is important for countless reasons. We rely on the earth to grow the grains and supply clean water for brewing beer and the challenges of earthly stewardship are only going to increase as time marches forward. Plow Brewing is all about the earth and the tools famers use to till the soil and harvest the crops so critical to life as we know it. Pay a visit to Plow Brewing the next time you’re in Santa Rosa. And tell them Great Beer Now sent you.
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