1993: Smoky Mountain Brewery opens in Waynesville. It closes one year later. 1994: Oscar Wong and John McDermott start Highland Brewing Company in the basement of Barley's Taproom in downtown Asheville. 1997: The Blue Rooster, Asheville's first brewpub, opens next to Barley's featuring Highland beers exclusively. It closes a year later. Asheville Beer Week Events … Read more
Hats off to Mountain Xpress for the voter guide edition [“Election 2012: Pick Your Players,” May 2 Xpress]. The guide helped me to select candidates for county commissioner and county commission chair. I was unable to find good info on where each candidate stood on the issues from the online voter guide. I think the … Read more
The WNC area is a new craft-beer hot spot. But will the influx of new industry turn a certain area — i.e., the River Arts District — into a brewery boomtown? New Belgium Brewery's planned move near the river in the next couple of years is a boon to the area, say most RAD-dwellers. Asheville … Read more
It’s acronym city on the west side of Asheville these days. The Asheville Public, also known as TAP, is welcoming the Paris of the South Flea Market back to the RAD beginning Saturday, May 19, running every following Saturday and Sunday through mid-October. What to expect? Beginning at 8 a.m. on the restaurant’s lawn (aka … Read more
There’s a passage in in Wiley Cash’s debut novel, A Land More Kind Than Home, where Madison County sheriff Clem Barefield says, “Most people up here claim they’ve got Irish or Scottish or some kind of blood in them, and I think that’s probably true, especially if you listen to all the folks who’ll drive … Read more
There’s more to a successful beer’s recipe than barley and hops. There’s also the art. Logo art, to be precise. And the folks at local breweries put considerable time, energy, thought and humor into designs that help brand their companies and distinguish their products. Not surprisingly, many incorporate the region’s distinguishing natural beauty into their … Read more
Asheville Brewing Company started life as Two Moons Brew ‘N’ View at 675 Merrimon Ave., where the current Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company is located (and still shows second-run and classic movies for $3). Owner Mike Rangel recalls patrons’ affectionate slogan for Two Moons: “The beer is so good, it makes you forget how bad … Read more
Voters and candidates explored uncharted territory in the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners May 8 primary, as a change to district elections that was mandated last year by the N.C. General Assembly went into effect. Under the new system, the county was divided into three commissioner districts; the top two vote-getters from each party on … Read more
The controversial Amendment One, which will declare in the state constitution that “marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized" in North Carolina, won statewide by a wide margin, despite losing in Asheville and some other urban centers. Sixty-one percent of state voters approved … Read more
At Craggie Brewing Company, it’s all about the flavor. “If you are going to brew a beer with five ingredients, then you should be able to taste all five or you are wasting money by adding ingredients that aren’t noticeable,” says the brewery’s co-founder Bill Drew. With help from co-founder Jonathan Cort, the downtown brewery … Read more
