Granite Mountain Brewing is what happened when two couples - the Stangersons (Michael Stanger and Amanda Richardson) and the Swaffamotos (Damon Swafford and Audra Yamamoto) - got together (perhaps all-too-frequently) to enjoy good food and Michael's homebrew. Our shared love of food and beer propelled us to start an underground beer tasting movement during which we hosted a series of 7 beer tasting events over the course of a 13 months. We may be the new kids on the Prescott scene, but GMB brings ten years of brewing experience to the table. From the farmlands of Vermont to the mountains of Alaska; the homelands of Idaho and now the high deserts of Prescott!

While our dream to open a commercial brewery was a big one, it remains a small operation. By small operation, we mean SMALL. Not micro. We're talking about nano-brewing here, folks. We're a grassroots endeavor that began in a garage and garnered fast support from the community.

We pride ourselves on high-quality unpretentious beer. We like to brew traditional styles as well as creative twists on the traditional. Inspired by the local landscape and community, we look forward to experimenting with local ingredients (wheat berries, juniper berries, prickly pear fruit) and becoming part of the local flavor of Prescott. Beer education is part of what we do: styles, processes, ingredients, and the magical pairing between beer and food. Why? Because this is all part of celebrating the simpler things in life: good food, good friends, good beer.

Cheers! 

Michael Stanger, Head Brewer

Head brewer and smart-alek extraordinaire! Michael is the creative force and pure brut behind the beer, researching styles and methods, tweaking recipes, experimenting, procuring ingredients, brewing, kegging, bottling, sampling, etc. Michael works full time at the the brewery, brewing beers 1 to 2 days week and handling everything beer and food-related. In addition to his knack for making beer, he is a talented cook and has a large hand in designing the recipes of featired on our small bites menu. 

Amanda Richardson, Choreographer

She does a little bit of everything behind the scenes, but plays a big part in defining GMB's identity. She is the wordsmith behind GMB's Facebook page, website, mailing list, and Kickstarter project. She works full time outside the taproom but can be found slinging beers in the tap room.

 Audra Yamamoto, Master of Spreadsheets

In her career's third or fourth incarnation, Audra is a bookkeeper. She does all the number crunching, banking, and financial projections for GMB. She manages staff and coordinates schedules. While she provides a critical service to the business, it is the less glamorous work, so she finds her creative outlet in the form of menu development and food presentation for tasting events.

Damon Swafford, Covert Operations

Damon fills in wherever he is needed - heavy lifting, dirty work, but his favorite job is quality control technician. A novice homebrewer, he and Michael handle the technical stuff - researching parts and equipment, processes, structural needs, etc. Like Amanda, he works full-time job but can be found slinging beers it the tap room.

Contact us today!
We welcome your questions and queries. Email your comments to info@granitemountainbrewing.com.