Founded in Richmond, Virginia, by lifelong friends Eric McKay and Patrick Murtaugh, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery has been soulfully brewing beer since 2011. The brewery is the realization of a dream sprouted when first tasting home-brewed beer at Hardywood Park sheep farm in New South Wales, Australia. The brewery is named in its honor.
The co-owners grew up honing their craft as home brewers, then worked for more than a decade in craft beer distribution in New York. Patrick subsequently earned his Master Brewer Certification, studying at the acclaimed Siebel Institute in Chicago and Doemens in Munich.
Hardywood has a unique series of flagship beers, the “Virginia Roots” series (highlighting the brewery’s use of local agricultural produce), and a Barrel Series of barrel-aged beers. The series are the fourth and eleventh bestselling of any craft brewery in the US – despite Hardywood’s short history and relatively small geographical footprint.
Hardywood beers have earned international acclaim with medals at the World Beer Cup and Great American Beer Festival and also enjoy high ratings on consumer ratings platforms such as Untappd, RateBeer and Beer Advocate.