Greg Ptacek hosted us at the Johnnie Byrd Brewing Company on December 13. Greg's grandfather, John Ptacek (means little bird in Czech), had a band called the Johnnie Bird Orchestra from which the name is derived. He explained how he converted the old fire hall into a bar/brewery.
The "Taproom" has a bar and tables for 46 customers and an overflow room down the hall for another 65. Next Spring he plans a beer garden for 50 more. The Taproom has 7 taps with beer in 6 for the public and one that contains current new brews for members of the tasting club. Greg said the plan is to have 2 or 3 crowd favorites plus 3 or 4 others to try. There is also a plan for some non-alcoholic drinks. He wants to brew craft beer you want to drink and not what you think you should drink.
We toured the back room that included the overflow area, storage for the many beer making supplies (some grains were from foreign countries), the brewing equipment, and cool storage area.
He currently has three part time employees besides himself. Plan to visit this soon. He invites people to bring their own food into the building to enjoy along with the brews.
