Rock County Brewing Company — Restaurant in Janesville

First Review!! Yesterday (Saturday 1/14) was the grand opening of the brewery taproom in downtown Janesville (across from Wiggy's). My first impression was with the building itself. The large tall walls boasted very old exposed brick. The West wall facing the street also has a new installed glass garage door leading to the street which will be great in the warmer months. It has barnwood finishes everywhere from a local torn down 100+ year old barn. Overall, the place has a very classy, rustic feel to it. It is not a typical Janesville bar.

Next onto the beer. Since it was my first time in, I chose to sample a flight of all 5 beers they have on tap (as did my fiancée). One of the owners, Andy poured my beers and delivered them over to us, arranging them in the menu order. Each new one was as great as the previous. I travel for a living and try out breweries everywhere I stay in the whole continent. I've had many many delicious beers, but almost no brewery I've been to goes without at least one or two beers being a miss, ESPECIALLY not on their first run. A lot of thought has been put into the selection of ingredients, the process, and the final product. And their beers span many different palates. The current selection includes: Dry nitro Stout Nut Brown Ale American Pale Ale Belgian Pub Ale Inaugural Ale (which was actually a messed up attempt at an APA and instead became an IPA/Strong Ale. If that's the mistakes they make, I hope they make more, as it was my favorite)

Now for the staff. Everyone there was very friendly and down to earth. My fiancée and I were checked on and talked with often. Andy came over to the table and sat down with us on two occasions, chatting each time for about 5 minutes. When I paid for the flights with $21 dollars (they are $8 a piece) he came over to me with my change and argued that I paid way too much, that my tip was more than a whole extra pint I could be buying instead. I expressed that since this was his grand opening, paying with $21 dollars was a lucky number. He was very grateful. He gave me a history on how this brewery came to be (the partners were all home brewers) and about how they chose its location. Andy being a Janesville native and I only living here for about two years, described to me the rich brewery history that Janesville has had over its history. I was unaware that a lot of places I've been were actually breweries at one point (like the sheet metal shop near the arena). He was very personable, passionate about his product and just plain genuine in wanting to talk to his clients. He gave a thanks to every customer that walked out that brewery while we were talking.

If you're looking for a place to drink cheap, watered down Miller light esque beers while watching a Packers or Badgers game, this isn't the place. If you're hungry, this has nothing for you. If you want great flavorful beer, at a decent and respectable price and actually TALK to people around without the distraction of TV's, dart boards, a jukebox, etc, this is the place to go. I'll be a repeat customer! Good job guys. I wish you...

We were excited to visit this very chill little brewery while passing thru downtown Janesville! It was our first time there and we enjoyed the atmosphere. We were happy we could order flights of beer so we could sample all the flavors they had available. We truly enjoyed the irish car bomb stout the best. Several other beers were tasty as well. We did not try the the outside taco truck, but noticed several other people eating some and it looked and smelled tasty. Next time! We did have some of their popcorn which was lack luster..... no butter or flavor! C'mon man.... Staff was friendly, beer was tasty... we will be...

We've been here twice now and both times they staff have been so friendly and accommodating. There's one guy that really stands out. He is an older gentleman that's been there both times. He makes sure our dogs have water and he is sure to say hi and give treats to them. Their beer is phenomenal and they seemingly have something for everybody. Very small outdoor seating, but plenty of room inside that's comfy in the hot heat of the summer. This is one that we plan to go...