bigfork brewery
about the brewery
We currently brew our most popular brands at our new brewery in Bigfork, five miles north of our Woods Bay location. People liked our beer so much we just couldn’t keep up with demand – not a bad problem to have. The new brewery started production in the Spring of 2014. We have a 30bbl brewhouse (31 gallons to a barrel) and eight 60bbl fermentation vessels. 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 5500bbls a year. Our brewhouse equipment is manufactured by the W.M. Sprinkman Corporation in Wisconsin. This is our main production facility that also includes our Wild Goose canning line and 50 oak wine casks for our North Shore Project.
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!
meet our brew crew
Matt Dagle: Director of Brewing
Hometown: Stevensville, Montana
What do you do at the brewery? A usual day entails cleaning, figuring out how much water to add to malt, then clean stuff, inventory hops, and then fix some things, a bit of staring into the digital world, then clean more stuff. Sanitize the vessels and make sure our yeasty friends are happy, then spend the rest of the day cleaning stuff, then fixing stuff. Sometimes I get to brew.
What is your favorite style of beer? Did you say Stout? MMMMMmmmmmm. I love a good dark strong beer, maybe with some years on it. In wood perhaps? Scratch that it’s sunny outside, let’s have a nice crisp Pilsner.
What brought you to Bigfork? I heard the citizens of Bigfork needed someone to make lots of beer for them, so here I am!
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 here 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.
Rob Gambino: Production Brewer & Cellarman
Hometown: Moved around most of my life so Kalispell is now my hometown now since leaving the Air Force.
What do you do at the brewery? I brew delicious craft beer and keep an eye on the fermentation that is happening to ensure that the beer turns out exactly as we want it to. That and cleaning, the key to all great beer!
What is your favorite style of beer? I am a seasonal drinker so my style of choice changes with the weather, but there is always a place and a time for a delicious Imperial Stout!
What brought you to Bigfork? My parents live just north of here and I love the community. I love it so much that I am involved with the Bigfork Boy Scout Troop 1923 as an Assistant Scout Master and at the Bigfork VFW Post 4042 as an officer for the post. I love being able to give back to the community and brewing great beer is just another way for me to do that too!
Scott Hines: Cellarman & QA/QC
Hometown: Oneida, Tennessee
What do you do at the brewery? Currently responsible FLBC’s Quality Control Program and Brewery Laboratory. I additional support cellaring, packaging, distribution, assist brewing, and various other brewery operations activities.
What is your favorite style of beer? I’m a hop-head by preference but like most styles of beer. Current FLBC favorites are Zero Day and Espresso Porter.
What brought you to Bigfork? Retired from Air Force and DoD Civil Service in Tucson, AZ and looking for cooler climate. Bought 10 acres, built a home and now have a fair size garden and orchard in the works. I’m a home brewer and I decided to use my GI bill at FVCC getting a Associates in Applied Science in Brewing and Brewery Operations. Graduated May 19 and now using my formal training here at FLBC.
Mark Johnson: Sales Representative
Hometown: Kalispell, Montana
What do you do at the brewery? Ale Ambassador/ Sales Rep
What is your favorite style of beer? Wheat / Sour
What brought you to Bigfork? I have lived in Flathead Valley my whole life and have spent many days in Bigfork. I enjoy the town and its charm and am very excited to join the FLBC family.
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!
Sandy Johnston: Director of Branding
Hometown: Hinsdale, Illinois
What do you do at the brewery? Director of Branding
What is your favorite style of beer? Hard one – Browns, Porters, or Stouts (the darker the better)
What brought you to Bigfork? I took a trip out here; and it was love at first sight. I was living in Florida after college and thought it’s now or never to go for it and try mountain living for awhile. That was over 15 years ago!
Sarah Peterson: Marketing Manager
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
What do you do at the brewery? I plan and promote events at our Pubhouse and around Montana.
What is your favorite style of beer? Hoppy beers, like Pale Ales and IPAs, are always my go to choice, but I also enjoy challenging the palate with crazy styles like Farmhouse ales and Sours.
What brought you to Bigfork? My family has a cherry orchard on the east shore of Flathead Lake. Growing up, I fell in love with Montana. After coming up one spring to work on the orchard, I applied for a job serving beer in the Woods Bay taproom. That summer job never ended and now Montana is my permanent home!