KHRIS JOHNSON
HEAD BREWER / CO-OWNER
Khris Johnson, Head Brewer/Co-Owner of Green Bench, has been an active member of the Tampa Bay beer scene for years, working for Cigar City Brewing and Southern Brewing and Winemaking before developing and pursuing opportunities to open and run his own brewery, while also being a founding faculty member of USF St. Petersburg’s Brewing Arts Program. Since Green Bench has opened, Khris’ recipe development, process integration, and brand visions have set the groundwork for the brewery’s worldwide notoriety and sustained growth. Always looking to improve and progressively challenge himself, Khris is excited to expand Green Bench’s focus on experimentation with fermentation and oak while maintaining the highest quality on their foundational core brands.
NATHAN STONECIPHER
CO-OWNER
Nathan Stonecipher was born and raised in St. Petersburg, Florida and spent only a few years away to attend the University of Florida. He loves this city and is passionate about staying involved as it grows and evolves. With a background in finance, Nathan found his true calling in the world of craft beer. The challenge of manufacturing a unique line of beers, of creating a space our residents could relax and enjoy as their own, the chance to venture into the entrepreneurial unknown, all encouraged him to bring this dream to life. While not at the brewery Nathan can be found spending time with his wife Sara (who also owns a small business in downtown St. Pete), actively watching football, basketball, and Le Tour de France, running/cycling to clear his head, reading Tom Wolfe, binge watching Survivor, camping, and serving on the board of St. Petersburg College.
Steven Duffy
Co-OWNER
Steven Duffy was born and raised in St. Petersburg, FL where he went through High School and College with Co-Owner, Nathan Stonecipher. He attended the University of Florida where he received a bachelors degree in Building Construction Management. After working years for numerous construction companies on projects such as schools, restaurants, townhouses and hospitals while moving from location to location, he decided he was ready to move back to St. Petersburg and focus on a project that would add something more to his home town. Steven and Nathan began working on the business plan for Green Bench while homebrewing beer at their respective homes and it became clear that this was the long term project he’d been searching for. Steven is married and has one beautiful daughter and enjoys his time off at family property on the Suwannee River (also known as Green Bench north).
BRIAN WING
Co-Owner/FOUNDER OF GREEN BENCH MEAD & CIDER
An avid home brewing competitor since 2010, Brian has won numerous awards such as a gold medal in the Masters Championship of Amateur Brewing in 2011, Best in Show Mead & Cider in 2013’s Best Florida Beer Championship, and a share of the title of Best Florida Homebrewer for 2014. Transitioning to the professional scene, Brian split his time between brewing beer for Tampa Bay Brewing Company in Ybor City and making mead and cider for Southern Brewing in Tampa; where he won several professional awards for his recipes and where he worked with (and consumed many bottles of French Cider with) Green Bench Head Brewer/Co-Owner, Khris Johnson. Brian brings respect for the classic cider and mead making traditions, along with a desire to experiment with fresh local ingredients and new methods to create a novel take on mankind’s oldest beverages.
DAN CLINE
Lead brewer
Dan started as a volunteer at Cigar City in 2010 where he eventually moved up to packaging supervisor and cellarman. He then made the move to Asheville where he joined Green Man Brewing and helped start up their bottling program. While in North Carolina, Dan kept in touch with Head Brewer/Co-Owner, Khris Johnson while Green Bench was under construction, and eventually made plans to move back and join him on the brewery staff once the space opened up for a second brewer. Upon his hire, Dan took over all wort production where he has been able to help develop and fine tune our processes and procedures for each part of production. He’s been able to infuse his passions for dancing, singing, and brewing beer into his current position.
Coleman Berra
Sales director
Coleman was born in Arizona, has lived in a number of states, but calls St. Petersburg home. He oversees everything sales wise outside of the Tap Room, building programs to help sales, and meeting with accounts and distributors. We currently distribute throughout Florida, most of Georgia, and North Carolina. Coleman graduated from the University of South Florida with a B.S. in Environmental Science & Policy. He has been selling beer for over 7 years, starting at the retail level, working for 2 major distributors, and settling home at Green Bench in October of 2020. He started his career in beer at World of Beer where he developed a love for craft beer, he would later work for Brown an independent distributor and Pepin an Anheuser Busch distributor located in Tampa FL. He also sits on the board for Tampa Bay Beer Week, helping promote all things local beer in the Tampa community. When not selling beer, he likes to lather up with SPF 75 and hit the beaches, and spend time with his loving and amazing dog Daisy.
Stephen schmitt
Territory manager
Stephen is a Pinellas Native through and through who now resides Wesley Chapel an up and coming area of North Tampa. Stephen manages our Tampa Wholesaler and sells beer in other key regions such as Orlando, Sarasota, and Fort Myers. Upon graduating from USF with a BA in Anthropology with a focus on culture and religion he decided to enter a field most anthropologists are familiar with- booze. He has since spent the past decade plus in the beer industry leading trends first as a manager and beer buyer at ABC Fine Wine & Spirits then as a sales rep for Brown Distributing's Craft Division. When not out selling beer for Green Bench you can find Stephen hanging with family or traveling. He likes cats, nerdy pursuits, and the Oxford Comma