Which Stanislaus County craft beer brewery is your favorite? See results of reader poll
Sometimes it helps being the new kid on the beer block.
Modesto Bee readers had no shortage of craft beer (and cider) to vote for when picking their favorite local brewery in our recent online poll. Stanislaus County’s strong heritage of independent beer brewing dates back to the 1980s and its once iconic Modesto microbrew brand St. Stan’s Brewing Co.
Today, the county has 10 craft beer and cider makers with taprooms open to the public to choose from. The breweries span from regional powerhouse Dust Bowl Brewing Company to relative newcomers including Oakdale’s Grains of Virtue and Dying Breed and Salida-based cidery Tapped Apple.
But which local brewery did you vote your favorite?
We asked readers to pick the best craft brewery in Stanislaus County, and the decisive winner of our nonscientific poll, which we conduct for fun and bragging rights, is Ceres beer maker Five Eye Brewing.
The most recent brewery to open in the county, Five Eye has been serving up its signature suds since November from its unassuming location in an industrial area of the city.
But it’s what’s inside the brewery that counts for brewery co-founders and owners Alan Atkins and Steve Verver. The two men are longtime friends who met working as welders on construction jobs.
They started home brewing, but when it came time to get serious about opening, the friends put their construction skills to good use. They built almost everything themselves inside their brewery-taproom, from welding existing brewing tanks together to fit their needs to making most of the custom furnishings themselves.
And even after their successful opening, the men have no intention of quitting their day jobs. Instead, they’re focused on continuing to brew a diverse lineup of tasty beers and getting the brewing business running smoothly.
Atkins said it’s that blue-collar attitude that he thinks has helped them build a loyal following.
“I think a lot of our success has been our relatability. We kind of represent the working crowd because we are the working crowd. We still work Monday through Friday on top of (having the brewery),” he said.
Five Eye currently has on tap nine beers and two hard seltzers, all brewed in house. Atkins said their beer menu focuses on its signature beers to give people a wide and consistent variety to choose from, from lighter Mexican-style lagers to darker milk stouts.
Since opening, the brewery has expanded past its initial weekend-only hours to include Thursday evenings as well. The brewery is now open 4 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Friday 4 to 10 p.m. Friday, noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday.
Atkins said they’re humbled to place first among the county’s selection of veteran breweries.
“We might have won this, but we’re still the newcomers and are not going to lose sight of that. We’re here, come by and check us out,” Atkins said.
Following the Ceres newcomer, the Top 5 finishers of the online survey for best Modesto-area brewery spot were:
1. Five Eye Brewing, Ceres
2. Contentment Brewing Company, Modesto
3. Persuasion Brewing, Modesto
4. Dust Bowl Brewing Company, Turlock
5. Last Call Brewing, Oakdale
This story was originally published June 13, 2022 at 12:29 PM.
