As Ernie Joy and Ericha Fryfogle-Joy spent hours upon hours getting ready to open their Wadsworth Brewing Co. and dealt with unexpected delays and equipment malfunctions, the married couple learned three important things about themselves.
“Our sense of humor, patience and marriage are a hell of a lot stronger than we thought,” Fryfogle-Joy said with a laugh last week. “We learned that.”
The new Medina County brewery, located at 126 Main St. in downtown Wadsworth, will open its doors at noon Friday. (Jan. 6)
The couple posted a humorous video, complete with accompanying music from The Gage Brothers last week on their Facebook page: I won’t ruin it for you, other than to say it involves a chalkboard and plenty of erasing.
Joy and Fryfogle-Joy, as you would expect, are filled with a mix of nervousness and excitement.
Nervous because they wonder how many people will descend upon their nanobrewery and excited because cash will finally be coming in.
“2016 was all money out the door,” Joy, who has a shaved head and full black beard, said with a laugh.
He oversees the brewing, using a stainless steel two-barrel brewing system that sits in the back of the brewery.
Wadsworth will launch with eight beers: Papa Elf porter, Under the Mistletoe milk stout, Thelma Lou blonde ale, All Things Scottish ale, Three-Way Belgian-style tripel, Cran Apple Shandy, The River Styx Monster double IPA and Monster Smash, a single malt, single hop ale.
Papa Elf is infused with whole bean Butter Cookie Coffee from Pearl Coffee Co. in Akron and the brewery insists: “This beer is what Santa drinks in the off-season.”
A chalkboard behind the bar will announce the beers on draft. Joy expects the beers to rotate often, given the small size of the system.
The couple, who have lived in Wadsworth for nearly two decades, want their brewery to be a comfortable community gathering spot.
The brewery, in one of the many storefronts downtown, was designed to be rustic chic.
There’s the exposed red brick walls, worn wooden floors, framed burlap sacks that used to hold coffee beans on the wall, track lighting and a faux fireplace sitting area in front, where bands will perform.
There also are two long wooden church pews from a Wooster church against the walls. (The pews are responsible for the only two brewery injuries to date. Fryfogle-Joy got a black eye and bruised leg while helping to carry them inside.)
The bar itself is something special — and local.
The top and sides are made from the gymnasium floor at the former Isham Elementary School. Joy and Fryfogle-Joy bought the floor when the building was razed several years ago.
The gym floor also was turned into wooden boxes to hold sampler glasses.
Wadsworth will be open from 3 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; noon to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday.
Photos by Akron Beacon Journal photographer Phil Masturzo.
