The time has finally come for the team behind the Jam Room Brewing Company in Greentown. The opening act for the brew house's new location has been the beer garden outside but now the tasting room and the restaurant, Soundbites, are ready to rock.

"To open the beer garden first, get our feet wet, it was a good transition from a small setup to something this size, it's good to see what it's going to become," said Austin Lehrian, one of several owners of the brewery.

Pocono Television Network stopped by in earlier in 2022 as the crew was working nights and weekends to get the new Jam Room open. The partnership and friendship started 12 years ago after these guys started brewing in one of their basements then blossomed to a small location in Newfoundland 5 years ago and now to a fitting stage for the brewery. 

"We've come a long way, we started out in a basement, the Jam Room," said Chris Weaver. "Getting to that first place was a lot of work, it really paid off, We knew there was no way we could stay in that little place."

So the brewing operation, the vinyl albums, instruments and the entire team made the move to this location just off the Interstate 84 exit at Route 507.

"Just take that twist that nobody really thinks of, put that spin on them," said Evan Munley, chef at the Jam Room's Soundbites. " We are definitely going to have a braised ox tail, or braised short rib over grits or polenta."

On top of that, the Jam Room will be expanding its brewing operation by year's end meaning it will have plenty of its music-inspired beverages for fans who stop in along the Pocono Beverage Trail.

"To be in this position now, to 10 years ago, there wasn't a brewery around here.. now pick a direction and just go and you're bound to find 2 or 3, we're happy to be one of them," said Lehrian.

All of this has been done during a pandemic and eventually heartbreaking loss following by heartbreaking loss. 

Shortly after he showed us around the new Jam Room, Rick Schweizer passed away suddenly leaving the band of brothers without a big part of the team.

"Our partner Rick, he was awesome. He did everything for this place. Craft beer was his passion, and he wanted to see this place succeed. To lose him all of a sudden was a tough situation," added Lehrian. 

"Every place you look around you see RIck. He was a finisher for a lot of the things. He started a lot of stuff too," said Weaver.

The Jam Room was already missing Rick when Bill Reese's battle with cancer took a turn for the worse.

The good times Bill enjoyed at the Jam Room will live on after he too was taken too early from his loving friends and family at the age of 54.

The show must go on and so the core group has grown larger to help the brewery open again in full here at the end of 2022.

With beer brewed to rock, check the Jam Room out and raise one up for both Rick and Bill when you get there.