Pineknotter Brewing Company

 Kailin Beaver 

   Unless you are from Northumberland, Pennsylvania, you are probably thinking "what is a Pineknotter?" The history of Pineknotters are displayed in a wooden frame on the bar inside of Pineknotter Brewing Company. (figure 1) The text states, "Pine is a versatile evergreen Knot is a hard piece of wood, growing from a branch". Pineknotter became Northumberland's school symbol. Eventually the Northumberland Pineknotters merged with the Sunbury Owls and became the Shikellamy Braves, which is the current school symbol for Northumberland and Sunbury.

    Located at 254 Front St Northumberland, Pennsylvania is the barn-like brewery named Pineknotter Brewing Company. On the front side of the brewery, wooden tables and metal chairs are available for outside seating. To enter, a garage door with windows rolls up to lead into the brewery, and a door is to the right of it for another possible entry point. (figure 2) Inside the door to the right, a popcorn machine sits on a small shelf. The smell of the popping kernels just takes over the whole brewery. Beneath the popcorn machine, there are games such as: Connect 4, Life, Monopoly, Jenga, and more for customers to play. Continuing to the right, historic pictures of Northumberland line the white walls. High top and low top tables and chairs fill this smaller space. Upon stepping in the door, the "L" shaped bar is straight ahead. The ceiling and sides of the bar resemble a washboard. Hanging above, the lighting gives a warm, vintage feel. Lining the top of the walls behind the bar is glasses with the PBC Logo. A TV on the wall displays the drink menu, which includes the beers, cocktails, and wines being offered. To the left of the TV, apparel, ranging from tank tops to sweatshirts, with the Pineknotter Brewing Company logo are displayed on hangers. A chalkboard with the list of live music hangs at the other end of the bar. When coming directly through the garage door opening, there is more of the same square wood top tables, and chairs that are metal with maroon cushioned seats. Each table inside of PBC has a food menu and a QR code that goes to the drink menu.

    Since the menu is always changing, PBC uses the app called "Untappd". It shows the current menu items, and also has a place to leave reviews. The current beers on tap are: 1772 Pale Ale, Kia-bra Knotty Hazy IPA, Shake Your Tree Peach Milkshake IPA, Strawberry Blood Orange Hard Seltzer, Pina Colada Sour, Campfire S'mores Oatmeal Stout, Exchange Cream Ale, Irritable Blonde/Strawberry, Pale Wheat, and Wheatley Avenue with Peach and Pineapple. Specialty Cocktails at the moment are: Peach Mojito, Raspberry Whiskey Tea, Orange Old Fashioned, and Hidden Still Can Cocktail. The three wine options are Chardonnay, Niagara, and Concord. Derek, one of the owners, proudly expressed, "Since we have opened, the most popular has been the Pale Ale because it's always on tap. Besides that, our sours and IPAs are always a big hit."

    PBC opened on March 6 of 2020, just a few days before the start of the pandemic. The brewery is owned by two brothers, Brandon and Derek Fisher, and their father, Tread Fisher. The three of them along with other members of the family run the establishment. Tami Fisher, mom of Brandon and Derek, actually designed the tree from their logo. "Back then, we had a youth football team called the Pineknotters. She recreated it (the tree) a little bit based on the Northumberland Pineknotters High School logo", Derek explains.

    Pineknotter Brewing Company has different things going on every week. Every other Wednesday, a Trivia Night. Live entertainment is every Thursday and every Saturday. A few times a year, a Dog Night is held and "we make treats out of the grain we have", Derek remarks. PBC helps plan the Norry Block Party, an event held each year on the 200 Block of Front Street. It has food, drinks, live music, activities for kids, and it is once a year in September. Derek mentions,"Every year the Block Party is our busiest day. Saint Patricks Day would be the second." PBC has a Facebook Page that shows all of the upcoming events. 

    A special thing that Pineknotter Brewing does is called the Knot Head Club. It is a $100 lifetime membership. The customer must come in once per calendar year. Benefits of being in the Knot Head Club are is the cost of a 16 ounce beer in a 20 ounce glass, a free beer on their birthday, and 15% off of the PBC merch. "We have come to get a lot of new friends through the Knot Head Club", Derek exclaims. Knot Heads come in every day the brewery is open, and the staff has come to know each of them.

     "Hey how are you", Tami asked a Knot Head.

    "I'm pretty good, just had a long day at work", the Knot Head replied.

     Tami nodded and responded,"Oh I feel you there buddy. Hey how's your mom doing? I haven't seen her in so long." She had a look of concern on her face when speaking to him.

    "She's good, she just doesn't get out too often anymore", he answered.

    "I'm happy to hear she's doing well." Tami stated with a grin on her face then continued by saying, "You look just like her, you know."

    "Yeah I get that a lot," the Knot Head chuckled. Tami smiled and the two shared a sweet moment.

    Being family owned and family run is really an amazing aspect to the Pineknotter Brewing Company. Customers get to feel at home when coming into the brewery. Relationships are made between everyone when coming into Pineknotter Brewing Company.