In January 2016 Adventure Brewing Company purchased Blue & Gray Brewing Company, the oldest brewery in the Fredericksburg area.
Since that time, the team from Adventure Brewing has kept the Blue and Gray moniker while the transition of federal and state licensing has taken place. As of July 16, the official name will become Adventure Brewing South.
The brewery celebrated the move at its first annual Adventure Summer Fest on Saturday, July 16 at the new location:, 3300 Dill Smith Drive in Fredericksburg.
Beers from Adventure and other area breweries such as Foothills Brewing, N.C., James River Brewing; Maltese; Forge Brew were featured.
Adventure Brewing Company opened in May 2014 as the first Stafford County brewery since 1766 and with a 3-barrel brewing system. Early into their second year of business, owners, Stan Johnson, Tim Bornholtz and John Viarella realized that the supply was not meeting the demand for their four flagship beers and the stream of seasonal and specialty beers that Adventure was producing under the guiding hand of Brian Link.
They began to seek opportunities to increase production. Enter Blue & Gray and the rumors of a sale. The owners of Adventure and the owner of Blue & Gray found a clear way forward to expand the Adventure production capacity and provide a smooth pathway to retirement for Blue & Gray’s owner, Jeff Fitzpatrick.
The purchase of Blue & Gray increases Adventure’s brewing capacity from a 3 barrel to a 20-barrel system. The advantage of the larger systems was immediately felt.
Stafford County is now a growing name within the Virginia craft brewery scene, with Adventure beer being served in restaurants around Stafford County and Fredericksburg. Adventure Brewing is ready and has the capacity to share their love of beer to a wider audience.
