Russian River Plans Mega-Brewery in Windsor, CA
Russian River is one of the most famous breweries in the US amongst beer connoisseurs. Its flagship Imperial IPA, Pliny the Elder, is among one of the most popular and sought after beers on the market, and Pliny the Younger, a beer released for only two weeks out of the year, is coveted by the few tap-houses who might receive only a single keg that sells out in a few hours. Russian River already has a brewpub in downtown Santa Rosa which greets 300,000 visitors a year, but now the company is planning to build a new one in Windsor, CA, and it’s going to be 85,000 square feet.
This new brewery will help to offset the lines at the original—lines which occasionally deter potential visitors. The massive new location will serve as a destination brewery, with both guided and self-guided tours, a tasting room with growler fills, a brewpub, and a restaurant that will sit around 175, with additional seating outside. Free parking will be available for drivers and cyclists, and a drop off point will be set up for tourists coming via vans or limos.
Though Russian River is optimistic about this location, it’s currently only at the proposal stage. Should it go through, the goal would be for Russian River to eventually move production from Santa Rosa to this new, larger production facility, while likely keeping the original location as a pub. Still, the owners of the brewery have stated that they wanted to keep expansion limited. It’s a microbrewery, after all.
Photo via Flickr user koadmunkee