Press Contact:
Andrew Rowles, Co-Owner
Wayward Lane Brewing
AGRowles@gmail.com
(508) 733-1583
PRESS RELEASE
Schoharie County Brewery, Wayward Lane Brewing, Wins New York State 2023 Brewery of the Year
Schoharie – The New York State Craft Beer Competition has awarded Wayward Lane Brewing the 2023 Brewery of the Year. The farm brewery opened in 2021 on a 65-acre former hop farm in the town of Schoharie, which resides within the Mohawk Valley region of New York. The brewery prides itself on its classic styles of beer, but brews a full range of everything from West Coast style and hazy IPAs to English ales, lagers, wild-fermented ales, and even barrel aged strong ales. The production facility and taproom are situated in a restored 1800s hop house, an homage to the legacy of hop production in Schoharie County. The brewery also resides and is in partnership with Hop House Farm, which is primarily a beekeeping farm that supplies honey and fruit for some of the brews including special bottle conditioned beers that utilize wild yeast and bacteria for unique characteristics and flavors.
The Brewery of the Year Award is given to the brewery that earns the highest number of points in the competition. Points are determined by the number of medals won. The points system offers three points for gold, two points for silver and one point for bronze. Wayward Lane took home the gold for both their Hazy Pale Ale, Cultivar: Motueka and their English Style Wheatwine conditioned on amburana, Xylem. They also won silver medals for their Hazy Double IPA, Cloud Generator, and their Cold IPA, Prizm.
Wayward Lane Brewing is owned and operated by a group of friends who love beer, farming, and the community it creates. The brewery is committed to crafting high-quality beers that capture the essence of the land using locally sourced ingredients, many of which are produced on the farm. The awards speak to the quality of their beers, but the brewery has also become a place of community. Hosting regular events like their most recent winter Luau party, frequent live music, weekend yoga classes, tap
takeovers and collaborations with breweries from all over; Wayward Lane Brewing has gone beyond being just a brewery. They are especially excited to usher in the summer event schedule, which can be found on their website www.waywardlanebrewing.com
“We are proud to represent Schoharie, and it has always been our ambition to share the beauty of this area with people from all over. Upstate New York is full of opportunity, has a wealth of resources, and everyone I bring here falls in love with it immediately. This win is a chance to shine a spotlight on our community that prides itself in its rich history and agricultural heritage. People here think creatively and support each other to make those agricultural roots work in the modern world,” commented Co-Owner Andrew Rowles.
As an extension of this commitment to agricultural community and tourism, Wayward Lane Brewing will be kicking off its second year hosting Market in the Meadow, a Farmers Market held in the “Bier Meadow” at the brewery. Starting Sunday, May 7th, it will be held on the first Sunday of the month
from May – October, 12 – 4pm. The event features a variety of local vendors featuring a variety of craft and artisan goods, live music, food, and of course, beer. If you are interested in learning more about attending the Market in the Meadow or are interested in becoming a vendor, contact Andrew Rowles at info@waywardlanebrewing.com, or visit their website for more details.
More photos are available by clicking here.
### About Wayward Lane Brewing. Wayward Land Brewing is situated on 65 acres of rolling farmland in the scenic Schoharie Valley of upstate NY. They offer a large outdoor event space where they hold concerts on the weekends. The farm specializes in beekeeping, unusual fruit production and more. Currently the farm keeps roughly 80 beehives, and 4 acres of fruit trees/ shrubs including: aronia, elderberry, brambles, currant, pawpaw, persimmon, tart cherry, plum, peach, apricot, nectarine, cornelian cherry, kiwi berry, apple and pear. Some of the ingredients foraged from the farm will be used towards long term, oak conditioned, spontaneously fermented wild ales.