Got brews news? Contact Anne Fitten Glenn at edgymama@gmail.com.
Here we go:
LAB opening: Drum roll, please. The big freaking 2010 beer news for Asheville, of course, is that Lexington Avenue Brewery finally will open its doors — though, according to brewer Ben Pierson, they’re being coy about exactly when (another soft opening will take place Jan. 6, though it’s invite only). “People should keep their eyes open,” Pierson says.
While all eyes are peeled on Lex Ave, here’s the current line-up of Pierson’s unfiltered beers to get your salivary glands working: an American Pale Ale, a Bohemian-style Pilsner, a German Marzen, a Chocolate Stout, an Indian Pale Ale, and a Belgian-style White Ale. While Pierson’s sure all will sell well, he thinks the Belgian White will be a favorite: “It’s a great beer. It’s low alcohol, carbonated like champagne, and it tastes like oranges. What’s not to love?” Indeed.
Birthday bash: Highland Brewing Company’s 15-year anniversary party was snowed out during the ginormous Dec. 18 snow storm, but never fear. The party’s been rescheduled for Friday, Jan. 22, from 4-10 p.m. at the brewing facility at 12 Old Charlotte Highway. The brewery’s newly released seasonal, Auld Asheville Vintage Ale, will be the featured beer. The event will include entertainment by Asheville’s Funknastics band and pizza from Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria — also celebrating 15 years in business in Asheville. Look for the Auld Asheville Vintage Ale in 22 oz. bottles and on draft around town. It’s delicious.
Don’t overdo your beer quaffing on Friday, because the very next day is the third annual Winter Warmer beer festival, featuring 20 local and regional breweries. The fest will be Sat., Jan. 23, in Haywood Park Hotel’s Grand Ballroom from 3-7 p.m. Tickets are still available and cost $37 per person. The organizers tout this as a local’s festival and only offer 650 tickets — about 250 are still for sale as of today, says Mark Lyons, Brews Cruise co-founder. So get yours here: www.brewscruise.com/beerfest. The Lobster Trap will cater the food, which will be included in the price of your ticket and include vegetarian options. Musical acts will be Brushfire Stankgrass and Woody Wood. A portion of ticket sales will be donated to RiverLink.
Homebrew supplies on the Web: Hops & Vines (based in West Asheville) have opened an on-line store for homebrew supplies and ingredients. Check it out here. Now you can order brewing supplies from home, make beer at home, and drink it at home. Never leave home again.
Keeping up with the brews: For brewery/taproom/public house events and activities (from NFL Sundays at Pisgah Brewing to movie nights at French Broad Brewing to what’s on tap at the Wedge) check brewery Web sites or Facebook pages. Also, Bruisin’ Ales Beer Blog has regular local beer updates, and the Thirsty Monk’s site will keep you apprised of cask nights and other specials at both TM locations.
However, all this should change on Feb. 1, when the Asheville Microbreweries Web site is launched. The Web site is currently under construction by Richard Brown and Ed Yerker of Asheville-based Rba Imaging. “We’re trying to be the one Web site where you can go to get all your microbrewery information, instead of having to go to 10 different sites,” Brown says, adding that he’ll cover all of Western North Carolina’s breweries, as well as news from the Asheville Brewers Association. Stay tuned.
Meantime, you can follow Xpress here and on Twitter for all your breaking Beer City and beyond news: @edgymama and @mountainxpress.
Thanks Brewscruise for your support – Karen!
I just can’t help but think that this sudden “Asheville is a Beer City” marketing, or rather Mentality can do anything but bad in the long run.
See above quote: “Thanks Brewscruise etc”.
“BREWSCRUISE”? Puhlease!
It just reeks of nothing but a bunch of overweight, puffy, parrotheaded men and their bubbly wives. The sort of people who stare at me and my boyfriend as we walk hand in hand in the downtown which never would have been here had we not created it.
And who is going to be here to clean uo the mess they created?
Who is going to clean up the vomit in the doorways of the downtown businesses these people will never shop in?
Oh they will walk in to these businesses and turn everything over and be amused, but they will not buy a thing because Asheville is just a beer laden Disneyland and “On to the next Brewery the Chamber of Commerce suggested”, who cares if we just made a complete mess of Hip Replacements or LOFT or Union, or any of the other downtown busineses.
“Look at this”, they will say, and the fat men will try on some stupid hat and their bouncy wives will laugh but nothing will be bought.
Do you really think these Beer tourists are going to eat at ANY of the downtown restaurants? Of course not, they will be dining at Applebee’s on Tunnel Road.
Do you think the fat straight men and their bleach blonde bimbo wives will buy a single thing from any of our downtown businesses? Well, maybe, they might be happy to see Urban Outfitters, a chain store they recognize from “back home”
Imagine the relief they might feel at seeing something they have in the Mall Back Home as another downtown business fails.
What destroys a city, or a neighborhood, is when the city turns it’s back on the people who made the city or neighborhood what it was.
A bunch of fat idiots who have spent their day in meetings before hitting the golf course as their tragic wives “window shop” through downtown is not where we need to be!
Stop the Stupication of Asheville.
You are destroying what so many of us have tried to hard to make.
And have fun!
See you on the next “Brewscruise” ya’ll!
(OMG, private to my bff ElizabethAsheley-you would not belive this but I think JohnAshton and I just ate dinner next to a GAY COUPLE!!! Asheville is so cool, can’t wait to get back home and tell you all about it. The shopping sucks but the beer is good!)