Beer today, gone tomorrow: Asheville beer happenings Feb. 13-19

Beer Today, Gone Tomorrow is the one-stop home for Asheville-area beer news. Check back throughout the week for updates and send your own to wncbeertoday@gmail.com.

Bottle and can releases

• Hi-Wire Brewing holds a dual bottle release from its Sour and Wild Ale Program on Saturday, Feb. 17, at the Hilliard Avenue tasting room downtown. Brett IPA (7.2 percent ABV) is an entirely brettanomyces-fermented IPA hopped with Mosaic, Hallertau Blanc and Citra, with 750-milliliter bottles running $14. The second bottle, Gin Fizz (8.15 percent ABV) is a gin barrel-aged juniper berry saison that will cost $18 per 750-milliliter bottle. Both Brett IPA and Gin Fizz will see limited distribution.

Small-batch beers

• Catawba Brewing Co. taps its Pomegranate Sour Ale (6.7 percent ABV) on Thursday, Feb. 15, at all four of its tasting rooms. Brewed with malted wheat, the beer was soured in the kettle with lactobacillus with an addition of ripe pomegranate in the secondary fermentation. Pomegranate Sour is a fundraiser beer for Asheville Prison Books. This volunteer-run organization distributes books to incarcerated people in the Carolinas to cultivate community, education and rehabilitation. Catawba will donate $1 from each pour to the nonprofit for four weeks following its release.
• Burial Beer Co. taps the latest iteration of its flagship saison, Machete (6 percent ABV), on Thursday, Feb. 15. This batch of Machete was aged 10 weeks in oak and then dry-hopped in steel with Saaz, Tettnang, peppercorns and grains of paradise.
• Hi-Wire taps a Celeia Hopped Sasion (5.5% ABV) dry-hopped with Slovenian Celeia at its downtown tasting room on Friday, Feb. 16.

Special events

• Thirsty Monk hosts a barrel-aged pint night at both of its locations on Wednesday, Feb. 14, including beers such as Deschutes Abyss, Hi-Wire Barrel Aged 10w40, Kentucky Vanilla Barrel Cream Ale and Founders CBS.
• New Belgium Brewing offers a special beer and chocolate pairing flight on Wednesday, Feb. 14, at the Liquid Center. The event will feature ethically sourced and produced chocolates from Mama Ganache and the tapping of this season’s final keg of Imperial Frambozen.
• Twin Leaf Brewing hosts a special beer dinner on Wednesday, Feb. 14, at its South Slope tasting room, and Oskar Blues hosts its own Valentine’s Day dinner in Brevard. Full details can be found in Edwin Arnaudin’s latest article.
• Catawba hosts a beer and pie pairing in collaboration with Baked Pie Co. at the brewery’s South Slope Rickhouse on Wednesday, Feb. 14, starting at 7 p.m. Tickets are available here for $30.
• **NEW**  The Casual Pint craft beer market has its Asheville grand opening Friday, Feb. 16, 4 p.m.-midnight. The first customers in line will receive a free 64 ounce glass growler. Beer merchandise and prizes will be given away throughout the night. The grand prize is a Charleston, S.C., beer-centered vacation that includes a night’s hotel stay, breakfast for two and brewery tours of Palmetto Brewing Co., Holy City Brewing and Coast Brewing Co.
• **NEW** On Friday, Feb. 16, 5-7 p.m., Whole Foods Market’s Tunnel Road Tap Haus hosts a free tasting of Foothills Brewing Co. samples as well as a $15 flight of the beers paired with sweet treats from the Whole Foods bakery. Combinations include Torch Pilsner with a vanilla cupcake infused with lemon, vanilla buttercream icing and candied lemon gummies on top; Carolina Strawberry Cream Ale with a vanilla cupcake with strawberry filling and whipped cream icing with fresh strawberry and powdered sugar on top; People’s Porter with a chocolate cupcake with espresso buttercream icing and powdered espresso and a halved chocolate cover fig on top; and Sexual Chocolate Imperial Stout with a chocolate cupcake filled with chocolate ganache and chocolate butter cream icing, topped with chocolate curls and ganache drizzle.