Brewer brings Oktoberfest to Russell

Oct. 5—RUSSELL — South Shore native and craft beer brewer Patrick Fannin will appear at Eridanus Brewing's Oktoberfest, set for 1 to 6 p.m. Saturday at the brewery at 501 Ferry St. in Russell.

Fannin, 33, is the head brewer at Dreaming Creek Brewery in Richmond. But that wasn't his original career goal.

"I got a degree in geographic information systems in EKU," he said. "I had a job offer in Lexington for work in my degree, but shortly after that, I got a call from Dreaming Creek." He was hired as assistant brewer.

He said his wife introduced him to craft beer, and his career change to brewing was equally serendipitous.

"My wife's boss bought her a home brew kit one year because she was a craft brew fan," said Fannin, son of Jeff and Tammy Fannin, of Lloyd. "It sat there for about a year and we finally tried it. After that, I started buying more and more equipment for about three or four years. Then, I started bugging my friends who work at breweries in Lexington to give me a job scrubbing floors or whatever. Eventually, a brewery opened in Richmond and they hired me as assistant brewer in 2019. Soon, I became head brewer."

Even though he's basically self-taught, Fannin said he learned a great deal from others in the brewing community.

"They're always there when I need advice or don't know how to do something," he said. "It comes down to everybody's brew system, so I have to learn to brew on my system. Also how our business is run and our needs and commitments."

Fannin plans to bring a couple of kegs of Dreaming Creek beer to sell at the Russell event to sell from a booth.

"I'm going to bring our Millstone lager, and American lager, and Wink's Dunkle, a dark lager," he said.

Broken Throne Brewing in Pikeville also will bring their products, and Eridanus Brewing will release its Oktoberfest and a German altbier at the event. Food will be available from Fat Boy Q and Dragon Fly Outdoor Cafe, which will add a few German dishes to the menu.

Fannin said his favorite brew is Kentucky Common, a historical beer style that originated in Louisville and the flagship beer at Dreaming Creek Brewery.

To figure out your own favorite, Fannin advises sippers to think about the body of the beer, meaning how much sugar remains in the drink.

"Most are used to a light body drink, even if it's got a lot of flavor in it," he said. "Once they come over to drinking craft beer, take into account what you usually drink. Don't shock your system into something different. Try small, incremental changes."

For example, he said his mother, who rarely drank, tried hard ciders and progressed to big, sweet stouts; now, she drinks wheat beer, which is said to have a light, summery flavor.

Fannin said he's excited about the fact Russell has a brewery and will host the area's first Oktoberfest.

"I'm really proud Greenup has a brewery," he said. "I didn't think it would happen for a really long time."

(606) 326-2661 — lward@dailyindependent.com