bigfork brewery
about the brewery
Bigfork Brewhouse: Our production facility is located in Bigfork, Montana. We have a 30 barrel (31 gallons to a barrel) Sprinkman brewhouse, eight 60 barrel fermenters, and three 20 barrel fermenters. As of April 2016 we have added one 60bbl bright beer tank and one 120bbl bright beer tank, which has increased our potential annual capacity to 5,500bbls a year. The canning line is also housed in the Bigfork production facility. We have the floor space to add more tanks, expand the canning line, and increase total capacity to 9,000 barrels a year.
In 2019 we added a sour beer room in the Cellar of the FLBC Pubhouse. This room is a temperature controlled, closed off area that will create the perfect environment to experiment with barrel aged sour beers. Our sour beer is inoculated with a wild yeast strain (Brettanomyces) that takes six months to two years to develop the desired sour and tart flavors. Stay tuned for the new and exciting sours that will be tapped in the Cellar!
Woods Bay Brewhouse: Our original 10 barrel system was located in our Barrel House Taproom in Woods Bay from 2004 to 2017, five miles south of Bigfork. This is where we brewed small batch beers, started our Sour program, and experimented with new recipes. When we brewed here, we produced approximately 800 barrels a year out of the Woods Bay facility.
meet our brew crew
Greg Johnston: Co-Owner
Hometown: Originally from Hinsdale, Illinois but now Bigfork, MT
What do you do at the brewery? Owner/Partner and help with accounting functions
What is your favorite style of beer? I like all of them, but my go-to are Two Rivers Pale, Flathead lager, and more of the less IPA beers.
What brought you to Bigfork? Followed our daughter to Montana and Bigfork. I have never looked back.
Nic Lee: Co-Owner
Hometown: Winston-Salem, N.C.
What do you do at the brewery? Turn beer into whiskey!
What is your favorite style of beer? Barrel-Aged Stout
What brought you to Bigfork? The beer!
Jon Hartig: Director of Brewery Operations
Hometown: The home of the 2019 Stanley Cup Champions St. Louis Blues, St. Louis, Missouri
What do you do at the brewery? Production planning, logistics, analysis, storage, canning, kegging, etc. a little bit of everything! My job always keeps me on my toes as I get to work with and coordinate everyone and everything. But it is a pleasure, as we have a talented staff that I can enjoy my profession with.
What is your favorite style of beer? I love a beer I can chew, so Stouts, Imperials, Nitros, etc., anything dark with layers of flavor. Although I am slowly falling in love with Double and Hazy IPAs.
What brought you to Bigfork? In 2001, my wife and I vacationed in Bigfork. By 2007, we were ready to move here and did the very next year. We love the small-town atmosphere and the ability to raise our children in such a beautiful place with a fantastic community.
Logan Nelson: Brewer
Hometown: Grew up on Vashon Island, west of Seattle, then went to University and worked a few years in Vancouver, BC.
What do you do at the brewery? I clean. I also make sure we have the proper bacteria and the cleanest yeast going into fermenters. I watch the beers mature and record everything that happens through fermentation. I will be experimenting with new recipes though the pilot batch system and hopefully in the near future will work on bolstering the barrel aging program here.
What is your favorite style of beer?Lagers. Barreled stouts. Hefes. Occasionally a smooth Hazy.
What brought you to Bigfork?The outdoors, the fishing, being close to Big Mountain to bike and ski, the town of Bigfork itself, and being closer to my family.
Sean Quinn: Brewer
Hometown: I grew up in Temecula, California but spent the last 15 years in North County San Diego.
What do you do at the brewery? I brew, clean and sanitize tanks, assist on the canning line, and will be involved with the new distillation project.
What is your favorite style of beer? I really enjoy an nice West Coast IPA, Light bodied but hoppy. I also like a clean German Lager like a Helles.
What brought you to Bigfork? I have family here, and the outdoor activities like snowboarding.
Nate Conners: Sales Manager
Hometown: St. Paul, Minnesota
What do you do at the brewery? I get to travel around the state and sell beer!
What is your favorite style of beer? Stout on the ski hill, Lager on the river.
What brought you to Bigfork? I moved here to work as a guide on the rivers around Glacier National Park.
Jessica McCollam: Marketing Manager
Hometown: Redding, CA.
What do you do at the brewery? I make sure our beer, our people, and our place—right here by Flathead Lake—get the spotlight they deserve.
What is your favorite style of beer? A dark stout, barrel-aged stout and anything on nitro.
What brought you to Bigfork? I moved to the area in 1995 to be close to family.
Founding Members
Rob Robinson: Director of Planning
Hometown: Born in Coronado, California. First job in Missoula, Montana. Lives in Polson.
What do you do at the brewery? Production Planning, Forecasting and Sales Analysis, Promotion Management, HR
What is your favorite style of beer? The Centennial IPA
What brought you to Bigfork? Retired on Flathead Lake and I get to drink all the FLBC beer I want!
Rob has been instrumental in developing all of FLBC’s functions, including: forecasting, planning, and sales/product development. Rob remains a great friend and advisor for the brewery team.