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About Us

Our History

About RRBC

Russian River Brewing Company was founded by Korbel Champagne Cellars in Guerneville, CA, in 1997. Vinnie was hired as the brewery’s brewmaster and initially sole employee. For the next 6 years, Vinnie continued to set the bar high for super hoppy and Belgian-inspired beers. Pliny the Elder, first brewed at the Korbel location in 1999, was one of the first commercially brewed Double or Imperial IPAs in America and won numerous awards over the years. It is still our most popular beer more than 20 years later.
In 2003, Korbel decided to get out of the beer business and transferred the rights to the Russian River Brewing Company name, all beer names, and the recipes to Vinnie and his wife, Natalie. We wrote a business plan, found 2 managing partners, and convinced 30 friends and family to invest in their new brewpub venture. In April 2004, we opened the doors to the next chapter of Russian River Brewing under our ownership.
Vinnie and Natalie posting with beers at a Pliny the Younger release
Our beers have won dozens of awards from the Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup. Vinnie and the brewery were twice named “Brewery and Brewmaster of the Year” at both the GABF and World Beer Cup. In 2007, Vinnie was awarded the “Russell Scherrer Award for Innovation in Brewing”. We received the “Brewers Association Recognition Award” in 2017. But the most important award of all are the many beer enthusiasts who visit from around the world year after year!
Over the years, we were able to buy out all of our partners and investors. The decision was made in 2014 to build our dream brewery right here in Sonoma County. The search for property took nearly 2 years which allowed us time to assemble our “dream team” of architects, consultants, designers, and contractors. We also received a lot of helpful advice from their friends in the beer industry! We found 15 undeveloped acres in Windsor, CA, and were quickly immersed in the project of a lifetime.
Vinnie and Natalie at Russian River Brewing Windsor ribbon cutting
20 year employees on Russian River's 20th anniversary
On October 11, 2018, we opened the doors to our new brewpub! The entire brewery is 85,000 square feet and encompasses beer production for both clean beers and sour barrel-aged beers, administrative offices, a brewpub, an outdoor beer garden, a gift shop, tasting room/growler fills, guided and self-guided tours, and 2 acres of free parking. This increased capacity has allowed us to distribute more draft and bottled beer to markets in which we currently sell as well as open up some new territories within the state of California. The original Downtown Santa Rosa location continues to thrive offering small batch brews and tasty pizza. Vinnie, Natalie, and all our dedicated employees are excited to share a beer or two at both breweries with you!

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Did you know our much beloved in-house sauce, Pliny Sauce, is not only available for purchase at our pub locations, but also for shipping throughout the U.S.? A bit too spicy to be a BBQ sauce but too crave-able to just be relegated to hot sauce duty, Pliny Sauce goes great on wings, as a dip for your pizza, or get creative and use it however you see fit!

Link in bio.

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Open post by russianriverbrewingofficial with ID 18052706648729643
Did you know our much beloved in-house sauce, Pliny Sauce, is not only available for purchase at our pub locations, but also for shipping throughout the U.S.? A bit too spicy to be a BBQ sauce but too crave-able to just be relegated to hot sauce duty, Pliny Sauce goes great on wings, as a dip for your pizza, or get creative and use it however you see fit! Link in bio.

Here are the dates for our 23rd Annual in-person Pliny the Younger Release! 🙌We had previously planned to start the 2027 release one week later, but recently learned that would conflict with the Craft Brewers Conference, World Beer Cup and, most importantly, our 2027 New Zealand hop selection! Draft Younger distribution will continue as planned in February 2027. More details to come! 🍻

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Open post by russianriverbrewingofficial with ID 18079181210442752
Here are the dates for our 23rd Annual in-person Pliny the Younger Release! 🙌We had previously planned to start the 2027 release one week later, but recently learned that would conflict with the Craft Brewers Conference, World Beer Cup and, most importantly, our 2027 New Zealand hop selection! Draft Younger distribution will continue as planned in February 2027. More details to come! 🍻

Today we are welcoming back STiVO, a collab with our good friends at Firestone-Walker Brewing! STiVO is a recipe mashup between our STS Pils and Firestone’s classic Pivo Pils, one of the inspirations for making STS many years ago. Although we have made this collab many times before, this is the first time we have the honor of brewing it at our brewery! STiVO is a Keller-style pils hopped with Saphir and Aramis with notes of lemongrass and bread dough from Pilsner malts, finishing clean, crisp and dry. Available now on tap and in bottles at both pubs and in our online store! (Link in bio)

Kegs and bottles are already making their way out into distribution at bars, restaurant and stores where RRBC beers are sold! #stivopils @firestonewalker @fw_brewmaster

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Open post by russianriverbrewingofficial with ID 17872485378486783
Today we are welcoming back STiVO, a collab with our good friends at Firestone-Walker Brewing! STiVO is a recipe mashup between our STS Pils and Firestone’s classic Pivo Pils, one of the inspirations for making STS many years ago. Although we have made this collab many times before, this is the first time we have the honor of brewing it at our brewery! STiVO is a Keller-style pils hopped with Saphir and Aramis with notes of lemongrass and bread dough from Pilsner malts, finishing clean, crisp and dry. Available now on tap and in bottles at both pubs and in our online store! (Link in bio) Kegs and bottles are already making their way out into distribution at bars, restaurant and stores where RRBC beers are sold! #stivopils @firestonewalker @fw_brewmaster

Watch as Vinnie and Natalie discuss another sustainability initiative at the Windsor brewery: our wastewater treatment plant! To learn more about all the various sustainable features at RRBC, head to our YouTube page! Link in bio. #Sustainability

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Open post by russianriverbrewingofficial with ID 18066425594675923
Watch as Vinnie and Natalie discuss another sustainability initiative at the Windsor brewery: our wastewater treatment plant! To learn more about all the various sustainable features at RRBC, head to our YouTube page! Link in bio. #Sustainability

Brewed at Russian River for the first time, STiVO is back! STiVO is an unfiltered and dry-hopped Keller style pilsner brewed with our friends at Firestone Walker. Originally conceived in 2016 as a mashup of Firestone Walker’s Pivo Pils with our STS Pils, STiVO is a happily arranged marriage of both recipes, which were already quite similar except for the hop bill. We ultimately split the hops down the middle between Pivo’s German Saphir hops and STS’s French Aramis hops, both of which belong to the new wave of European hop cultivators. Heading out for distribution in bottles and kegs this week wherever RRBC beers are sold! Releasing this Friday at both pubs and for shipping online!

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Open post by russianriverbrewingofficial with ID 18412399252181102
Brewed at Russian River for the first time, STiVO is back! STiVO is an unfiltered and dry-hopped Keller style pilsner brewed with our friends at Firestone Walker. Originally conceived in 2016 as a mashup of Firestone Walker’s Pivo Pils with our STS Pils, STiVO is a happily arranged marriage of both recipes, which were already quite similar except for the hop bill. We ultimately split the hops down the middle between Pivo’s German Saphir hops and STS’s French Aramis hops, both of which belong to the new wave of European hop cultivators. Heading out for distribution in bottles and kegs this week wherever RRBC beers are sold! Releasing this Friday at both pubs and for shipping online!
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