LITTLE FISH IN A LITTLE POND
Little Fish Brewing Stirs Up a Local Storm
BY LAYNE REY PHOTOS BY NICOLE BELL
Just a short 10-minute drive from Ohio University’s campus sits Little Fish Brewing Co. at 8675 Armitage Rd. Spearheaded by co-owners and longtime friends Jimmy Stockwell and Sean White, the vineyard-like brewery began business in the summer of 2015 after the impressive transformation of an abandoned mechanic’s shop.
White’s home brewing hobby inspired the creation of Little Fish. Growing up with Athens’ local food scene and visiting impressive breweries in Portland, Oregon, and Asheville, North Carolina, allowed him to gather inspiration. He wanted to create a business where, “[he] personally could express [his] creative passion and make that a vehicle for doing some good in the world.”
The company was founded on a sustainable mission to create draft beer and food in an environmentally-friendly way. With solar panels, close to zero beer packaging waste, and local distribution, Stockwell and White are able to maintain that mission.
Being completely sustainable is difficult for any business, but Little Fish is consistently engaging in additional methods of sustainability.
“I think we have a lot of ideas about expanding gardens,” said Jen Starwell, the executive sous chef. “It would be amazing just to be able to source some of our own stuff.”
Stockwell and White began innovatively brewing with the resources available to them at the time in 2015. Before anyone was malting grain in Ohio, they utilized Ohio-grown organic spelt and heirloom corn. Haus Malts, a brewing supply store in Cleveland, now provides Little Fish with Ohio-grown malted barley, wheat, rye, and other base ingredients of beer.
Little Fish’s beer has received several awards in the company’s time, including, most recently, a gold medal at the 2022 Great American Beer Festival for the best “Wood and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer.” Its draft menu has over a dozen options and includes a variety of flavor profiles, from bold and bitter to fruity and light and everything in between.
Stockwell and White said their brewery is a reflection of their beliefs and it shows in their size and operations.
“We’ve been trying to find the growth point at which we can be profitable, but be comfortable in our small size,” White said.
The co-owners aren’t focused on the idea of exponential growth, but they value contributing something beneficial to the Athens community while supporting small producers, treating their employees well, and “trying to walk a sustainable path.”
Since 2017, Little Fish’s casual dining menu has closely adhered to its sustainable and high-quality values. Whenever possible, the chefs prefer to incorporate locally sourced or produced ingredients.
“I think what we do best here is work with what we have available to us, and we’re innovative menu-wise and beer-wise,” Starwell said.
With a wide variety of bar snacks, shareable appetizers, burgers, and pizzas, there is a dish for everyone.
“You can’t go wrong with a deep-dish pizza,” customer Ambur Wegner said.
Pairing a pizza or charcuterie board with a complementary draft beer or bottle of wine makes for an ideal experience.
The inviting atmosphere of Little Fish brings in customers for lunch and dinner. It is easily accessible from the bike path, which is actually how Wegner and her partner, Zak Painter, discovered the company.
“It’s a nice outdoor space,” Painter said. “It’s not as crowded or as cramped as a lot of breweries I’ve been to.”
The cozy picnic tables outside with a colorful indoor space create a non-traditional brewery ambiance, and Wegner appreciated Little Fish’s pet-friendliness.
“We are family friendly, which I think is not even always typical of a restaurant, much less a brewery,” Starwell said.
Little Fish further engages with Athens by hosting an open stage night every Thursday and jazz night every other Sunday. There is also an upcoming Octoberfish which is a food- and beer-pairing experience for the season.
In 2021, Stockwell and White listed a comfortably-sized farmhouse that sleeps 13 on their two-acre property on Airbnb. The following year, the local brewery expanded its business to another location in Dayton, Ohio. This location features a more upscale dining experience with the same locally-made draft beer. With no concrete long-term goals from here, Stockwell and White hope to continue navigating the finances of running an ethical small business until they feel ready for another opportunity.
“Instead of trying to be a big fish in a small pond, we’re actually happy you can be a little fish,” White said. “I don’t want to be the best brewer in the world, but I’d be very happy to be considered one of the best of many small breweries.”
