The beautiful colors of the Ales, Ciders, and Lagers at Stone Hollow Brewing Company
It is at the end of its life or is it a treasure waiting for the right people? Imagine having a flashlight at hand combing through one of the most monumental buildings in your community. You know there are possibilities to make it great again, but at the same time have the years of vacancy ruined this 1880’s structure known as the Mercantile Building?
Making your way into the basement seems almost as scary as an episode from a horror film, but you work your way forward through the dirt floors and limestone walls all around you. You find a large door and the light flickers past the handle. The door seems to be stuck. You dig some of the hardened dirt away from it. Now with that last tug it opens with the screeching noise and the intenseness of bats flying out of what appears to be an old cooler. It is at that very moment you know you are all in!
About 4 years ago, Todd and Soni Hydo saw life in the Mercantile Building that no one else had seen in years. They had a plan for turning this once saloon and then grocery store into an entertainment place in Beatrice, Nebraska. One of the foremost thoughts in this renovation was that with Beatrice being over 12,000 people, it needed to have a brewery. The brewery would be a major attraction in the city and would bring people to visit the planned shops and also a speakeasy in the basement that would be named the Mechanical Room.
Bryon Belding head brewer at Stone Hollow Brewing
I got to spend a couple of hours with Bryon Belding to learn how Stone Hollow Brewing Company came to be. Bryon told me about how he met the Hydos and discussed the opportunities that a brewer could have in Beatrice. Beatrice is where Bryon grew up, so he had many ties to the community even though he was now living in Lincoln.
Bryon had been a homebrewer for over 10 years. His passion for the craft started as a fun hobby. After co-founding a homebrew club called the “Brew Man Group”, Bryon became interested in doing some competitions. The competitions started out as local ones but soon he would compete in regional and national homebrewing contests.
Check out this golden beauty
I asked Bryon about some of his greatest memories of the homebrewing competitions. One of his fondest memories was regularly serving his beer at Beer Quest competitions held at Lazlos in Lincoln, Nebraska. Another was recognition for a Peach Rhubarb Saison. Wow, I would really like to try that one!
The most important thing though was all of the friendships gained in homebrewing that exist still today with other professional brewers like Brian Hoesing from Catalyst Brewing and Tim Thomssen from Boiler Brewing Company.
I bet you thought I left you hanging about the meeting Bryon had with Todd and Soni Hydo. Well needless to say it went very well, and Bryon was excited to see how the craft beer scene would be in Beatrice. Knowing this was more than a single person gig to keep up on 7.5-barrel brewing system, Bryon reached out to two other fellow homebrewers to round out the team. Jim Anciaux and Clint Bruhn joined the brewing crew.
Beautiful since towards the front of the taproom
The name of the brewery feels so natural now, but it took a bit of time to come up with the name. Bryon told me that the name Stone Hollow came about while they were exploring the building as described earlier. The term hollow refers to the hollowed-out limestone cave that the basement reminded everyone of.
It was early 2018 and the building was coming along nicely when all the work was about getting the brewery up and running. It took time to turn the dirt floor into a cement one with drains. The limestone walls needed some work then it was time to get the brewing equipment installed.
The brewing station is in the lower level and visible from the taproom
So much work yet so much excitement growing towards the opening date in March of 2019. What would the community support in terms of craft beer styles? Bryon did lots of research up front in the local bars and stores to see if there was a craft beer presence and if so, what styles were available. The research ended up showing that there was little to no craft beer, so it was time to go over the plan for introducing craft beer to Beatrice.
In the meantime, many hours were spent turning the Mercantile Building into an indoor entertainment center. This was huge because it would allow people to be able to purchase beers at the taproom and enjoy while shopping or making their way into the speakeasy.
Everything was moving extremely fast and the taproom continued to come together. The most important theme was to find items in the building and around the local area to re-purpose into the taproom. Tables were built by the brewers that came from the wood of crates that had belonged to Missouri-Kansas-Texas railroad line that once had a presence in Beatrice. Old signs found in various parts of the building were recovered, restored, and hung throughout the brewery. The metalwork that houses the taps was another great find at a local scrap yard.
One of the very cool old sign that is now part of the brewery
I can only imagine how anxious and nerve wracking it had to be when opening the brewery! Bryon had a great background from homebrewing and being a nationally ranked craft beer judge through the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP). This program prepares you to get intimate with so many beer styles!
With the recipes he had and what Jim and Clint brought, this collaborative team set out to put 15 tap handles of flavorful beers and ciders that would tantalize the community. It would a great opportunity to release a new beer every 1 to 2 weeks and see what the reaction would be!
A very nice blackberry cider
Opening was a success! The community was very intrigued by the beers and ciders. Bryon told me over the last year, they have had so many different styles of beers from light to dark, hoppy to sour, and there has been great response to all.
One that gained huge popularity in its initial release was Sweet Dreamsicle. This orange and vanilla blonde ale was a perfect summer treat and maybe just a little bit nostalgic for those of us who remember having creamsicles when we were young.
Stone Hollow has lots of creative beers and ingredients that go into those beers including rhubarb. Bryon tells me that he has been a huge fan way back when starting to homebrew to use rhubarb to add tartness to a beer. In the past couple of years this has become popular and you will see in sours, goses, and other types of ales.
A great view of the brewery from the taproom above
Here is a quick rundown of the beers and cider that I enjoyed on this visit.
Honey, I Drank the Kolsch is a nice light, soft bodied Kolsch with a bit of sweetness from the honey but also some saltiness that you typically get from a Kolsch. Excellent!
ABV - 5.3% 23 IBU
Blarney Stone Red is dry with a medium body. Notes of caramel and nuts. Very Nice!
ABV - 4.4% 26 IBU
Valhalla Baltic Porter is a full-bodied Porter with vanilla and chocolate notes. A nice warmer and outstanding Porter!
ABV - 8.2% 25 IBU
Really Vanilli makes you want to break out in song, “Girl you know it’s true.” Oops channeling my inner Milli Vanilli. Marshmallow aroma and flavor in a light wheat beer. How did they do it - Tahitian vanilla beans.
ABV - 4.6% 22 IBU
Back in Blackberry cider has great fruit flavor and a nice level of sweetness upfront. The finish is semi-dry. What a wonderful cider!
ABV - 5.7% N/A IBU
What a great trip to Stone Hollow Brewing! I am excited to go back with friends for a day trip or maybe weekend. This brewery has so many choices that flights are recommended. I like the fact I can enjoy the taproom while my wife can explore the shops.
Kudos to the vision and restoration of this building! I highly suggest making a visit very soon. You will not be disappointed. Tell all your friends, this might just be the best entertainment building in all of Nebraska!
Cheers!