Humes Brewing is definitely not “just another microbrewery.” Even in a column that features unusual breweries, Humes is in a class by itself. That’s because brewer Peter Humes produces all of his beers with organic ingredients.

Don’t get me wrong, there are other breweries producing organic brands, including Brauerei Pinkus Müller in Germany, New Caledonia in Scotland, and Jade in France. There is also Perry’s Majestic, brewed under contract in the US. The difference between these breweries and Humes is that they produce only one organic beer apiece, whereas Humes produces all five of his beers using organic ingredients. Not only that, Humes’ beers are made with spring water and are unfiltered, bottle conditioned, sometimes aged in wood, and until recently, hand bottled. Besides being 100 percent organic, they also taste delicious. What else could you ask for?

Well, how about the most spectacular view offered by any brewery in the country? That’s right, Humes tops the brewery-with-a-view list. And the list is impressive: the view of the Kennebunk River in Maine, as seen from the deck of Federal Jack’s, the restaurant just above Kennebunkport Brewing; the view of Victoria Harbor from Spinnakers Brewpub in Victoria, British Columbia; the view of the Columbia River Gorge from the White Cap Brewpub in Hood River, Ore.; the view of Government Cut, the main shipping channel into Biscayne Bay (the ships pass almost within a stone’s throw of the brewpub) from the South Pointe Seafood House & Brewing in Miami, Fla.; a lovely view of the mountains from the picture window in the back of Anderson Valley Brewing in Boonville, Calif.; a dazzling vista of the San Francisco Bay from the second floor at Gordon Biersch Brewing in San Francisco; a lovely view of Lake Tahoe from the Blue Water Brewing in Tahoe City, Calif.; a beautiful view of the snow-capped Cascades at the Deschutes Brewery (a microbrewery) in Bend, Ore.

But Humes Brewing takes the prize with its eagle’s nest perch near the top of a steep ridge running between the Napa Valley and the Valley of the Moon in California. And it is a real adventure to visit.

Visitors have no idea what is in store for them as they start up Cavedale Road. The single-lane road clings to the side of the mountain as it twists and turns its way toward the top. Visitors pass a few stucco houses while rising quickly out of the vineyards into the chaparral. If luck is not heading their way, they are likely to find themselves face to face with a school bus on the side of a brushy cliff. It can take 15 minutes to traverse 2.5 miles from the bottom of the hill to Humes’ brewery - a house with a red barn behind it (actually, there is no “behind”; the barn is above the house).

Humes has built a balcony on the brewery that hangs out over the Valley of the Moon, offering a breathtaking view of world-famous vineyards more than a thousand feet below. A beer on this deck is definitely worth the trip, regardless of where you live.

The brewery has been a secret until now. The only people who seem to know about Cavedale Road are the locals and mountain bikers. The road got its name from the fact that soon after it was built around 1905, locals dug caves into the side of the hill to store wine from nearby wineries. Some of these caves are still visible along the side of the road.

Like so many others, Peter Humes’ brewery just sort of happened. Before moving to California, Humes was a chef on the East Coast, where he owned and operated two restaurants in succession.

After leaving New York Humes and his wife discovered California while on their way to visit friends in Washington state. They were so impressed with the spectacular scenery and northern California lifestyle that they stayed in California, never making it to Washington. They both began working as chefs in local restaurants and wineries and also opened a catering business. Peter began dabbling in home wine and beer making and with his background in organic food, he eventually put two and two together: organic beer. His goal was to make beer that would both be completely organic and taste better.

With limited resources and no idea how well his idea would work, Humes in 1993 began putting together a brewery. His total investment was $20,000. All of the funds came from personal savings.

He used primarily converted dairy equipment. He had a local company cut a stainless-steel water tank in two and converted the two halves into a mash tun and a brew kettle. He uses six-barrel, glycol-jacketed primary and secondary fermenters. He purchased a new Little Tiger roller mill from Hutchinson Manufacturing in Kansas. A milk strainer was pressed into service as a hop back. Humes did much of the plumbing and carpentry work himself.

At first the beers were unfiltered and hand filled into either 750-milliliter champagne bottles (using a wine-bottle filler) or into kegs. Despite his limited budget, Humes had the Humes Brewing brand name silk-screened in gold lettering and baked on the bottles at 600° F. He jokes, “That is an expensive way to sterilize the bottles.”

Humes says that from the time he began putting his brewery together, it took only five months to go into production. For the first two years it was a one-man operation, with Humes making, packaging, and delivering the beer.

In the first year Humes produced 218 barrels and almost doubled that the second year with 408 barrels. Production for the third year is on target for 660 barrels. Despite the higher price he charges and the added burden to the customers of having to return the bottles, Humes’ beers are selling very well, particularly at organic food stores. Despite the almost microscopic production, Humes beers are now available in California, Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, and North Carolina.

Based on his initial success, Humes in 1995 invested another $40,000 in the brewery. A cold room, several 12-barrel fermenters, and a second-hand, automated wine-bottle filler were added.

To raise the capital Humes came up with a simple, though risky, scheme. First he checked in with the commercial loan departments of several local banks. They required a lot of paperwork. Then Humes noticed that many banks were offering new credit cards with generous credit lines at an introductory annual interest rate of only 6.5 percent. Humes was amazed when he realized this rate was lower then the commercial loan rate, and there was almost no paperwork or waiting. The catch was that all credit had to be paid off within one year, or the interest rate increased by about 250 percent. He decided to go the credit-card route and says that so far he is on schedule to have the $40,000 paid back within the first year.

With growth Humes has had to modify production and distribution. He has three workers who come in once a week to bottle the beer. Also, he has given up self-distribution. These changes have allowed Humes to concentrate on the important thing - making organic beer.

So what does “organic beer” really mean? To the consumer it means that the beer is made using certified, organically grown malts and hops - no pesticides or chemical fertilizers were used in the growing and packaging of the malt and hops. Also, the water, which accounts for about 94 percent percent of the beer, comes from a spring that has been certified free of chemicals.

To the brewer “organic” means the ingredients can only come from certain sources and cost twice as much as non-organic ingredients. The spring water is double filtered to ensure purity. Two-row, organic malts are purchased from the Bioriginal Food & Science Corp. in Saskatoon, Canada.

Organic hops include whole organic Cluster, grown on a hop farm near Sacramento. From Germany come Hersbrucker and Tradition, both pellets. From New Zealand come Pacific Gem and Hallertauer, also in pellets. Humes has also used organic Pride of Ringwood from Tasmania. He says that due to the differing harvest times in the Northern and Southern hemispheres, he receives fresh hops every six months instead of once a year as other brewers do. To maintain freshness the hops are stored under a layer of nitrogen gas.

The beers are unfiltered to maintain the original full flavor and nutritional value, kraeusened (fresh wort is added in the secondary fermenter), and then bottle conditioned to produce natural carbonation.

Humes’ lineup includes Cavedale Ale (original gravity 1.048, final gravity 1.008, 5 percent alcohol by volume), a saisons or Belgian pilsner style. It is a deep, cloudy gold with an enticing aroma of fresh strawberries and malt. Malty in the middle, it finishes long, tangy, and bitter.

The Jaipur Pale Ale (OG 1.062, FG 1.012, 6 percent alcohol by volume) is dry hopped, as many IPAs are, and is a much hoppier version of the Cavedale Ale.

The Steep Canyon Stout (OG 1.055, FG 1.010, 5.5 percent alcohol by volume) is jet black with a tall, brown head with a creamy top that leaves good lace on the glass. The body is full and silky and the palate rich with deeply roasted malt, notes of chocolate and coffee, and firmly balanced with fresh hops.

Because distribution is rather limited in each state, if you can’t find Humes beers in the states listed above, you might want to contact the brewery to find out exactly where it is available. If you are in the Sonoma area and would like a tour, call the brewery at (707) 935-0723 for an appointment and directions. Please remember, besides operating the brewery, Humes has a regular job and it might be difficult to fit a tour into his busy schedule.

Steve Johnson lives in Clemson, S.C., and is author of three brewery guidebooks: On Tap: a Field Guide to North American Brewpubs and Craft Breweries, On Tap New England, and On Tap Northern California.