New brewery, Country Roads Beer Co, opens in White Sulphur
By Stephen Baldwin, RealWV
“Country roads, take me home, to the place I belong, West Virginia!”
Most every West Virginian has those John Denver lyrics memorized. But Sophia Hibbs and Frankie Weinberg took them to heart.
Frankie previously worked at Greenbrier Valley Brewing Company. His career in the brewing industry then took him to Charlottesville, Atlanta, and Peachtree City to a variety of small and large facilities.
But he and Sophia felt an itch to come back home to West Virginia and open their own brewery.
They mentioned their desire to Sophia’s dad, who said, “Have you looked into the old Big Draft in White Sulphur?” He thought it might be an easier transition than starting from scratch as all the equipment was still in place.
“My dad knows the Rich family who own it, because he does their pest control, so we were able to get in touch with them and share our interest,” Sophia shared. “They said, ‘Come up with a business plan and get back to us.’ So that’s what we did.”
“To our surprise, our vision for the brewery was the same as the Rich family,” she said. “Over the summer, we’ve been able to flip it around and get it open.”
They’ve taken a team approach, with Sophia leading operations, Frankie leading the brewery, and Chef Stephen Anderson leading the restaurant.
Beside the new beers, of course, customers can expect several other changes from the previous brewery, Big Draft.
“We rebuilt the bar,” Sophia says. “It slanted a little bit, so we fixed that.”
“We revamped the outdoor area,” she notes. “Added some color and more family friendly things. We plan to have live music every weekend.”
“It’s a clean slate with a new staff,” she says. “Everybody is really excited.”
As for the menu, Country Roads Beer Co also takes a new approach in that department. “Beer fills you up,” Sophia says. “You don’t want a three-course meal. A lot of breweries do appetizers. We took it to the next level with shareable plates.”
In a style she describes as gourmet bar food, Sophia says the menu will be rooted in fresh ingredients that provide customers flexible options. “Chef has done a great job even incorporating the beer into the food.”
Sophia and Frankie feel fortunate to be in a town that is excited to see the brewery reopen. They plan to add to their menu over time, host release parties for new brews, open the community room in the coming months for special events, and open the cafe in the spring of 2025.
Country Roads Beer Co is open Wednesday & Thursday from 12pm-8pm, Friday & Saturday from 12pm-10pm, and Sunday from 12pm-8pm. Visit their website for further information.
