Prineville brewery embraces new, yet old name

The first day of Central Oregon Beer Week brought a new name to Prineville. Solstice Brewing Co. officially changed its name to Ochoco Brewing Co. on Friday with a launch party.

“We started thinking about what kind of things root us locally,” Ochoco Brewing Co. head brewer and owner Joseph Barker said Wednesday.

The name change is to one nearly the same as the brewery that was in Prineville shortly after it became a city. According to local historians, Ochoco Brewery was established in Prineville in 1882, but wasn’t in business long.

“Mostly, people don’t realize that Prineville was the main community in Central Oregon from about 1868 until 1905,” Bowman Museum historian Steve Lent said.

Historians believe the original Ochoco Brewery was the first brewery in Central Oregon.

“We had, like, seven saloons here in town, so it was a pretty wild place for a while,” Lent said.

Ochoco Brewing Co. is located between Second and Third streets in Prineville, just blocks from where Ochoco Brewery once sat.

“We decided to go with Ochoco Brewing Co. rather than Ochoco Brewery because we’re a brewing company, as well as a restaurant,” Barker said.

Barker and his team focus on hand-crafted beer, using their hands to mix and lift during the brewing process. The brewery does its best to use local ingredients and work with the resources, not against them.

“We try not to manipulate our water too much,” Barker said. “We try to use what’s local and what’s here.”