MEDINA, Ohio - You wouldn’t know it if you’re drinking one of the more than half a dozen beers Wrecking Crew Brew Works has on tap, but the Medina brewery is one of the smallest in Ohio.
That's saying something in a state with well over 300 craft breweries. Ryan Primiano and Bob Vokac make beer on a one-barrel-system in their brewery, which is off site from the taproom they opened in June a block north from Medina's square. Vokac brews about twice a week.
Justin Hemminger, deputy director of the Ohio Craft Brewers Association, didn’t have definitive stats to declare who the state’s smallest professional brewery is. There is no minimum batch-size requirement to be a professional brewery in Ohio. Fibonacci Brewing Co. in Cincinnati and Upside Brewing in Sylvania also have one-barrel systems.
Being small helps Primiano and Vokac operate nimbly in a healthy craft-beer area.
"That the best thing about these small taprooms," Primiano said. "You can do some different stuff."
He added: “One of the things that’s important to us … is continuous slow growth so that we can manage and control every aspect that we do.”
What they are doing is adding to Medina's growing beer scene, which already features Blue Heron, Lagerheads, Mad, Medina and Planted Flag breweries.
Primiano went to Cleveland State and Vokac attended Kent State. Both are 33 and grew up in Seven Hills and have known each other since grade school. Primiano also works as an engineer. A few years ago, Vokac was living in Denver. Primiano, who had a previous business partner, asked Vokac to return to brew.
The name is for fun; there's no symbolic meaning.
Wrecking Crew Brew Works is owned by Ryan Primiano and Bob Vokac.
“The ‘Wrecking Crew’ was us as dumb college students and even dumber adults,” Primiano said.
They incorporated as Wrecking Crew in 2017. They sold their first kegs in Medina in 2018.
"It's all DIY. We grew up on the idea of do-it-yourself kind of (stuff)," Primiano said.
The brewpub covers about 750 square feet in the 80-plus-year-old building whose former incarnations included Michelle's Place, a former diner; a doughnut shop, butcher shop and car-service business.
They started with an ESB - Extra Strong Bitter - to be, well, a little different.
“We wanted to make something that was not an IPA,” Vokac said. “See what we can we do that’s similar but not similar and still a drinkable beer. ESBs are awesome.”
And despite challenges brought on by coronavirus restrictions, the brewery is doing well.
"We've been flying through our beer," Vokac said.
"We've been opened a couple of months, and we're already looking at how we're going to make more beer. Even with half capacity, we're doing good," Primiano said. "I think we kind of underestimated ourselves."
Velociraptor Hood Ornament, West Coast-style India Pale Ale, is a big seller.
Wrecking Crew features a quartet of core beers:
• Velociraptor Hood Ornament, West Coast-style India Pale Ale
• Cricket Stomper, Extra Strong Bitter
• Better Than Doug, White Stout
• Pants Off Dance Off, East Coast-style IPA
La Victoria, a Milk Stout, came out this week. And they also have a unique tap handle called "Our Bad."
“If we ever make a beer that doesn’t work out the way we want it to we just call it ‘Our Bad’ and sell it as discounted beer,” Primiano said. “It isn’t terrible.”
What they are talking about isn't bad-tasting beer but one that might not be made perfectly to style. Brewers - with decent or trained palates - know when a batch might taste OK but might not fall within certain flavor profiles.
“We want to do it this way, we don’t have a lot of money … We’re going for the slow growth, we’re going for everything we’re doing, we’re not over extending ourselves so we have to close because something breaks,” Vokac said. “We’re not millionaires here; we’re just normal people.”
The brewpub remains a welcoming family gathering place to relax and have a beer and a conversation. Without televisions.
"Our idea when we started this place was Medina doesn't have a place that people can just hang out - you know, not worry about table turnover - you can just hang out and do whatever you want and drink a couple of beers. … and not feel pressure to leave," Vokac said.
It's clear they're old friends who work well together, intent on brewing good beer and having fun along the way.
"We're Wrecking Crew, all the way on the north side of the square, with chips to sell and delicious beer," Primiano said.
Four-pack of facts about Wrecking Crew
• The taphouse is at 144 N. Court St., Medina. Hours: 4-11 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 1-11 p.m. Saturday, noon-8 p.m. Sunday. Closed Monday-Wednesday. It’s across from a couple of boutiques and has a few designated parking spaces.
• The L-shaped bar is about eight feet by six feet. The bartop is smooth, beautiful epoxy-coated cast concrete. The pals grew up skateboarding, and boards and music posters hang. "We're always growing, we're always expanding, we're always thinking of new ideas." Primiano said. "The décor in here is not even done. It's not going to be like Applebee's or something like that where everyone has to wear like 14 pieces of flair."
• Guest taps are from Ignite Brewing Co. in Barberton, and Medina Brewing Co., Planted Flag and Blue Heron breweries. They offer flights and growlers though no crowlers at this time. They are contracting with Blue Heron to do an IPA and might do other contract brews, too.
• They have a clear mission to remain local. Wrecking Crew offers wine from The Winery at Wolf Creek in Norton and liquor from area distilleries, including Medina-based BKO Distillery’s Voudoux Vodka. “We’re local with everything as much as we could,” Vokac said. “We’re not going to try; we’re going to keep to that. There’s enough good stuff around the area, why not? … If you think about it, if you live in Medina and you come here, you’re paying me for something that is a Medina product I live in Medina so I am taking that money and I’m paying for whatever I need that’s in Medina. So all the taxes on all the things that we just bought go right back into Medina. So more of your money goes into the city you live in.” He joked: “Buy a beer from us and maybe a pothole gets fixed.”
I am on cleveland.com’s life and culture team and cover food, beer, wine and sports-related topics. If you want to see my stories, here’s a directory on cleveland.com.
(Photo courtesy Your Social Mask)
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