I have been going to Full Circle for a little over a year now, and I have a great time every time.  Located in Downtown Fresno (which by the way keeps getting better and better for places such as these) which is nice as it is away from all the usual places, and you get to see fresh faces.  Located at Ventura and F, if you didn't know what you were looking for you would miss it easily since the outside of the building is unobtrusive.

My friend Mykel and I decided to start our night off there, as we had never been there for the Happy Hour.  Though it looks fairly small from the outside, the place is actually huge. There is a medium sized bar that seats about 10, the brewery is to the left and there is a large stage and a really big seating area with a lot of tables.  The restrooms are in the back (but a straight bee line from the door) the only reason I mention the restrooms is because there is the funniest giant neon sign in the shape of a commode - cute. 

I was really looking forward to this because I know that every spring they have this special blended drink with the most unusual taste, I think it is a wine based drink and tastes tangy, crisp, and quite refreshing - a little bit like a margarita, but much better.  I was disappointed to find out they hadn't started making it for the year. 

So I sampled some of the hand crafted beers which were fantastic, they have amber ales, American style beers, and dark beer you can almost eat. They have about 4 to 6 choices on tap at any given time. My favorite is The Cluster Fuggle Cream Ale.  It is a classic cream ale, a nice golden color, fermented cold and aged for 90 days. It has a smooth taste, a light delicious aftertaste and goes down very smooth.  Another good one that I recommend is The Good Cheer which is a rather stout red ale, with a bit of a bite, but good never the less.  And if you are looking to get hammered at the right price try the Infatuator Dopple Bock - at 22 proof it will knock you on your rear (not that I endorse that in any way). 

However I was not in a beer swilling mood. Wine wasn't sounding right either, so what was I to do?  I asked the bartender Bruce, a very nice guy who is part of the family and he informed me that Full Circle has Mead also, which I tried for the very first time there.  They sell it in three flavors.

There is a basic mead, a pomegranate mead, and an orange mead. What is mead you ask?  I didn't know either until that night, though I have heard of it before.  According to Wikipedia, mead is a "a fermented alcoholic beverage made of honey, water, and yeast. Meadhing is the practice of brewing honey. Mulled mead is a popular winter holiday drink, where mead is flavored with spices and warmed, traditionally by having a hot poker plunged into it."  Sounds delicious doesn't it? 

And how would I describe it? Nectar of the GODS! I am not kidding; it was super good with a nice little kick at the end.  I also tried the pomegranate mead, which was ok, their orange mead, which was pretty tasty, but I have to say their basic honey mead beats all the rest I like it better than anything else right now.

I talked with Don Anderson, who is there more often than not, about the history behind Full Circle Brewing.  He said it was something that took about 5 years of planning, has been open, selling and marketing their beers, meads, and specialty wines going on about five years now, and he hopes to expand their current facility over the next few years.  The business is completely family-owned and family-run and it really was a made from scratch effort.  They started modestly buy refurbishing (even welding the parts themselves) all the brewing equipment and slowly built up the business. They have become a very successful brewery and sell their product all over.

Another thing I love about this place is what a big supporter of the arts they are.  They always have great live music and performance artists, charge a very modest door fee after Happy Hour (the proceeds going entirely towards the group or groups performing that night), and most of their bands are local.  At least once a month, they have music groups from other parts of California.  They are also one of the Art Hop stops, and participate in The Rogue Festival.  The prices are geat also (they are direct to the public after all). If you haven't been there before or are new to The Central Valley this is one place you need to visit on your trip.  You will have a fantastic time.  If you are a local and are looking for someplace different I couldn't recommend it any higher.  Don't forget to try the mead.

Full Circle Brewing Co. is located at 620 F St. just off of Ventura.  It is open to the public Thursday through Saturday. For more information or to check out their great event calendar check out the website.