Co-founders Jonathan Buford and Patrick Ware sit together on one of the few unfilled patio tables, pondering Arizona Wilderness’ next move. They think about the brewery that has come so far so fast, with a future as bright as the Arizona sun. What’s next? It’s hard to say, but chances are Ware and Buford will choose the right path, as they have serendipitously done so many times before.

Drive down Indian School Road just east of Highway 51, and you’ll find Helton Brewing Company, an upstart brewery in central Phoenix that’s created and operated by brewmaster Brian Helton. At this new drinking spot, there’s a noticeable emphasis on beer education — the walls are adorned with beer and brewing information and the employees are beyond knowledgeable, even bordering on beer geekdom, which we mean in the most complimentary of ways.