Stone heads to wine country

With its Berlin brewery and restaurant expected to officially open this summer, Stone Brewing is already well on its way toward becoming a multinational beer company. This week it announced new venue in another country: wine country. The 20-year-old beer company plans to open a ten-barrel brewery, tasting room, and locally sourced restaurant in downtown Napa, California.

With a planned 2017 launch, Stone Brewing Tap Room Napa will take over the 10,000-square-foot Borreo Building, a historic structure dating back to 1877. Named for the family who built it, the native-cut stone building boasts Italianate Renaissance design and a view of the Napa River.

The planned restaurant will serve elevated cuisine making use of small organic farms in the Napa region. Likewise, the Tap Room will serve brewed-on-site beers made with "indigenous ingredients," in addition to Stone's core recipes.

CEO Greg Koch issued the statement: “I’ve been visiting [Napa] for more than 20 years and I first toured through the Borreo Building nearly five years ago. We’ve tried a few times to make something happen there, and are thrilled to finally see it come to fruition!" He added, "We recognize the high quality of wine that comes from the region and the appreciation that Napa Valley locals and visitors have for fresh, well-crafted drink. We are elated to become a contributing part of such an artisanal town.”

While planning for Napa gets underway, Stone is also preparing a July launch of a 250-barrel brewhouse in Richmond, Virginia, which will facilitate distribution to eastern U.S. states. A World Bistro & Gardens restaurant will follow in Richmond in 2018.

While its Berlin brewhouse began distributing beer around Europe in December, thus far it's been issuing from a 10 hectoliter (8.5 barrel) pilot system. The brewery's full 100 hectoliter (85 barrel) brewhouse will go online within the next several weeks. While the Berlin location tap room known as the Library Bar is already open, its World Bistro & Gardens restaurant will also debut this summer.

Napa will be Stone's second California location outside of San Diego. It also operated a Company Store tap room in Pasadena.