Jonathan Elliott brings an air of authenticity to Warrenton’s first and only craft brewery.
After all, Elliott grew up in the coastal town of 6,500 people, graduating from Warrenton High. His family has deep roots in Altoona, Wash., on the north shore of the Columbia.
Elliott, a father of two, lives in Hammond, minutes from Warrenton. He seemingly knows everyone in the area worth knowing, which is a good thing since they’re now his customers.
He and partners Michael Ljungberg and Jeff Kilday opened Battery 245 Brewing in November 2025, the culmination of years of planning and hard work. While Elliott had been a respected home brewer for more than a decade, collaborating with several Oregon breweries, his “dream” was to produce inventive beers in a brewhouse of his own.
In a leap of faith, he stopped bartending and selling real estate and threw himself into the brewery and restaurant, located within view of the masts at the city marina. It’s been both exhilarating and exhausting.
We caught up with Elliott recently for a wide-ranging discussion:
Q: We’re talking inside your brewery on a Thursday afternoon and the parking lot is packed. Does that get you excited?
A: [Laughs] It’s great, but we’re all about moving on to the next goal. … We’ve got a ways to go before we stop and smell the roses.
Q: What got you interested in making beer?
A: I bought an IPA kit and that kind of got me started. I had no idea what I was doing. I had no idea what fermentation was. Just went into it blind.
Shortly after that, I started working for Seaside Brewing and the owners actually let me borrow their home-brew equipment, which was a 10-gallon system. Then I started researching grain and hops. I found I had a passion for it.
It’s like being a cook – you want to make good food for your friends. That’s kind of what we did with the beer. My friend Eric, he’d brew on Sundays, so we’d watch the Seahawks play in the garage, with the women and kids inside making food for everybody.
It just became one of those things that we did. And the beer started getting better and better. The first home-brew competition I entered, I got second and third place in the IPA and Double IPA categories.
Q: That must have given you a huge boost in confidence.
A: Yeah, I felt like I could do it. So, when the tax refunds came in, I upgraded my equipment. … I went from making 10 gallons to 20.
Q: I don’t know of many home brewers who get invited to do a collaboration beer, but you did one in 2017 with Buoy Beer. How did that come together?
A: My brew buddy Eric was a bartender at Bubba’s [Sports Bar in Warrenton] and Dave [Kroening, Buoy co-founder] would go in and chat. One time he said they don’t use their pilot system as often as they wanted, so Eric says, “My buddy Jon is really into home brewing. Maybe we can put something together for you and brew on that system.”
That turned into, ‘Okay, let’s get together and chat.’ A couple of months later, I sit down with them and they say, ‘Alright, get us a recipe, and we’ll get back to you on it.’
I still have that recipe sheet. I called it The Hop Ness Monster; they named it Bubba’s Brew. The cool part was when they said they really liked the [IPA] recipe and asked me if I wouldn’t mind going from a 3 ½-barrel to a 20-barrel batch. That was awesome!
That kind of labeled me as a brewer. I was able to make a beer for Seaside Brewing and the same thing for Public Coast. Just small batches, but I learned how to use professional systems.
Q: When you got the city lease on this building, a vacant former RV/marine sales and repair business, your partners thought you’d be open in six months. It took 1 1/2 years to finish the remodel, even with all three of you rolling up your sleeves. How did you manage to stay positive?
A: I didn’t lose any sleep. I had failed twice [to start a small brewery in Warrenton] and I wasn’t going to let that happen again. So, I really tried not to have any negative thoughts dwell inside my brain. I guess it was the power of staying positive.
Q: When you opened in November, it seemed like half the town turned out in support. Your mom was sitting at the bar. The mayor, too. What emotions were you experiencing?
A: [Shrugs]Ah, I really can’t tell you. I didn’t have time to think that night. I hardly had time to breathe.
Q: Another milestone has been filling the taplist with your own beers, led by Sunset Left, a West Coast IPA named after Sunset Beach, and Old Town Pilsner. What do you hope Battery 245 will become known for?
A: Innovation. That’s what I want. I like to experiment, so at some point in time I’m going to want to express my beer ideas.
In this market, I feel you have to be always trying something new or pushing the envelope, learning how to use the extracts, how to hop differently … Just being a better brewer.
Q: Your first summer is a couple of months away. It’s a crucial season for many coastal businesses. How will you gauge success?
A: Summer’s going to tell us a lot. It would be great if we’re not at each other’s throats because it’s so busy.
It’s a success if we can manage the high volume and stress of summertime, and continue to have the same mindset we have now.”
Q: What part of being a professional brewer do you enjoy most?
A: The coolest thing is taking care of my friends who come in. Being able to answer their questions. Being a tour guide.
