Drinking Beer in Charlotte

[grodney]

Wish I could make it, but I can't -- so give us a full report.  Oh, and they twittered that they put up an exterior logo yesterday.

[RVA2CLT]

Nice, spos'd to be low 60s and sunny at least.

What's funny to me though is that the brewery, and possibly the taproom, is not completely operational so they have been brewing beers at Five Seasons Brewing Company in Atlanta to prepare for the grand opening!  HA!!

Sooooo.. it's really not even a grand opening of the Brewery/Taproom.. .More like a party to check out their beers and meet the neighbors

I'm sure it will be dog friendly though, this town is K9 Krazy

[nowensone]

Went to a local brewery last night (Liberty in HP), growlers $9/$13, $3.00 a pint, so I will concede the cost point mentioned earlier, though will make one last dying declaration, NoDa's HDR is far superior to the decent IPA I had there last night, and for an out-of-towner, quite a treat at its higher cost.

 

And the dogs at the brewery's pretty cool, TripleC was a particularly interesting place, dog culture meets young business/professional meets beer-snob (talked to a couple of the latter).

[kermit]

I stopped at Unknown for the opening last night. I would guess that there were 2000 people there. The scale of the place is pretty shocking, looks like they are planning on doing _lots_ of wholesale and bottling. They have enough space to be as large as the soon to be new and improved Old Meck. Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to stand in any of the beer lines (they were long) but I look forward to trying their USPA (as opposed to IPA).

 

Headed out to the Checkers game and was pleased to see that the club level bars have switched _all_ their beer to local (bud and bud light is still the only offering at the other concession areas for Hockey). The beer I remembered was Mother Earth (wheat I think), Duck Rabbit stout, Copper, NoDa Jam Session, Triple C Golden Boy, something from Heist and a couple other beers (I think). A nice change downstairs.

Edited November 10, 2013 by kermit

[nonillogical]

I stopped at Unknown for the opening last night. I would guess that there were 2000 people there. The scale of the place is pretty shocking, looks like they are planning on doing _lots_ of wholesale and bottling. They have enough space to be as large as the soon to be new and improved Old Meck. Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to stand in any of there beer lines (they were long) but I look forward to trying their USPA (as opposed to IPA).

I got to try their "uspa", stout, red ale, and session ale. All solid, though session ales are not my thing. I would love to judge their uspa (I forget all the actual names) against 3C IPA, Hop Drop and Roll, and Higher Ground, because my completely unscientific first judgement was that it would stack up against any of them. The first sip was very mellow with the hoppiness creeping in on the aftertaste (though my taste buds might have been skewed from having had a DC Brau 'On The Wings of Armageddon' IIPA an hour earlier).

 

I too was blown away by the size of the place. Even though I was familiar with the building already, seeing the equipment in context made it clear that this could be a very big operation. It seems like they will definitely be expanding their selection with some more adventurous stuff once they're actually up and running. 

[ah59396]

It's big because they are going to do full scale distribution, per my understanding. Bottling (or canning) right away.

[Prodev]

It's big because they are going to do full scale distribution, per my understanding. Bottling (or canning) right away.

Bottling/canning won't happen right away, but they're planning to get it going ASAP. Not sure if it's on hold for financial reasons or just lack of time to get it started. Tryon Distributing has bought the rights to all of their year 1 inventory, which is supposedly pretty rare for a startup brewery. 

[grodney]

Unknown has published taproom hours for Th,F,Sa,Su on their Facebook page, but they twittered that they'll also be open next Monday for Monday Night Football.  

[archiham04]

....Tryon Distributing has bought the rights to all of their year 1 inventory, which is supposedly pretty rare for a startup brewery. 

I don't know that it is really all that rare.  Tryon was all over the ill fated Craggie Brewing Co. from Asheville as an example... 

[Prodev]

I don't know that it is really all that rare.  Tryon was all over the ill fated Craggie Brewing Co. from Asheville as an example... 

My area of expertise doesn't stretch beyond drinking beer, so that comment was just based on what I was told on Saturday. 

[kermit]

Just back from the Unknown Brewing taproom. I got a taste of the Pale Ale (thought it was very good, but it was only a taste) and a pint of the USPA ($5). I liked the USPA on my first sip (a nice combination of flavors), but I liked it less the more I drank (the hops hit me later than most IPAs), half way through the pint I fell out of love.

 

Their 'innovation' is 32oz plastic bottles (bullets) sold like growlers. I was happy to get one filled with the Pale Ale as its a nice evening with the tv size. Unfortunately the bullet cost $10 (plus $3 for the refillable plastic bottle). This is the same price as a growler from Birdsong and only marginally less than Old Meck or NoDa (for less than half the beer). Scandalous!

 

The tap room itself was OK. There were no bike racks, and it looks like they are building a very prison-like patio in the parking lot. The dayglow green floors and walls did not give me the warm fuzzies (like at Triple C or Birdsong) and the absence of working tvs (on Sunday afternoon) did bug me a little, That said, it is dog friendly inside (a big plus).

 

In short, I can't tell if I like it (and their beer) or not. Given my ambivalence, I really hope that Sycamore will be worthy of neighborhood goto status. I do _really_ hope that Unknown can be the seed for a walkable drinking corridor between the ballpark area and southend, Mint street is ripe for substantial change.

[SouthEndCLT811]

Wow I didn't realize those little bullets were $10 each.  I've been to Unknown twice now, for the opening and then on Friday.  I think the USPA is one of my favorite local brews.  I like when an IPA eases you into the hops rather than slaps you in the face with them on the first sip.  My g/f had the Pale Ale both times and noticed it had two different yet distinct flavors.  She enjoyed it both times but at the opening it had more of a pear/fruity taste then when we went back on Friday.  I'm not sure if there is some quality control lacking as their first batches were made down at another brewery in Georgia.

 

I've yet to be disappointed at any of the Charlotte breweries and this is true for Unknown as well.  I never went this early to the others so I'm sure it still has some kinks they're working out (TV/patio as you mentioned).  But I do see this as a catalyst for that part of South End.  I'm hoping for better side walks and lighting on this side of the neighborhood.  Walking down W Summit and S Church from the food truck lot was a little treacherous with dark lit streets, narrow side walks and overgrown plants taking over some parts of the sidewalk.

[ScottCLT]

Not really beer, but alcohol related...

 

I just received an email from Block & Grinder about specials for the Panthers game tonight and they are featuring $6 NC liquors. They mentioned 180 Vodka from Charlotte. I Googled it and found a vodka called One80, but it's from Denver, CO. Anyone know about this? I'm coming up with nothing online...

 

Also, they mentioned Cardinal Gin from King's Mountain, which I was not familiar with. Apparently it's available at all Mecklenburg county ABC stores.

[grodney]

Not really beer, but alcohol related...

 

I just received an email from Block & Grinder about specials for the Panthers game tonight and they are featuring $6 NC liquors. They mentioned 180 Vodka from Charlotte. I Googled it and found a vodka called One80, but it's from Denver, CO. Anyone know about this? I'm coming up with nothing online...

 

Also, they mentioned Cardinal Gin from King's Mountain, which I was not familiar with. Apparently it's available at all Mecklenburg county ABC stores.

 

Hmmm, one80vodka.com clearly says it is made in Denver, but the title of the page is "One80 Vodka {sodEmoji.|} Hand Crafted {sodEmoji.|} Charlotte, NC".

 

And the Lucky Fork blog at jamesfedele.tumblr.com/‎ says "I do NOT stutter when I say that a team from Charlotte NC may have created the perfect spirit."

 

The ABC website lists a local dealer representative living in Ft Mill.

 

Edit: @One80Vodka twittered on Apr 4: "Proud to be invading our home town where it all started, Charlotte NC! We will be on the shelves this month!"

Edited November 18, 2013 by grodney

[nonillogical]

Also, they mentioned Cardinal Gin from King's Mountain, which I was not familiar with. Apparently it's available at all Mecklenburg county ABC stores.

Cardinal makes the best gin I've ever had (not that I know it as well as my bourbons and scotches, but still). 

 

On a sidenote it would be a dream come true if one of our breweries eventually got into distilling too, similar to what Rogue does. I think New Holland is getting into it as well. Age your bourbon in an oak cask and then age your beers in that same cask! 

Edited November 18, 2013 by nonillogical

[kermit]

Also, they mentioned Cardinal Gin from King's Mountain, which I was not familiar with. Apparently it's available at all Mecklenburg county ABC stores.

 

It has the official Kermit seal of approval (although I like Hendricks a little better)

[Guest]

Cardinal makes the best gin I've ever had (not that I know it as well as my bourbons and scotches, but still). 

 

On a sidenote it would be a dream come true if one of our breweries eventually got into distilling too, similar to what Rogue does. I think New Holland is getting into it as well. Age your bourbon in an oak cask and then age your beers in that same cask! 

If anyone is ever in my Neck of the Woods (Brooklyn) There are a half dozen AWESOME Ginsmiths in the Tristate area. 

[ScottCLT]

Hmmm, one80vodka.com clearly says it is made in Denver, but the title of the page is "One80 Vodka {sodEmoji.|} Hand Crafted {sodEmoji.|} Charlotte, NC".

OK, figured this out on Facebook: Our product is produced in Denver however the Charlotte connection is that the owners reside in Charlotte and it was born there!

[MilZ]

John Fox takes his vodka where ever he goes.

[grodney]

Good News:

A new beer/wine/liquor store opened south of Ballantyne just across the state line -- called Stateline Elite.  They have a pretty large selection of beer, but the best feature is probably their small bar with 20 taps.  2 NoDa (HDR and Coco Loco when I was there), a couple Natty, a Holy City, and a bunch of other NC and/or quality selections (such as Sculpin and Cold Mountain).  And the best part of their taps is the price -- NoDa pints are $3.50 and growler refills are $10.88!  

 

Bad News:

Vintner's at Arboretum tweeted that they have Triple C BBA Up All Night, so I stopped in yesterday.  $19 for a bottle that sells for $14 at the brewery.  Robbery.  I guess maybe I'm just crotchety old complain-about-price guy, but I don't understand how they charge 35% over RETAIL.  I wonder what Triple C charges Vintner's for it??  The frustrating part is that people will pay that, so the Charlotte Price Gouging will continue with no reason for change.

[rugger62]

So for the holidays, I like to bring Charlotte beer to my family to enjoy. For the past few, it has been OMB, which I love. However, I want to provide a wider range than the same thing everyone has tried. Right now, I'm pretty partial to Birdsong's Jalapeno Pale Ale. Unfortunately, I don't get out to the tap rooms enough to have sampled enough draughts to make an informed decision.

 

Can I get suggestions? What do you think is the best beer in Charlotte?

[ah59396]

So for the holidays, I like to bring Charlotte beer to my family to enjoy. For the past few, it has been OMB, which I love. However, I want to provide a wider range than the same thing everyone has tried. Right now, I'm pretty partial to Birdsong's Jalapeno Pale Ale. Unfortunately, I don't get out to the tap rooms enough to have sampled enough draughts to make an informed decision.

 

Can I get suggestions? What do you think is the best beer in Charlotte?

 

 

If I had to take one beer to someone and say "this is Charlotte's beer", I'd go with NoDa's Coco Loco.  It won silver at the GABF and is NoDa's flagship (not including Hop Drop n' Roll).  I've typically suggested it to anyone looking to try a new local beer and it never goes wrong.

[grodney]

Triple C's Up All Night Breakfast Porter is really great, and super-smooth for being 10% abv.  

 

NoDa's Cold Crash is excellent, and appeals to a wide range of non-hardcore beer drinkers.

 

Edit:  Also agree on the suggestion for Coco Loco.  

Edited December 16, 2013 by grodney

[nonillogical]

So I stumbled across this while playing with the Untapped app and selecting 'nearby breweries'. It sounds like they are just in the planning stages, but the homebrews they are logging on the app indicate that they may be planning to focus on a lot of lighter variety beers like weisses and blondes. Most of the beer names they were toying with were either Scandinavian or German. 

 

http://thirstynomadbrewing.com/home

[go_vertical]

I agree with grodney on NoDa's Cold Crash. I've been enjoying that one a lot lately. It is a quality seasonal.