Snowshoe Brewing Co.
Brewpub review

by Bob Wilcox

The first weekend in May my wife and I went to our weekend getaway in Long Barn. We decided to go out to lunch at the new Snowshoe Brewing Co in Sonora. They have only been open in this location for a few weeks. The original location is in Arnold. There new location is in the old lumber mill town of Standard in a restored 1920's bank or paymaster building of the old Pickering Lumber Co. It’s a real nice building with very high ceilings. Upon entering the first thing that hit was the smell of boiling wort, ah what a wonderful smell that is. My wife's first comment was " It smells like our house when you make beer". Behind the required glass wall with an open ceiling was a nice Stainless Steel and Copper brewery with a 15 bbl fermenter. We were informed by our waitress that they were brewing an IPA, which explains the enormous hop addition we saw the brewmaster make.

On tap they had 5 regular brews Snoweizen, Apricot Wheat, Thompson Pale Ale, ESB ( Extra Special Blizzard) and Grizzly Brown Ale also on tap were 2 specialty brews Cannonball Porter and Irish Red. I ordered the sampler. The Snoweizen was a pretty tart ,citrusie weizen not to bad. I'm not real fond of fruit beers but the Apricot Wheat is made with fresh fruit, very flavorful and light. The Pale was a good hoppy brew which is available in six packs. I think Bev Mo has them. The ESB was a nice estery brew that had a good malt flavor tasted pretty well balanced to me .The Grizzly Brown is a nice brew that has a smooth roasted flavor it is also available in six packs. The Cannonball Porter was a heavily roasted medium brown (a little muddy looking) brew. Irish Red, not much to speak about here. I don’t think I would order a pint of it. I'm no BJCP beer judge, but all in all there Beers were pretty good. They sell 1/2 gal Growlers for $10 and refills for $7.

The food is a little Pricey. I had a Beer Sausage Sandwich with Seasoned fries at $6.95 and my wife had a Snowshoe Caesar Salad with Charbroiled Chicken, a good size salad, for $7.95. The Menu is rather extensive with Sandwiches, Salads, Burgers, Pasta and Pizza. Mexican Grill with Fajitas and Burritos. Fireside Grill with Prime Rib, Steaks and Ribs, served after 4pm.

So, if your in the Sonora area I recommend that you give Snowshoe Brewing Co. a try. With all the time that we spend up there I know that we will be going back.