Mason City Brewing
A craft brewery in North Iowa, Mason City Brewing is the first brewery in Mason City in 130 years! We are open Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 5 p.m. – 11 p.m. We feature 8 taps of beer brewed at our Mason City brewery and offer a flight to sample all 8, beer by the pint, and beer to take with you in growlers.
History
Established in 2013.
Mason City Brewing opened to the public on February 22, 2013, but the history starts a couple years earlier. In the spring of 2011, Arian Schuessler and his family took their annual family vacation – this year going to the Denver, Colorado area. Returning from that trip, Arian brought back a cooler filled with growlers of beers from Colorado area breweries and invited Jake Rajewsky and Justin Merritt over for a porch beer tasting. The three, not being big craft beer connoisseurs, were shocked by the complex and wide variety of flavors presented in the craft beers brought back from Colorado and immediately thought, “Why can’t we make something like this in North Iowa?”
Author: Caroline Porsiel
Caroline Porsiel is a master distiller and liqueurist based in East Ellijay, Georgia. She founded House of Applejay, a fine spirits and liqueur distillery, in 2022 with her mother, Sabine, crafting award-winning products like Applejay from Ellijay, Mt. Frozen Knob Vodka, and Winter Cherry Mountain Liqueur. The distillery won a 2024 Best of Georgia Award and a 2025 Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition for its Winter Cherry Mountain Liqueur. As a founding member of the AMBRU Campaign, launched in 2020, Porsiel advocates for the global recognition of American Brandy and Rum. She continues to drive innovation in the craft spirits industry from her active distillery in the heart of Georgia’s apple country.
