WAUSEON -- Jo and Melvin Michelson have something other than coffee brewing in the back of their shop.

That’s because the Michelsons just opened North River Brewing Co. at their longtime Red Rambler Coffees. It’s the fourth craft brewery to open this year in northwest Ohio, joining Black Cloister Brewing Co. in downtown Toledo, Neon Groundhog Brewery at Majestic Oaks Winery in Grand Rapids, and Bowling Green Beer Works.

The Michelsons recently relocated their coffee shop to a larger location at 1493 N. Shoop Ave., and thought there might be an opportunity to realize another dream of theirs: craft beer.

“In the building that we rented, it had a warehouse space behind it,” Mrs. Michelson said. “My husband and I like craft beer as much as we did when we started our coffee business [12 years ago]. So, when we saw how much space was back there we kind of got the idea, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun to brew beer back here?’ ”

The only thing is, neither of the Michelsons had any expertise in brewing beer, just the interest.

“I’m 58 and he’s 61, so we didn’t want to start brewing beer,” she said.

The Wauseon couple, however, didn’t have to look too far to find business partners with homebrewing experience.

Klein Gnagey of Wauseon and Dakota Shay of Toledo each have been homebrewing for about five years.

Mr. Gnagey’s wife, Katie, works at Red Rambler, and the Michelsons were aware of his hobby. Mr. Shay and his wife, Danni, went to high school with Mrs. Gnagey, who knew that he also brewed.

‘A perfect fit’

The Michelsons were on vacation in Charleston, S.C., a few years ago and stumbled across a place that served coffee and beer, and the memory stayed with them.

“We’ve just had a love for craft beer, and know that there’s a lot of the demographics that are very much the same as coffee drinkers,” Mrs. Michelson said. “We found over the years in the coffee shop having conversations with people that a lot of beer snobs are also coffee snobs. The more we thought about it, the more we thought it was just a perfect fit.”

The Michelsons had some of Mr. Gnagey’s beer in the past and thought it was good. They also liked the idea of helping some young entrepreneurs get an opportunity to brew beer and be able to serve it to the public.

“Since Mel and Jo own a coffee shop, we definitely are taking advantage of that and trying to make as many coffee-infused beers as we can,” Mr. Gnagey said.

He also said the coffee stout will be the brewery’s signature beer.

“That’s kind of our go-to beer,” he said. “You walk into a coffee shop and you can grab a beer that’s a pretty strong coffee stout. Our plan is always to have it on nitro so it looks kind of like a shot of espresso once the nitro settles.”

College hobbyists

Mr. Shay, who grew up in Fayette, Ohio, caught the homebrewing bug when he was 19 while attending the University of Toledo.

“The funny thing is, back in college the first craft beer I had was Rogue Double Mocha Porter, and after having that I was like, ‘Wow this is beer,’ especially when you’re used to Bud Light.” Mr. Shay soon learned all it takes to make beer is yeast, hops, and grain, and he was hooked.

“Once I actually turned 21, I got really involved with the Glass City Mashers — the homebrew club in Toledo — and from there it just kind of opened my eyes to [what homebrewing] could do,” he said. Mr. Gnagey’s wife bought him a homebrew starter kit when he attended UT. After he brewed a batch or two, he decided the “simple extract kit didn’t taste too bad.

“I kept getting into it more and reading and researching and getting into different stuff. It just kind of grew from there.”

Small-town niche

Even though North River also will serve sandwiches and panninis, Mrs. Michelson said it’s the combination of coffee and beer that will make North River unique.

“I’m sure there’s no other place in northwest Ohio that actually roasts their own coffee and brews their own beer inhouse,” she said. Mrs. Michelson also is hoping to cultivate a social atmosphere at the brewery.

“I want a place where people can come and socialize and have conversation and meet with friends over good beer, good food, and good coffee.

“I think it will take some time to build, but it will be there, especially because I think we’ll draw people that aren’t local.”

Grand opening

North River Brewing Co. will hold a grand opening Oct. 24, starting at 11 a.m. and lasting until about 11 p.m. In addition to current draft offerings — a coffee stout, an India pale ale, an American pale ale, a fruit ale, a saison, and a cream ale — the brewery will release a double IPA, a coconut brown ale, and a special cask ale.

There also will be live music and other entertainment, as well as tours of the brewery. For more information, visit North River Brewing Co.’s Facebook page.

Contact Bob Cunningham at bcunningham@theblade.com or 419-724-6506.

First Published October 11, 2015, 4:00 a.m.