Chris Rohr, the owner of Flood Valley Brewing in Chehalis is just a hometown boy with a passion for brewing beers. Rohr grew up in Lewis County and graduated from Centralia High School. His interest in brewing beer started when he received a Mr. Beer Brewing Kit for a wedding present. “It sat in our attic for a while,” says Rohr. “When I finally found the time to try it out, I was hooked.”
In 2013, his hobby turned into a serious business venture when he purchased Flood Valley Brewery from previous owners Mason and Skip Goeman. The Goeman’s started the brewery in 2012 but sold it when they relocated to Montana. Rohr and his brothers went full force into brewing professionally.
The journey of making his dream a reality has not been without a few bumps in the road, but Rohr is not afraid of hard work. Flood Valley Brewing moved a few times, landing in Chehalis but Rohr and his employees managed to keep the integrity of the company. Rohr has a lot of support and help from his family. His daughter works in the kitchen and his wife is a constant encouragement.
Rohr loves the history of the local hop farms, the prohibition era and how it affected our area. The building that Flood Valley Brewing is in was built in 1908 by John Garbe for $19,000. To this day, the original hitching rings for horses are on the curb outside of the building. Garbe was one of the area’s largest hops dealers of his time. In the early 1900s, Boistfort Valley was the hop capital of the United States. “Not a lot of people are aware of the really cool history our town has,” Rohr says. “I think it’s important to honor that.”
With a passion for everything involved with beer including the brewing process and ingredients, Rohr offers supplies and workshops for those who are interested in homebrewing. Flood Valley has sixty varieties of hops and fifty- nine varieties of malts as well as equipment and brewing yeasts. The workshops focus on brewing 101, beer styles and sensory evaluation.
Rohr collaborates with local craft brewers. One of his favorite collaborations was with The Five Dons. The beer Rohr and the Five Dons created is called The Cuban Connection and is found at the brewery. Other collaborations are found in local restaurants like Jeremy’s Farm to Table, Jones Creek Brewing, and the Garlic Festival.
Photo credit: Stephanie Evans
Flood Valley put a cool spin on regular pub food. Rohr’s sense of humor is evident in the menu captions. The menu features unique items such as peanut butter, bacon and serrano chicken sandwich, the dirty son of a brisket sandwich, and the Italian stallion burger. The wings are something to fall in love with and the ahi tuna is amazing as well.
Don’t be overwhelmed by all the options of beer to choose from. Rohr and his employees are happy to help. They will ask a few questions about preferences and offer samplers. The staff’s knowledge of beer and hops is very impressive.
Flood Valley Brewing offers a family-friendly environment until 9:00 p.m. Anyone who loves board games will be thrilled with the selection available to play while waiting for the amazing food. For a relaxing time grab a drink, and cozy up next to the fireplace.
For a fun date night, the first Thursday of every month Flood Valley Brewing has a comedy show. The comedy shows have included Kabir Singh from Comedy Central Channel’s show The Family Guy. Every Sunday is karaoke night. Are you a talented musician or know someone who is? Flood Valley has open mic night on Thursdays. Currently on the weekends after 9:00 p.m. local artist JD Vaught performs. “JD came in and performed on open mic night and was amazing,” says Rohr. “I had to book him for the weekends!”
On November 12 from 5:30 to 9:00 p.m. Flood Valley hosts a Spay-Ghetti and No Balls Fundraiser. With food, drinks, live and silent auctions, a wine grab and dessert dash, all proceeds go to The Cat’s Meow SNAP. Purchase tickets and get more details at The Cat’s Meow SNAP.
Flood Valley Brewing is open Monday through Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.
Flood Valley Brewing
289 N.W. Chehalis Avenue
Chehalis
