KERNVILLE, Calif. (KERO) — The brewery opened in 2006 and has since grown into a beloved institution that features two restaurants, outdoor and indoor seating, and an extensive distribution network.
- Looking to move on from ownership, Eric and Rebecca Giddens sold the company to the employees, making it and entirely employee owned business.
- The KRBC helps organize the annual Rivernook Beer and Music festival that takes place at 1 to 6 pm on Saturday October 19.
- You can buy tickets to the festival at the door, or online at this website.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
“We love making beer and we also love making beer with a view,” said Eric Giddens, President of the Kern River Brewing Company.
Giddens and his wife fell in love with the Kern River Valley after they made frequent visits to the area to whitewater kayak.
“Kayaking was kind of our lives but we didn’t want it to be our livelihood.”
Both of them have competed in the olympics for whitewater rafting - his wife rebecca - winning a silver medal in athens
“No medals for me, but I had a great time.”
The Giddens decided to take a risk and move to Kernville - opening the brewery in 2006.
“This is what our building looks like in 2016,” Giddens said showing a framed photo.
Since opening, they’ve expanded their operations, canning their beer on site.
“Thousand of cans.”
He says there are unique hurdles to operating the brewery in Kernville - like not having a sewage hookup.
“All of our waste has to go into the ground - or be pulled off so we sidestream all of our waste. So all of the grain for example feeds local cattle and pigs, all of our organic material is composted. All of our liquid runs through a wastewater treatment system we have on-site before it goes into our septic.”
He says they’ve become one of the experts on brewing on a septic system.
“There’s a high cost to doing business this way but we love living in this town so it’s our only option.”
Being in a more rural area, they’ve also bought all of their kegs.
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“This is Keggy-Sue, our Keg washer.”
But there are also some benefits to the location.
“The water that we use to make our beer is coming down from Mt. Whitney, about 6 miles north of here so it’s great mountain water, I think that's part of why their beer is special.”
Known for their IPA’s, they choose their hops every year.
“About 40 percent of the worlds Hops come from Washington, Idaho and Oregon, so we go up there and they will then pull all the hops to a table where we can go through a bunch of different lots, we’ll rub them and smell them and kind of look for the best version of the style of that hope that we want.”
Since opening, they've won awards for their beer and have gotten to know other brewers.
Their role in the Rivernook Beer festival is to bring other brewers up to the KRV.
“We actually hand select the Brewers we want to come. We call it the Kern River Brewing Company Invitational, so you can't come unless you're invited.”
The event take place at Rivernook campground and all the proceeds benefit local on-profit S.O.S Dog Rescue
“But the whole point isn't to make money, it's to really to share our space with people, have a great time and then give all that money to a good cause.”
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