unnamedA while back we announced rumors that Ron Extract and Amber Watts, formerly of Jester King Brewery, were moving to our area to open a brewery. Ron was part owner and Amber was a manager.

Ron and Amber have since moved to the Skagit Valley and, just today, announced details on their new brewery, Garden Path Fermentation, that will open up sometime in 2017. From their announcement:

Garden Path Fermentation patiently produces small-batch, naturally fermented beverages that showcase the abundant agricultural resources of Northwest Washington’s Skagit Valley–one of the most fertile places on earth.

The goal of Garden Path Fermentation is to produce hand-crafted beer, cider, wine, mead, and other fermented products that showcase the natural resources of the beautiful Skagit Valley, nestled between the North Cascades and the Pacific Ocean, and home to some of the most fertile soil on earth. Barley, apples, pears, grapes, hops, and berries all thrive in Skagit’s climate, and the abundant assets in the area—including craft maltster Skagit Valley Malting and a bounty of generations-old small family farms—make it possible for Garden Path Fermentation to source the vast majority of its ingredients solely from the Valley. All products will be fermented with a mixed culture of naturally occurring microbes cultivated from the brewery site and will take advantage of the temperate year-round climate of northwest Washington to minimize the need for temperature control during fermentation while showcasing the region’s distinct seasons.

The exact location, opening date and other details are yet to be announced. But when they were moving here it was rumored they were moving into proximity of Skagit Valley’s “Brewing Zone.” That has yet to be confirmed. In that “zone” is Chuckanut’s South Nut, Flyer’s Brewing, Skagit Valley Malting, WSU’s Bread Lab.

Regardless of its location, The addition of Garden Path Fermentation would make for an incredible craft beer destination to add to Skagit’s growing craft beer scene. It includes the recently opened Bastion Brewing in Anacortes.

Head to Garden Path Fermentation’s site for the full details!