James May-June 2023 web - Flipbook - Page 17
Savannah River Brewing
AUGUSTA
Back in the big city of Augusta, this year’s winner
for brewery is Savannah River Brewing. Nestled in
the heart of the quickly-revitalizing Augusta downtown, the brewhouse occupies more than 16,000
square feet. As downtown Augusta continues to come
to life, Savannah River Brewing is an anchor for foot
traffic a few blocks from the river. All that space
allows Savannah River Brewing to deliver 450 barrels
in a single cycle, which equals some 14,000 gallons
or nearly 150,000 cans of beer. Annually, the brewery
churns out nearly 2 million cans.
The brewery has been named Augusta’s best every
year since it started by The Augusta Chronicle and The
Metro Spirit.
Founded by brothers Steve and Dave
Ellison, the two have long Georgia roots.
“When discussing the idea of opening a
brewery several years back, we wanted
to find a Georgia city or town with a
relatively small, intimate downtown
area, one where our efforts and investments to create a brewery would
have a lasting positive impact on the
city and local community. After looking
at numerous options, we chose Augusta.”
When the brothers began looking at
opening the brewery, there were none in Augusta at the time. They got beat as the first brewery
by just a few months but opened their doors in 2017.
Augusta is Georgia’s second largest city and is home
to friendly people, great pride, rich history, many
generational family businesses and a great lifestyle.
H E A D B R EW E R A DA M F U L M E R
Augusta is also home to world-renowned events, a
major university, many major corporations and Fort
Gordon, home of the US Army’s Signal Corps and
Cyber Center of Excellence. With that kind of
local economy and population, that is what
some might call filling a niche.
The brothers welcomed other family
into the business, helping put down more
roots in Augusta. Mike Ellison is now the
general manager of the brewery.
Head Brewer Adam Fulmer started
homebrewing about 15 years ago and seemed
to have a knack for it. Fulmer and the brewery
have a few staples that are always available, but
also dive head first into the seasonal specialties—
from the “Three Musketeers French Saison” to the “You
Know Nothing Jon Stout” cherry oatmeal stout (if you
don’t understand what that means, get yourself an
HBO subscription and watch Game of Thrones).
Like many breweries, the Savannah River Brewing
taproom provides complete visibility into the brewhouse, making it a central point of conversation and
allowing patrons to participate in the brewing process.
And with plenty of seating and ample free parking,
SRBC is a sought-after destination for friends, families
and fellow beer enthusiasts, as well as for private events
such as corporate meetings, parties and receptions.
“As a part of building a successful brewery, we are
an intelligent and responsible business that is considerate of the environment, the community and help
drive local growth and prosperity.”
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