Zebulon Artisan Ales | Blueberry Sour

Zebulon Artisan Ales in Weaverville, North Carolina, is the brainchild of brewer, Mike Karnowski. Ever wonder what a traditional English Barleywine or an IPA from the 1800s might taste like? Mike has researched it. Each beer he makes is a study of history and process. Zebulon Blueberry Sour is a study in fruit — delving into the flavors of the landscape surrounding the brewery.

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Ultimate 6er | Fruit-Forward Sours For a Southeast Summer

Featured image courtesy of Creature Comforts.

If you’re the type of beer lover who really enjoys sour beers, the recent news of acquisitions may have you searching for your new favorite when it comes to fruit-forward sours in the Southeast. Look no further! We’ve discovered 6 sour and funky ales that showcase a variety of fruits, perfect for summer sipping.

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Burial Beer Co. Releases Seasoned Skillet and A Paranormal Vibe

Cover photo courtesy Danele Bova @Daneleheartshops

Tomorrow, Burial Beer Co. (Asheville, NC) will release Seasoned Skillet Donut Stout for the second consecutive year and A Paranormal Vibe Double IPA (DIPA) – the latest addition to their DIPA Earth Series. This comes as Asheville Beer Week announces last call for the week’s celebratory and beer-centric events. Read More

NEWS | Anheuser-Busch Acquires Wicked Weed Brewing

This morning, Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI), the world’s largest brewery conglomerate, announced the acquisition of Wicked Weed Brewing.

The Asheville, NC brewery began as a 15 barrel pub system in 2012, founded by brothers Walt and Luke Dickinson along with friends Ryan, Rick and Denise Guthy, Originally focused on West Coast style IPAs and Belgians, Wicked Weed quickly developed a reputation for wild, sour and experimental barrel-aged beers. This progression led to the opening of their Funkatorium sour beer taproom and barrel-aging facility in 2014, a second 50 barrel production facility in 2015, and most recently The Funk House and company headquarters which houses a custom designed brewhouse and training facility.

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Event Recap | Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s Burly Beer Fest

PorchDrinking closed out winter with Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild during their Burly Beer Fest on Saturday, April 1st. The festival featured 113 different beers with some really rare and special offerings available from 55 different breweries from all across the country. According to Margo Metzger, the Executive Director of the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild, Burly Beer Fest “raised $10,000 to support [the] guild’s mission to make North Carolina the best place to brew beer (and drink beer) in the nation.” Combine all that was available with the general atmosphere provided by the grounds around Sierra Nevada and it was easy to relax, enjoy yourself and sip some huge beers in a proper send off to winter all in support of a great cause.

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Event Preview | Sierra Nevada Burly Beer Fest

On Saturday, April 1, Sierra Nevada and the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild are giving us the opportunity to enjoy a variety of beers from around the country as well as food trucks and live music at the Burly Beer Fest. April in the Appalachians means its time to break out your burliest, heartiest, most lumberjack-worthy beers and enjoy them before the heat of summer. So grab your flannel and check out what all is expected to fill your taster glasses.

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Hi-Wire Brewing | Twice as Nice Doppelbock

Thanks to winter and its falling temperatures, I find myself indoors more than out. I’m sure those of you in the cold-prone states are no different. And what do we want while we’re stuck inside? Comfort and entertainment, that’s what. Fortunately for those of us in North Carolina, we can venture to the beer store and take home an entire circus in the form of beer.
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Hi-Wire Brewing | Gose

ABV: 4.2% | IBU: 5

Recently, I’ve shared North Carolina brews that are particularly suited for the fledgling NC craft beer enthusiast. Today, I continue in that vein with Asheville-based Hi-Wire Brewing’s Gose.
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Wicked Weed Brewing | Pernicious IPA

ABV: 7.3% | IBU: 70

Asheville, NC is a hip southern mountain town sought out by many beer fans. I was fortunate enough to make a brief pilgrimage there on a recent road trip across the country. The town hosts many excellent breweries, just some of which include Asheville Brewing Company, Green Man, Burial Beer Company and Wicked Weed. I only had time to visit one, but made a great selection in choosing Wicked Weed.

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Wicked Weed Brewing | Recurrant

Funk fans, rejoice! Wicked Weed Brewing Recurrant is back and now part of their sour line up.

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Event Recap | Tip Top Tours Visits South Slope Breweries

Craft beer is all about new experiences. The craft beer industry has taken a goods / commodities based enterprise and evolved it into an experience based business model. This is evident in brewery hosted events, taprooms/bier gardens and beers unbound by categories. This influence has extended past the brewers and imbibers to the retailers who are dreaming up new and innovative ideas to draw their customers into the door and encourage them to return many times thereafter.  Read More

Weekly Growler Fill | National Beer News Roundup

New Belgium cruisers are now produced in the US, AB InBev buys Birra del Borgo, and the cast of Hamilton is getting into brewing. Like every week, we are here to cure those Monday blues with a little craft beer news. Keep reading to catch all of the details in this edition of the Weekly Growler Fill.

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Weekly Growler Fill | National Beer News Roundup

Alabama updates its beer laws, New Belgium’s Asheville facility to open soon, and breweries expand into new states. Get a taste of the latest and greatest craft beer news in this edition of the Weekly Growler Fill.

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Weekly Growler Fill | National Beer News Roundup

Epic introduces a new session series, New Belgium taps Rhinegeist for a collaboration, and the FDA has more regulations for the craft beer industry. This week brings some big craft beer news that you cannot afford to miss. Grab a cold one, keep reading, and get informed with this edition of the Weekly Growler Fill.

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Wicked Weed | Black Angel

ABV: 6.6% | IBU: 16

In the shadow of the mountains of western North Carolina lies a beautiful, eclectic city called Asheville. While it’s known for many things, one of the greatest is its big and burgeoning beer scene. With dozens of quality craft brewers in the area, it takes something bold and unique to really stand out among such strong competition. Fortunately, we have just the thing in our review today of Wicked Weed Brewing’s Black Angel, a black sour ale aged in bourbon barrels on “obscene amounts of tart cherries” (it says so right on the bottle). Wicked Weed Brewing specializes in uniquely sour beers (among a slew of hoppy beers and Belgian styles), and Black Angel is perhaps one of their greatest creations. Read More

Wicked Weed Brewing’s Funkatorium

If you love serious sour and funk, be warned: you won’t want to leave Wicked Weed Brewing’s Funkatorium in Asheville, North Carolina. You’ll wonder if they’d notice if you hid among the barrels and spent the night. At 5’4”, this thought seriously went through my head.

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Highland Brewing Co. | Thunderstruck Coffee Porter

ABV: 5.8% | IBU: 26

With a name like Thunderstruck Coffee Porter, the expectation is clear. Highland Brewing‘s winter seasonal should bowl us over with its coffee essence. Read More

Weekly Growler Fill | National Beer News Roundup

Just like every other week, I’ve compiled the craft beer news from around the country. This edition:  another state progressed forward, we will soon be able to tap any beer from home, and the PorchDrinkers partied like it was 1999. Keep reading to expand your craft beer knowledge and distract yourself from work that may have been in front of you.

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Highland Brewing Co. | Black Mocha Stout

ABV: 5%

IBU: 25

I was lucky enough to come across Highland Brewing Company‘s Black Mocha Stout on a recent trip through Asheville. Sadly, I didn’t spend much time in the city, but I did manage to get through the giant Biltmore Estate, sample a few wines, and grab some dinner. Read More