Will Oliver (left) surprises Fresno City Council Member Nick Richardson with an inaugural can of “Don’t F%@k With Fresno” at the Sequoia Brewing Co. reopening in North Fresno on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Photo by Ben Hensley
published on October 10, 2025 – 2:13 PM
Written by Ben Hensley
Fresno’s iconic Sequoia Brewing Co. has been given a new lease on life under Second Growth Brewing LLC, marking the return of one of Fresno’s most beloved community watering holes.
Friday, Oct. 10, marked the reopening celebration of Sequoia Brewing’s North Fresno location at 1188 E. Champlain Dr., Ste 107. The ribbon cutting drew politicians, dignitaries and community members, all excited to see the reopening of the brew pub.
The Tower District location could be soon behind, but a spot on Main Street in Visalia is uncertain.
“We’ve been working for a long time to make this day happen,” said Scott Miller, part-owner of Sequoia Brewing Co. “Second growth is when a forest burns down and grows back from its roots even stronger.”
Miller, Fresno Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, is also owner of Gazebo Gardens and part owner of Tower District bar Howlin’ Wolf.
Miller said Sequoia Brewing is woven into the fabric of Fresno.
“Certainly, that’s what Sequoia Brewing has been to us all,” he said.
The brewery’s roots date back to 1989, when Kevin Cox and Jeff Wolpert opened Butterfield Brewing. In 2000, the partners sold the business to Scott and Michelle Kendall, who rebranded the business into Sequoia Brewing Co., helping it become a Tower District staple. In 2005, the duo opened its North Fresno location. In 2020, the Kendalls sold the business to Jeremy and Allison Smith.
When Sequoia Brewing shut down in February, Miller said he was in Vietnam when his phone “lit up in the middle of the night,” prompting him to immediately reach out to contacts throughout Fresno in hopes of saving the longtime local favorite.
Will Oliver, Sequoia Brewing part-owner and president CEO of the Fresno County Economic Development Corp., said many familiar faces have returned to help revive the brand.
“We actually brought back our two managers and brewmaster a couple months ago to get things going and get the place prepared for reopening,” Oliver said. “I think it’s very, very meaningful to be able to return a lot of our team members to continue on with Sequoia Brewing Company.”
Other partners in the venture include attorneys Ian Wieland and Joseph Doerr and businessman Bill Avakian.
The reopening includes four new brews — a pale ale, a lager and two IPAs — alongside returning favorites.
One, a lager titled “Don’t F%@k With Fresno,” was inspired by a recent comment from Fresno City Councilmember Nick Richardson, who was in attendance Friday. The remark came during a news conference after a federal judge blocked the Trump administration from pulling federal funding from Fresno.
“I don’t think I’ve ever inspired a beer before,” Richardson joked Friday.
Oliver said the brewery is also empowering brewmaster Andrew Ford to help shape Sequoia’s new lineup.
“We’re really excited to start with four brand-new beers that we’re launching today, and then we’re also beginning to brew our core beers as well,” he said.
With North Fresno now open, the group shifts its focus to the Tower District location, which is expected to reopen soon after final aesthetic updates are complete.
The Downtown Visalia location, however, remains closed. Miller said it may reopen in a new location in the future, but that their immediate focus is on the two Fresno locations.
“We’re all Fresno guys and ultimately, this is a Fresno company,” Miller said. “We just want to make sure we’ve got our feet underneath us here before expanding a little bit more.”