Want to know how Dust Bowl Brewing Co. got its name? Or, are you just curious about how the Turlock brewery concocts a batch of its Central Valley-famous craft beer? Dust Bowl’s newest location on Fulkerth Road is now offering public tours of the year-old brewery, where beer lovers can learn the answer to these questions and more.
As part of the Turlock destination’s newest attraction, Dust Bowl’s tour guide Dallon Williams takes guests on a behind-the-scenes journey of the brewing operation, where they are able to get up close and personal with the 60-barrel brewhouse. If you take the tour, Williams will let you know that’s equivalent to 1,920 gallons of beer.
Tours are common at most breweries throughout the country, and Dust Bowl founder Brett Tate wanted fans of his brews to know their origins. The tour is informative for even those that consider themselves to be brew-savvy, showing the process of how Dust Bowl beers like the “Therapist” Imperial IPA and the “Taco Truck” Amber Lager go from raw ingredients to bottled beers.
Revealing this process is not only a treat for locals who have come to love Dust Bowl beer, but incentive for visitors to travel to the brewery, said Tate.
“We’re in a great location to attract visitors from a two hour radius,” he said. “Our vision for the new brewery and second taproom has always been to create a complete craft beer experience for our guests.”
The launch of tours at Dust Bowl is a critical element of that experience, said Tate, adding that now more than ever, consumers like to know where their food and beverage come from.
Visitors from Doctor’s Medical Center joined Williams for a tour Friday as just a small portion of their all-day retreat at the brewery, and learned not only about the history of Dust Bowl, including the story of how Tate and the brewery’s Head Brewmaster John Oliver crossed paths, but about different hops and malts used to make each beer, the fermentation process, and how each batch is bottled.
“It was very informative, and I definitely learned a lot about the beer-making process that I didn’t know before,” said Jade Bito-Onon, who lives in the Bay Area. “The closest thing we have to something like this in Hayward is BJ’s, maybe?”
Bito-Onon and the rest of the tour group learned the difference between the brewing process for beers that have both high and low alcoholic contents, and were able to take a look around the brewery’s malt room and cold room.
For those who want a similar experience, Dust Bowl’s public tours are available at 11:15 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays and are open to ages 16 and older. The cost is $15 for adults 21 and over, which includes two standard beer tokens, and $11 for 16 to 20-year olds (no beer tokens).
Each tour lasts between 45 and 50 minutes, and closed-toe shoes, preferably flat, are required. No children are allowed on tours due to the manufacturing setting, and protective eyewear is provided.
To reserve a spot on a tour, book online by visiting www.dustbowlbrewing.com.
For more information, contact tours@dustbowlbrewing.com or call 209-427-2088.
