GRAIN TO GLASS: Wheatland Spring Brewery in Virginia is making truly estate-grown beer.

“The beers produced by Wheatland Spring are excellent, and the rich flavor of the grains shines through each sip, as if boldly painted by stunning colors. There is a soul to the beers that is immediately felt, and it’s a call back to earlier European brewing. The farming helps the brewery stand out among competitors and puts a focus on agriculture at a time consumers want to know where their food comes from.”

— John Holl, celebrated beer author and editor with articles appearing in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, NPR, and Wine Enthusiast. 

“It took 15 years for Bonnie and John Branding to turn their dream into their passion project: Wheatland Spring Farm + Brewery, a regenerative operation set in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Northern Virginia. On their 30-acre estate, they merge the art and science of sustainable brewing, producing small-batch, artisanal beer from the grains, fruits, herbs, and vegetables they grow on the farm.

“We established Wheatland Spring as an estate brewery,” says co-founder Bonnie Branding. “We’re farming for fermentation.” 

The couple planted grain in 2018 and crafted their first beer in 2019. “We’re first-generation farmers practicing regenerative agriculture to grow grain for the sole purpose of offering the highest-quality beer we’re capable of making,” Branding says.” —Tracy Kaler, award-winning journalist covering travel, food, wine, design, culture, and lifestyle

“Premier beer bars, through their tight, thoughtful curation of tap lines and bottle lists and dedication to service, atmosphere, and education, are learning institutions — places of discovery and enjoyment. The below panel of publicans and beverage directors was asked to name the one brewery that is considered a no-exceptions fixture at their business, and how that devotion came to be.”

“At ChurchKey, we pride ourselves on showcasing best-in-class beers from around the world while telling the stories behind the most remarkable breweries we can find. Wheatland Spring came out of the gate with a crystal-clear vision in 2019, and their beers have increasingly held our attention since then. Wheatland Spring is a true Virginia estate brewery dedicated to responsibly growing ingredients for their beer; they’re also a producer as obsessed with the quality of their beers as they are with regenerative agriculture. This is a brewery that purposefully utilizes ingredients and production methods to achieve full-flavored complexity across a wide range of offerings — from well-matured lagers and thoughtfully hopped ales to oak-aged barleywines and mixed-fermentation brews. They’re consistently releasing liquid as impressive as the narratives that inform them, and we’re proud to count them among our favorite brewers, local or otherwise.” —Greg Engert, partner and beverage director, ChurchKey and The Sovereign, Washington, D.C.”

December, 2022

“There are 52 weeks in a year and — according to our mega panel of superstar brewers, bar owners, pundits and more — 52 fantastic new brews too.” - Gear Patrol
“Distinctly flavored grains gently unite the family of beers from Wheatland Spring Farm + Brewery in Virginia. As the first release from the Estate collection — beers made using only grains grown on the farm — Return Piedmont Pilsner both reflects what the brewery has been building toward and promises more unique flavors are coming. The farm has a test plot with about a dozen experimental cultivars as part of its joint project with Virginia Tech. From aroma to flavor to finish, Return is seamless, floral and spicy hops blending with doughy grains, toasted crackers and a hint of matchstick. The bitterness is firm, leading to a dry snappy finish that some might call crisp. The first batch was released late in 2021, but I had it, and the equally good second version, this year.” —Stan Hieronymus, author of Brewing Local: American-Grown Beer and For the Love of Hops: The Practical Guide to Aroma, Bitterness and the Culture of Hops
December, 2022

Drink Beer, Think Beer With John Holl

“We’re headed to Virginia and the Wheatland Spring Farm and Brewery to talk about land beer, estate farming, and sourcing ingredients that are as local as the property where the beer is brewed. I’m talking with John and Bonnie Branding, the couple behind the brewery that sits on 30 acres of farmland, about an hour west of Washington, D.C. There they are growing their own grains, including some that haven’t seen the light of day in beer in quite some time. They have herbs and produce that go into the beers, honey for fermenting and flavor, at least three distinct yeast strains all harvested from the land. They spoke to me from the brewery. Here’s our conversation."

April, 2022

On the Farm with Wheatland Spring.

“Throughout most of the past ten thousand years, brewing was a farmhouse chore, one of the many ways people preserved their harvest throughout the year. In more recent times it has become a commercial and industrial activity. Yet in a verdant pocket of Loudoun County, Virginia about an hour NW of Washington DC, the husband and wife team of Bonnie and John Branding are conducting an ambitious experiment. They’ve revived farmhouse brewing, growing their own barley, using wild yeast from the land, and brewing it up in a barn. On today’s show, we’re going to hear their story and learn how they’re making this work in a 21st-century world.”

March, 2022

What is Land Beer?

“People often think of land beer as a style of beer, but according to the Brandings, it encompasses more of an approach, ‘tapping into that ethos of marrying farming and brewing,’ says John. Wheatland Spring is an estate brewery, akin to an estate winery, where they grow the grapes, ferment, condition, bottle, and serve on site.”

July, 2021

Fresh Air

“Bonnie and John Branding run Wheatland Spring Farm + Brewery, growing grains and harvesting yeast strains from its 30 acres of farmland in Waterford, Virginia, located around 50 miles northwest of Washington, D.C.”

July, 2021

“The 189-year-old farm is in Waterford, Virginia, about 50 miles northwest of Washington, D.C. Much like the [Hope] Tree, the brewery has blossomed, attracting the attention of beer travelers and enthusiasts from the D.C. area and beyond. They appreciate the dedication to local agriculture and terroir as much as they enjoy the pastoral setting and the country lagers, farmhouse ales, and IPAs. Among the farm-brewery’s admirers is Greg Engert, beer director for the Neighborhood Restaurant Group (and a regular contributor to the Brewing Industry Guide). For in-the-know drinkers, his choice to serve Wheatland Spring beers at bars such as ChurchKey, Rustico, and Shelter is a meaningful endorsement. “I find their uncompromising commitment to ingredient-driven beers impressive,” Engert says. “The dedication to informed sourcing and utilization, as well as to brewing classic styles, makes Wheatland Spring stand out in the current craft milieu. Add in a gorgeous farm setting along with beers that are consistently considered, tweaked, and improving, and you have a very special place in Northern Virginia.”

March, 2021

“While I’m on Wheatland Spring, let me mention their very nice Italian pilsner. Unlike tmavès, this style is not broad. Indeed, it’s based on a single beer. In the US, breweries tend to interpret the meaning as “super-charged with dry hops,” which often produces something like the India pale lagers of old. Yet the original, Italiano’s Tipopils, has a deep, lush, and integrated hoppiness that isn’t on balance particularly intense. I’ve written about how they make it here, if you want to go deeper. Following this prescription, Wheatland Spring has managed a beer with that same integrated hop flavor. No one has yet managed the depth of Tipopils (in my sampling), but this is as close as Americans have come.”

Jeff Alworth is a beer writer living in Portland, Oregon. He is the author of The Beer Bible, Cider Made Simple, Beer Tasting Tool Kit, and The Secrets of Master Brewers. His books have been honored by the North American Guild of Beer and the International Association of Culinary Professionals.

February 10, 2021

WTOP’s Beer Of The Week

WTOP’s Brennan Haselton is joined by Neighborhood Restaurant Group Beer Director and Food and Wine Sommelier of the Year Greg Engert to talk about Wheatland Spring Farm + Brewery’s Alberto Italian Pilsner for the latest edition of WTOP’s Beer of the Week.

“They are making some incredible beers… This brewery is very special because of the beers they make and the production methods. As a working farm, they are really, really focused on utilizing local ingredients, including those that they grow on the farm. And that’s not just fruit and produce and herbs and spices, which they do employ, but they are actively growing grain, as well… a very, very cool place and as you can imagine, a beautiful place to visit and a beautiful place to drink beer.” 

February 5, 2021