here’s a fire crackling in the firepit outside of Wild Ride Brewing, and although snow is flurrying around us, several guys in puffy jackets and hoodies stand around it, pints of beer in hand. AC/DC is playing over the loudspeakers, and a teenager in Carhartts is ordering the Oh My Cod (beer-battered fish tacos) from the FoodFellas truck. Once we get inside, AC/DC has given way to George Strait, and I think to myself that the music choices are a fitting picture of the Wild Ride Brewing vibe. Having written about restaurants, breweries, and bars for a while now, I find that most establishments have a distinct style and a crowd they cater to. There are the bars for skinny jeans and 20-ingredient cocktails, those for Carhartts and cowboy boots, the spots for nano-tech puffy jackets and big ski stories.

Wild Ride Brewing, by contrast, is unique–it seems to cater to everyone. Beer-sipping empty-nesters waved and chortled at my baby; families were playing cards; groups of young men and women flirted away at side tables; and there appeared to be a healthy mix of regulars, plus those of us who had come by to see what the place was all about.

“We wanted to cater to a diverse crowd,” said Paul Bergeman, head brewer and part-owner of Wild Ride Brewing. “All ages and walks of life come to enjoy their pint of the day and we are really proud of that.”

Bergeman noted that beer is a social beverage, so he and his fellow owners wanted to create a welcoming environment for it. This environment is especially incredible when you realize they only brew beer and manage the taphouse; they don’t offer in-house food of any kind. The fare is provided by four food trucks, which rotate their days off to ensure there are always eats available when the taphouse is open.

“We’ve always wanted to focus on what we’re good at, which is brewing beer, and let the food trucks focus on offering great food,” said Brian Mitchell, owner-operator of Wild Ride. “We have fantastic customer service—the food trucks all deliver orders to your seat on the patio or in the Tap Room—and at this time, the four food trucks [FoodFellas, the Jerk Kings, Red Road Pizza, and Shred Town] offer pizza, hamburgers, tacos, sandwiches, jerk pork and chicken, rice bowls, yakisoba, and more. There’s a lot of variety, with great portions.”

There’s also plenty of variety in the drink menu. I counted 12 year-round house-made beers, as well as a handful of seasonal releases, plus two cider taps, four wines from Naked Winery, kombucha, root beer, and Coca-Cola products. My husband got a TasteSki (four six-ounce tasters, served with a wink on a repurposed ski), which consisted of a coffee blond ale, an imperial IPA, a stout, and a lager, all of which he enjoyed. I got a glass of wine, served smilingly by a chatty bartender. (I don’t always get great reception when I order wine at a brewery!)

“We’ve always taken the approach that we want to provide a beer style for every craft drinker out there. It’s still very much an IPA world in our industry, and we currently have four IPAs available, including a hazy IPA and an imperial,” Mitchell said. “We also have lighter options, such as our Cole’s Lager, Brenna A Amber Lager,