August and September 2023

August & September started off with 2 weeks in Charlotte before heading out for a 6 week adventure! I spent time in Michigan and Washington before heading back to CLT at the end of September. In this time I tried 232 different beers via a couple of bottle shares and visiting a lot of different breweries in my travels.

In no particular order, here were the best beers I had over the past two months:

Magos Del Subterraneo collaboration brew from Brujos Brewing in Portland, OR and Troon Brewing in Hopewell, NJ

This is an Imperial IPA with raw Oregon honey and is double dry hopped with Nelson CGX, Nelson, Motueka CGX, Motueka and Citra hops. This is a superb beer. I was lucky enough to have it twice in August and I gave it a 5 on Untappd both times. The honey was a fantastic addition!

No Sleep Means Insomnia from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

No Sleep Means Insomnia is a Triple IPA with Motueka & Citra hops. Monkish Triples are just unbeatable. I had a few great ones over the past two months so it was hard to select just one for the list, but this one stood out for it’s superb flavor.

Lorraine from Fair Isle Brewing in Seattle, WA

Lorraine is a Farmhouse Ale with Gewürztraminer grapes and Syrah pomace. Fair Isle is one of my favorite breweries in the country so I was extremely excited to get to visit their taproom again. I had several beers during my visit (and grabbed a few to-go bottles too!) and Lorraine was spectacular!

Chainsaw from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

Chainsaw is a Triple IPA with wildflower honey and dry hopped with Cashmere, Citra and Simcoe hops. This is the second IPA with honey on the list so perhaps this is how my taste buds are leaning as of late. Another killer brew from R&B.

Edge of the Dessert from Great Notion Brewing in Portland, OR

This is a Smoothie Sour with pineapple, mango and cheesecake. It’s been a little while since I have had a Great Notion Sour and this was a great reminder of how delicious they are. We’ve been getting some Great Notion distribution in Charlotte so I had debated whether or not to visit the Ballard taproom in Seattle, but I am so glad I did! Great brews and chill vibes.

MMXXI Chardonnay from Floodland Brewing in Seattle, WA

Description from the brewery: “This 2021 harvest beer was made through a native fermentation of Chardonnay grapes from French Creek Vineyard on the slopes of the Yakima River. The grapes from were destemmed and crushed and kept in contact with the skins for some time before being pressed and then blended with well aged spelt saison as well as saison brewed with wheat and oats. This beer was refermented to condition in the bottle with raw honey from Cougar Canyon Apiary, harvest on Rattlesnake Point 10/01/2021.”

Floodland! I was very excited to see Ridgewood Bottle and Tap had this hard-to-find brewery on tap while I was in Seattle. Stellar brew, as expected.

Solo Exhibition (Citra) from Other Half Brewing in Brooklyn, NY

This is a Triple IPA with Citra hops. It’s a classic Other Half style brew with all Citra hops which is hard to beat. Smooth, flavorful, delicious.

Check back next month for my top beers of October! Cheers—Alexis

Maryland and Delaware's Beaches

The Delmarva Peninsula is home to portions of Maryland and Delaware with nice beaches and some great breweries. This guide goes sequentially driving south to north from Berlin Maryland to Cambridge Maryland after adventuring along the coast.

Burley Oak Brewing

Berlin, Maryland

• Burley Oak Brewing Company: This hype brewery is Sour focused but also makes tasty IPAs. They have a large outdoor space with frequent events. They do not have any food and they do not allow dogs inside or out. Located 15 minutes from Ocean City.

OCean City, Maryland

• The Other One Brewing Company: A solid brewery with a small food menu and non-beer options. They have a dog-friendly shared patio space and are on the south end of Ocean City.

• Stay at the Home2Suites Ocean City Bayside: This is a nice hotel in a good location and is reasonably priced for the area.

• Grab ice cream at King Kone, it’s fantastic!

• Check out Northside Park—this is a great spot to walk, run, or take your dog.

Dewey Beer Co

Dewey Beach, Delaware

• Dewey Beer Company: Dewey has two locations—the original space is a block from the beach in Dewey Beach and their new space in Harbeson, about 30 minutes inland. The beach location has a ridiculously delicious food menu and Harbeson has their newest venture Pizza Machine next door for ‘za. Parking at the beach location can be a little challenging, while Harbeson has ample spots. Sours are what Dewey does best but their IPAs are also good. Dogs are allowed on the patio at the beach and inside and outside at Harbeson.

Big Oyster Brewery

Rehoboth Beach, Delaware

• Dogfish Head Brewery has multiple locations—Brewing & Eats is their restaurant and taproom in Rehoboth, emPOURium is next door with cans, and Chesapeake and Maine is the next building with seafood and cocktails. Dogfish Head’s main brewing facility and tasting room is in Milton, DE.

• Stay at Home2Suites Rehoboth: A nice, updated hotel with tasty breakfast and great amenities.

• Thompson Island Brewing Company: A restaurant-style brewery with average beers. It is a beautiful space with a small outdoor space in both the front and back. The space is beautiful, but the location is a bit odd next to a gas station. No dogs allowed.

Lewes, Delaware

• Wander downtown: This is an adorable small town full of shops, restaurants, and parks.

• Olive and Oats: A cute spot for coffee, breakfast or lunch in the heart of downtown.

• Dogfish Head Brewery has an Inn to stay at right downtown!

• Big Oyster Brewery: The beers here are solid but the vibes are not great. They have a full food menu and operate in the style of a restaurant. Half of the seating is in an outdoor tent with plastic dollar store chairs. Skip the pretzel, eat the oysters.

• Grab the ferry to Cape May, New Jersey to extend your adventures. Reservations required.

Wave goodbye to the beach, it’s now time to head inland—

RaR Brewing

Delmar, Delaware

• Loakal Branch Brewing Company: This is a subsidiary of Burley Oak Brewing and more of a local’s dive bar than anything else. I found this to be a very odd spot and not worth visiting.

Salisbury, Maryland

• Burnish Beer Company: A restaurant-style brewery with a full food menu and a large outdoor space. The food here is tasty and the beers are average. Dogs are allowed outside.

Cambridge, Maryland

• RaR Brewing: A Sour focused brewery in downtown Cambridge. Their taproom, their Chessie Burger restaurant, and their cocktail bar The LaboRaRtory are all in a shared row. They have a ton of guest taps and guest cans in the taproom alongside a large house-made beer selection. RaR has a cool space with artwork and chill vibes, but the beers were a bit disappointing. There is no dog-friendly space here.

Have you explored The Delmarva Peninsula? What are your favorite spots? Let me know in the comments! Cheers —Alexis

Exploring the Blue Ridge Mountains of Georgia

The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Georgia are a beautiful area to spend a long weekend. There are lots of great hikes to stunning views and large waterfalls, a plethora of wineries, and some solid breweries in the region. Below is a full guide to exploring this area, organized by town.

Blue Ridge

Blue Ridge is a great home base for exploring the region. It is an adorable little town, but it is going to be a bit of a drive to trailheads, as a forewarning. Heads up, the breweries in town do not have food or food trucks, so be sure to have a separate plan for eating! Pro-tip if you’re traveling with dogs—the public dog park at the Humane Society in town is really nice.
Recommendations:

• Amicalola Falls: These waterfalls are absolutely huge and are definitely a must-see while in the area. This trail is .9 miles long with 425 stairs and takes about 20 minutes to complete. I would actually probably recommend a different hike here, the one linked starts at the top of the falls and goes down to the bottom and then back up which was fine but check out the other options too. The entrance fee is $5 without a Georgia State Parks Pass.

• Springer Mountain Trail: This trail is 2 miles long with 393ft of elevation gain and takes about 1 hour to complete. This is the southern terminus of Appalachian Trail which is fun and there is a marker at the summit for the AT. It is a steady climb up and pretty rocky and muddy. The views are quite nice and this trail is rated moderate. It is quite the journey to get to this trail for such a quick hike, so just keep that in mind in your planning.

• Angry Hops Brewing: Easily the best brewery in town. This spot has chill vibes, a small patio, and angry music, for the brand.

• Mercier Orchards: A huge facility with a market and a bar serving hard cider, wine and 1 beer. The ciders are quite tasty. Go early if you want donuts, they tend to run out.

• Grumpy Old Men Brewing: A popular spot with a nice patio and average beers.

• Mountain Mama’s Coffee Lounge: A super cute spot with coffee, tea and a small food menu. The coffee is great here and they are located right downtown.

• Tipping Point Brewing Company: This brewery has a nice upper patio overlooking downtown with average beers.

• The Pasta Market: A nice restaurant and shop with solid pasta and an upper deck. They also have wine and beer.

• Falls Branch Falls: This trail is 1 mile long with 200ft of elevation gain and takes about 30 minutes to complete. It is an uphill, muddy climb to the falls which are quite nice. This trail is rated moderate but was pretty easy.

• Bear Claw Vineyards & Winery: This winery has a nice outdoor space with a patio or picnic tables. They offer their wine by the flight, glass, bottle or slushie. They also have a small food menu.

• Elijay is another cute little small town south of Blue Ridge. Elijay Coffeehouse is a homey coffee shop with a small sandwich menu in the heart of downtown.

• Fannin Brewing: A small spot with mediocre beer and rustic outdoor seating.

• Skip Cucinella’s Pizzeria—the staff was not helpful and the pizza was average.

Helen

Helen is a German-themed town best known for their Oktoberfest and Decemberfest celebrations. River tubing is also quite popular here in the summer months. This is a very touristy little town that I would recommend spending a few hours in and then escaping. Expect heavy traffic and parking is $10 for the day anywhere downtown.
Recommendations:

• King Ludwig Biergarten: An outdoor beer garden in the main city square. They have a small food menu with German items alongside beers and wine. There is constant live music here as well.

• Hofbräuhaus: A German restaurant and beer garden. They are on the north end of Main Street a bit past the hustle and bustle on the river. The service here was not great and my beer was served warm, but it’s a decent stop.

• Anna Ruby Falls: This trail is 1 mile long with 220ft of elevation gain and takes about 30 minutes to complete. The trailhead is directly outside of Helen and quite popular because it leads to a beautiful large waterfall. It is a paved slightly uphill walk that I highly recommend. This trail is technically in a National Forest so you’ll need a National Park Pass or pay $5 to enter. This trail is rated moderate.

• Duke’s Creek Trail: This trail is 2.3 miles long with 337ft of elevation gain and takes about 1 hour to complete. It is an easy walk down to the waterfall that is pretty nice. This is in Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest so you’ll need a National Park Pass or pay $4 to park. It is rated easy.

• Raven’s Cliff Falls Trail: This trail is 5 miles long with 623ft of elevation gain and takes about 2.5 hours to complete. There are lots of roots along this path but there is also numerous river access points which is very nice. Overall the views here are just okay, but the river is nice. This is in Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest so you’ll need a National Park Pass or pay $5 to park.

• Brasstown Bald: This is the highest point in Georgia and provides stellar views for miles upon miles! You’ll drive up the byway to a parking area where you can either shuttle up (every 5 minutes) or hike a very steep .6 miles up. I’d recommend shuttling up and hiking down. Dogs are welcome on the shuttle as well. You’ll need a National Park Pass or pay $8 to enter. If you’ve been to Clingman’s Dome in Tennessee this is very similar.

• Tallulah Gorge State Park: A popular park about 45 minutes east of Helen. The entrance fee is $5 and the main attraction is the large gorge with waterfalls. Heads up, only the rim trail is dog friendly where you can visit 9 overlooks.

Dahlonega

Dahlonega is a very tiny town about 30 minutes south of Helen that is home to the University of North Georgia.
Recommendations:

• Preachers Rock from Woody Gap: This trail is 2 miles long with 436ft of elevation gain and takes about 1 hour to complete. It is part of the Appalachian Trail in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest. It is a mostly shaded trail that pops out to an exposed rock with stunning views, especially in the morning. This was my favorite hike in the area and I highly recommend it. It is rated moderate.

• Accent Cellars: A nice winery on the river. They have glasses, bottles, tastings, or flights of wine along with wine cocktails and a few snacks in the cooler. They are on the river which is nice and more of an urban winery just 3 minutes from downtown. This spot is dog friendly inside and out.

• Barefoot Hills Hotel: A solid hotel that is very affordable and has great mountain views, especially for sunset. They are dog friendly and there are games on the property too.

• Montaluce Winery: A beautiful, fancy winery tucked back into nature. They also have a full service restaurant onsite. This spot is not dog friendly inside or out.

Cleveland

Cleveland is just south of Helen and the town itself is not worth visiting, but there is a good hike, brewery and winery to check out:

• Mount Yonah Trail: This trail is 5 miles long with 1,453ft of elevation gain and takes about 2.5 hours to complete. This trail is quite steep and strenuous, as it is rated hard. The views from the summit are not quite as impressive as the other hikes in the area, but it is a great workout and still nice.

• NoFo Brew Co: This taproom is 5 minutes from the trailhead and the second location for NoFo. They have lots of outdoor seating with views of Mount Yonah but it’s also right off a pretty busy road so it’s not super serene. They have a wide variety of beers on tap. Heads up the flights here are very expensive.

• Yonah Mountain Vineyards: Around the other side of the mountain is a nice winery with mountain and vineyard views. They offer their wine in a glass, bottle or flight.

Have you explored the Blue Ridge Mountains of Georgia? What are you favorite spots? Let me know in the comments!
Cheers—Alexis

July 2023

July was a busy month! I tried 215 beers in July which is potentially the most I’ve ever had because of a beer fest, bottle share and lots of beer flights while traveling.

July started off with Free The Whales beer fest on which was full of delicious brews and was hosted at HopFly Brewing with Resident Culture Brewing. After that Mosaic and I headed to the Blue Ridge Mountains in north Georgia for the fourth of July week. We came home to a bottle share with friends and then left again for a 13 day road trip to the Outer Banks, Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Maryland, Delaware, and Shenandoah National Park. All of that resulted in some high quality beers and it was quite difficult to narrow down this list.

In no particular order, here were my top beers in July:

Raspberry Marmalade from Dewey Beer Company in Dewey Beach, DE

Raspberry marmalade is a Fruited Sour with raspberries. I had this at Dewey’s original taproom at the beach and absolutely loved it. It truly tastes like raspberry marmalade in the best way possible.

Hang My Boots from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

Hang My Boots is a Triple IPA with Nelson Sauvin hops. I cracked this the night before departing for my road trip and it certainly kicked the journey off on the right note. A truly fantastic brew.

Blu Jamz from Seedz Brewery in Union Pier, MI

Blu Jamz is a blended Saison refermented with Michigan grown blueberries. I am absolutely stoked to finally be visiting Seedz in a couple of weeks after they’ve been on my list for years. Everything I’ve ever had from them has been great and Blu Jamz was another superb brew.

More Jasper Than All Jasper collaboration brew from Other Half Brewing in Brooklyn, NY and Fidens Brewing in Albany, NY

This is a Triple IPA with Citra hops. It is a blend of Other Half’s More Than series and Fiden’s Jasper. This is far too easy to drink for a Triple and full of juicy notes.

PB&J Mixtape from Xul Brewing in Knoxville, TN

PB&J Mixtape is a peanut butter and jelly Sour. A lot of breweries make pb&j beers but this was easily the best I have ever had. It tastes exactly like you’re eating the sandwich and is ridiculously great.

Double Dry Hopped King Sue from Toppling Goliath Brewing in Decorah, IA

DDH King Sue is an Imperial IPA with Citra hops. I was lucky enough to have this beer twice recently because Toppling Goliath is now distributing to North Carolina! So excited for this and for all of their fantastic beers to make there way over here.

Monolith collaboration brew from Lua Brewing in Des Moines, IA and Little Cottage Brewing in Atlanta, GA

Monolith is an Imperial Stout with coconut, hazelnuts, marshmallow, and cacao nibs. At 15.2% ABV this is a heavy beer, but it is absolutely delicious. This was easily the best beer at the Free The Whales festival and everyone was talking about how great it was. Lua continues to impress!

Darkness at Noon from Root + Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This was the May 2023, Batch 4 version of Darkness at Noon and absolutely superb. It is a multi-oat/wheat Triple IPA and we had this in a growler, so it was delightful to have a fresh Root and Branch not out of a can.

Check back next month for my top beers in August! Cheers —Alexis

June 2023

June was a pretty lowkey month—I spent most of June in Charlotte aside from a work trip to the beach and checked out some new spots in CLT and hung out with Mosaic at home. I tried 101 beers over the past month and this list has the best of the best. 3 of the 6 beers on this list are Saisons, which I think just points to how incredibly hot it has been in Charlotte and the need for light, delicious beers.

In no particular order, here were my top beers in June 2023:

Raspberry Tart from New Glarus Brewing in New Glarus, WI

Raspberry Tart is a Framboise Lambic with Oregon raspberries spontaneously fermented. I’ve been holding on to this since my visit to New Glarus last summer and finally decided to crack it open. This beer was insanely delicious and far exceeded my expectations. I wish I had more of this one to enjoy all summer long!

I Used To Consider The Consequences collaboration from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC and Other Half Brewing in Brooklyn, NY

This is a Double Dry-Hopped Imperial IPA with Citra and Cashmere and finished with Motueka and Citra Cryo hops. Burial recreated this brew that originally dropped in 2020 and it is delightful. Packed with flavor, juicy and well-rounded.

Saison du BlÉ (Blend #13) from Side Project Brewing in Maplewood, MO

Saison du Blé is a oak aged Saison that is then bottle conditioned. Side Project can do no wrong and this is a classic, delicious brew from them. Long live Saison Summers!

Donut from Nebuleus Beer in Portland, OR

Donut is a blend of gin and chardonnay barrel aged Saisons refermented on donut peaches. This was my first time hearing of Nebuleus and I was super impressed by this brew. I don’t always love things that have peach but this was well balanced and fantastic.

Clover (2020) from Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro Bend, VT

Clover is a Saison that is a blend of Ann, Art, and Flora aged between 16 to 27 months independently and then combined before aging another 2 years. Clover is one of Hill Farmstead’s most sought after beers and for good reason—this was superb!

Probably Existing with Coconut from Resident Culture Brewing in Charlotte, NC

Probably Existing is a bourbon barrel aged Imperial Stout aged in Heaven Hill bourbon barrels for 24 months then conditioned on toasted pistachios, cocoa butter, cacao nibs and vanilla. This version also has toasted coconut, giving it the perfect combination of barrel flavor, sweetness, and smoothness.

Check back next month to see my top beers of July!
Cheers —Alexis

Utah Road Trip Itinerary

Utah is a fabulous area for a road trip! In 12 days of adventures I explored 5 National Parks, 2 State Parks, 2 National Monuments, 1 National Forest and 1 National Recreation Area. This was with 1,863 miles driven and 121 miles hiked. All of the National Parks are quite small so you can cover a lot of ground in not too much time which is great! You can also shorten or lengthen this trip—the bottom of the itinerary has suggestions for both.

This is a recommended 12 day Utah road trip itinerary and how I did my trip, but be sure to check out my full Utah guide here for all of my recommendations on hikes, eats, drinks, where to stay and more! I also include a smidge of Northern Arizona on this route.

Day 1: Arrive

Fly into Salt Lake City—I chose an evening flight so I wouldn’t need to use another day of PTO. If you have any earlier flight you can combine days 1 & 2. You can also fly into Las Vegas and do this loop road trip just hitting Zion first instead of Arches!

Sleep: Salt Lake City

Day 2: Drive to Moab, explore Arches National Park

Hit the road! It’s a 4 hour drive from Salt Lake City to Arches National Park, so get an early start and then you’ll still have almost a full day in Arches. If you want to start off with a bang the Devil’s Garden Trail is a great choice. Spend the evening exploring the cute town of Moab.

Sleep: Moab

Day 3: Arches National Park, Moab

Today is another full day for Arches and luckily Moab is just 10 minutes from the park entrance. Recommended hikes: Delicate Arch Trail, Windows Loop and Turret Arch Trail, Fiery Furnace (permit required). If you’ve still got some energy later Corona and Bow Tie Arch Trail outside of the park in Moab is a nice hike with a massive arch.

Sleep: Moab

Day 4: Canyonlands National Park, Dead Horse State Park, Moab

Start the day with Fisher Towers Trail, about 40 minutes north of Moab. Head back into town for lunch before driving 45 minutes west to Canyonlands National Park. Half of a day for the Island in the Sky region is plenty. Stop at a few overlooks and do a couple of short trails such as White Rim Overlook Trail and Mesa Arch Trail. Head over to Dead Horse Point State Park for sunset—it’s 13 miles from Canylonlands on the same road heading back towards Moab.

Sleep: Moab

Day 5: Canyonlands National Park, Natural Bridges National Monument, Monument Valley, drive to Page

Today is the only day of the trip with a lot of driving so buckle up—literally and figuratively. Start the day in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. This is 1 hour and 45 minutes south of Moab. Chesler Park Viewpoint Trail is a great way to see this unique area of the park.

From here it’s a 2.5 hour drive to Natural Bridges National Monument. Plan for about 2 hours to explore the loop drive and short trails here. From Natural Bridges head further south to Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. Lookout for cows in the road along the way and be sure to stop for views of Valley of the Gods and Monument Valley from the road.

It’ll take about 1 hour to do the scenic loop drive at Monument Valley and from there it is a 2 hour drive west to Page, Arizona. You could also cut out any of this—Natural Bridges and Monument Valley were my two least favorite stops out of the entire trip. Driving straight from Moab, UT to Page, AZ is 4.5 hours. Grab dinner/drinks in Page and then get to bed nice and early after this long day of driving!

Sleep: Page

Day 6: Horseshoe Bend, Lake Powell, Antelope Canyon, drive to Zion National Park

This was my absolute favorite day and although it seems like a lot it was absolutely perfect! Start the day with sunrise at Horseshoe Bend. Grab breakfast and coffee then explore Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Recreation Area via kayak. Kayak rentals are for the full day but I found 3 hours to be the perfect amount of time on the water with getting to explore a loop route to Ice Cream Cone Slot Canyon and not getting too much sun.

After kayaking it’s time for the famed Antelope Canyon. The early afternoon is said to be best time for sun beams. Be sure to book this in advance, you can only visit via guided tour. After Antelope Canyon it’s time to head out to Zion National Park, a 2 hour drive north. Personally I was too excited to not explore any of the park and just grab dinner and go to bed so I did the short and sweet Zion Canyon Overlook Trail upon entering the park and this was the perfect way to meet Zion.

Sleep: Zion

Day 7: Zion National Park and Sand Hollow State Park

Today is a full day of Zion! Recommended hikes: Angel’s Landing (permit required) or Scout Lookout via West Rim Trail, The Narrows or The Zion Narrows Riverside Walk, The Watchman Trail, or Emerald Pools Trail (not my favorite personally).

After hitting a few trails, head 45 minutes southwest to Sand Hollow State Park for a nice relaxing time at the beach! A perfect way to cool off and rest after a day in Zion.

Sleep: Zion

Day 8: Zion National Park, Red Canyon, drive to Bryce Canyon

Another full day in Zion—hit whatever trails are left on your list and drink one more prickly pear margarita at Camp Outpost.

After a full day of exploring Zion head up to Bryce Canyon National Park, which is just under 2 hours away. Directly on the route is Red Canyon, which is part of Dixie National Forest, and is a great stop with beautiful trails.

Sleep: Bryce Canyon

Day 9: Bryce Canyon National Park

Today is a full day in Bryce Canyon—which is an absolutely stunning park! Recommended hikes: Wall Street and Queens Garden Loop to Peekaboo Loop (Figure 8), Fairyland Loop Trail, Mossy Cave, Turret Arch and Little Windows Trail, Lower, Mid and Upper Inspiration Points Trail. Be sure to also drive the Southern Scenic Drive here!

Sleep: Bryce Canyon

Day 10: Bryce Canyon National Park

Another full day in Bryce Canyon—hit some more trails and soak in those beautiful views.

Sleep: Bryce Canyon

Day 11: Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, Drive to Torrey

Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument is home to one of my favorite hikes I’ve ever done, but this area is frequently overlooked since it’s not a National Park. The start of the National Monument is just around the corner from Bryce Canyon, and the trailhead for the Dry Fork Narrows, Peekaboo and Spooky Slot Canyons Trail is 1.5 hours from Bryce Canyon. The slot canyons are definitely not for everyone, but I absolutely loved it!

After this drive an hour back up the washed out road to Lower Calf Creek Falls Trail for a nice easy, albeit a little long, walk to a relaxing waterfall. After finishing your hikes it’s an hour drive up to Torrey, a great place to stay for exploring Capitol Reef National Park. This drive is through Dixie National Forest and full of great views.

Sleep: Torrey

Day 12: Capitol Reef National Park and Departure

It’s the last day! Time for one more National Park—Capitol Reef! Recommended hikes: Grand Wash Trail, Cassidy Arch Trail and Hickman Bridge Trail.

After exploring Capitol Reef it’s time to head back to Salt Lake City, which is a 3.5 hour drive north. Catch an evening or red-eye flight home to wrap up your adventure. If you’ve got time in Salt Lake for a couple of beers before the airport don’t miss Templin Family Brewing and Grid City Beer Works.

Have More time?

Spend more time in Salt Lake City, add on the North Rim of The Grand Canyon, add a visit to Grand Junction, Colorado, or make a stop in Las Vegas and explore Valley of Fire State Park. Check out my Las Vegas Area guide here! Move slower—I like to keep a busy schedule and see a lot, but you could also add in more time throughout.

Have Less time?

Skip: Natural Bridges National Monument, Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, or Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. You could also skip Page altogether and just stay in Utah, but Horseshoe Bend and Antelope Canyon are a real treat!

Consolidate: Spend less time in Arches—you can do Arches and Canyonlands in 1.5 days if you wanted to. Cut a day from Bryce Canyon or Zion (or both!). Cut some State Parks and extra trails.

Have you explored Utah? Let me know in the comments!
Cheers —Alexis

May 2023

May brought less beer consumption for me—I tried 72 different beers over the past month—but there were still some truly delicious beers. This month’s list is comprised of 100% IPAs which is pretty odd for me! Overall since I didn’t have that many beers this month, I didn’t go to many breweries, and the weather has warmed up, I guess that led to a need for more haze craze than anything else. Plus, I spent 12 days adventuring around southern Utah and northern Arizona going on stellar hikes and not drinking very many beers, and the ones I did have were more so trail beers than fantastic sippers.

Here are the best beers I had over the past month:

Triple Farmer from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY

Triple Farmer is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy, Mosaic and Nelson hops. This was the best beer I had in May—I rated it a 4.75 on Untappd. It was smooth, juicy and delicious!

Bloom and Blossom from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

Bloom and Blossom is a Double Dry Hopped Double IPA with Galaxy, Rakau and Mosaic hops. I was lucky enough to have several Monkish beers in May and they were all superb, but this one was particularly packed with flavor.

Water Balloon Fight Club from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

This is a double dry-hopped version of their Water Balloon Fighters Double IPA with Mosaic, Citra, and Simcoe hops. Another fantastic beer from the folks at Monkish!

Do We Live in A Society of Spectacle? from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This is the Citra batch 5 version of Do We Live In A Society of Spectacle. It is a multi-oat/wheat Double IPA with all Citra hops. It’s hard to not love a fully Citra hopped beer, they are always fantastic!

What Changed? from Fonta Flora Brewery in Morganton, NC

What Changed? is a Double IPA dry-hopped with citra incognito, motueka, rakau and topaz hops. I love that Fonta Flora has just recently entered the Hazy IPA game and is already putting out absolutely fantastic beers! This was super crushable.

Double Grid from Hop Butcher for the World in Chicago, IL

Double Grid is a Double IPA with Citra and Mosaic hops. I don’t get my hands on enough beers from Hop Butcher, and this brew reminded me of how amazing they are. I was thrilled that Pop The Top had this on tap!

April 2023

April was a fun month with trips to Austin, Texas, Holbox Island in Mexico, and Richmond, Virginia! I also had a couple friends visit Charlotte and got to show them around town and then also participated in a couple if bottle shares. All in all I tried 117 beers in April. In no particular order here were my top beers of the past month:

Everyone Stands Beneath Their Own Dome of Heaven from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This is the classic “multi-oat/wheat double IPA” as Root and Branch likes to describe it. They like to hold their secrets close to their chest without revealing any hops or much information, but this one was a banger. It was batch 6 of the brew and truly superb. I enjoyed this one at the pool of our Airbnb in Holbox which was delightful!

Seven from The Veil Brewing in Richmond, VA

Seven was one of The Veil’s 7th anniversary beer releases and phenomenal. Lucky for me I visited their taproom in RVA a week after the anniversary and was still able to try it on tap and grab a bottle to take home. Seven is an Imperial Stout aged in Willett, Utopias, Maple and Weller Bourbon Barrels for an average of 21 months then conditioned on chocolate sandwich cookies, toasted coconut, Tahitian vanilla and truffle.

The Laurentian Series: Cuvee Des Grands Lacs with Marquette Grapes from Speciation Artisan Ales in Grand Rapids, MI

This complex beer is a blend of 5 barrels filled with spontaneously fermented beer that was cooled in a coolship near each of the 5 Great Lakes and fermented exclusively with the wild cultures caught in the air at each site, Marquette grapes were then added. I’ve had this beer before and was blown away by how fantastic it was so when I saw another bottle at a shop in Michigan I knew I had to have it!

Flora (Cherry, Raspberry, Northern Kiwi) from Hill Farmstead in Greensboro, VT

Flora is the wine barrel aged version Florence and always one of my favorite beers. I love the different varieties they Hill Farmstead makes of it! This version was aged on hand-picked Vermont-grown Montmorency cherries, raspberries and northern kiwi.

I Hope This Is The Endgame from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC

Burial’s adjuncted Stouts are hard to beat! This one is an Imperial Stout with toasted pecans, Thai banana, vanilla bean, cinnamon, maple syrup and sea salt. As I am sure you know by know I am a sucker for anything with Thai banana so when they released this beer I knew I had to snag a bottle. It was absolutely delicious!

Snow Giant from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

Snow Giant is a Triple IPA with Citra and Nectaron hops. I enjoyed this on tap at The Veil’s new taproom since they had some guest taps for their anniversary on. Monkish always crushes the juice game and this one was delightful—easy drinking and packed with flavor.

Check back next month for my top beers in May! Cheers! —Alexis

Bryson City, NC

Bryson City is a small mountain town in Western North Carolina. It is nestled between Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Nantahala National Forest. This is a beautiful area to explore, especially in the fall with changing leaves.

Bryson City is about 1 hour west of Asheville, NC and 1 hour and 15 minutes south of Gatlinburg TN. Check out my Asheville guide here and my Gatlinburg guide here.

Tom Branch Falls

Bryson City Recommendations:

• Bryson City Outdoors: A beer bar and gear shop with a nice patio and daily food trucks.

• Explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park! Deep Creek Waterfall Loop is a popular option very close to town with 3 waterfalls on a 2.4 mile long trail with 426ft of elevation gain. You’ll encounter Tom Branch Falls, Indian Creek Falls and Juney Whank Falls.

• Mountain Layers Brewing: A nice brewery in the heart of downtown with a rooftop deck. They also have a Hawaiian food truck out back The Rice Wagon. You can see all of town from the roof and offer wine and cider for non-beer fans.

• Zipline, whitewater raft, or stay in a yurt with WildWater! Whitewater rafting is very popular on the Nantahala and super fun. It is 8 miles of class 1 and class 2 rapids with one class 3 rapid. Their ziplining course goes through the gorge and has a couple of spots with great views.

• High Test Deli: A delicious sandwich shop in the heart of downtown. They are also known for their frozen ice cream sandwiches.

• The Road to Nowhere: Drive this historic road and be sure to check out the Lake Fontana overlook and the Road to Nowhere Tunnel. Just be prepared, the road does indeed go to nowhere.

• Meander the many shops throughout downtown.

• Take a scenic drive:

  • The Hellbender 28 is full of hairpin turns and right near Bryson City

  • The Tail of the Dragon takes you towards Tennessee with 300 turns in 11 miles

  • The Blue Ridge Parkway is a popular route with numerous viewpoints and hiking trails along the way

    • Waterrock Knob Trail is a popular, quick choice that is 1 mile long with 439ft of elevation gain so it’s quite steep!

    • Mount Pisgah Trail: 4 miles long with 1077ft of elevation gain. This trail is about halfway between Bryson City and Asheville off the Blue Ridge Parkway in Pisgah National Forest. I would park at the Google Maps trailhead, not AllTrails trailhead. The last section of the trail is pretty steep and leads up to a TV tower.

• Honey Bear’s Cupcakery: Grab cupcakes and other sweets from this local bakery on the main strip!

• Cardinal Coffee: A cute spot for coffee, bagels, and smoothies off the highway a bit outside of downtown.

• Darnell Farms: A large farm with produce, pumpkins, hay rides and festivals. Located in Bryson City on the river.

• Explore nearby Waynesville:

  • Boojum Brewing: A popular brewery with a full food menu. Expect a wait during lunch and dinner times, but their food is super tasty and worth it!

  • Sauced: An average spot for pizza and beer

  • Check out the cute shops throughout downtown

• Explore nearby Sylva:

  • Lazy Hiker Brewing: Tasty beers and a nice patio. Mad Batter Kitchen is inside for eats.

  • Innovation Brewing: A lovely taproom on the river with chill vibes. They have a massive tap list and Meatballs Pizzeria shares the building + Cosmic Carryout is right next door.

  • Balsam Falls Brewing: A nice brewery with a full food menu and lots of TVs for game day.

• Skip: Bryson City Brewing This spot was formally Nantahala Brewing. They have all guest taps and zero of their own beers, the food is not good and the service quite frankly sucks (the bartenders were wasted). It’s a bummer to see this formerly great space go downhill so quickly.

What are your favorite spots in Western North Carolina? Let me know in the comments! Cheers—ALexis

March 2023

March was a packed beer month with a few days in Hendersonville and Asheville, NC and then a week in Greenville, SC—check out my Greenville beer and travel guide here. I tried 198 different beers in March, a lot of which were consumed while watching March Madness, at Altered States festival from The Eighth State Brewing Company (check out my recap here) and at bottle shares.

In no particular order here are the best beers I had in March:

JFK2LAX: SFO Layover collaboration brew from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA and Other Half Brewing in New York, NY

This is a Triple IPA with Citra, Simcoe and Motueka hops. I am a huge fan of the JFK2LAX series and this edition was a delight! I rated this a 4.75 on Untappd because it was so ridiculously good.

Damage: Batch 100 from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This is a multi-oat/wheat Triple IPA from one of the best IPA breweries in the country. Root + Branch crushed this brew and I am very happy to have one more can of it in my fridge. It is extremely smooth and flavorful.

The Morbid Comfort of a Welcome Regression from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC

The Morbid Comfort of a Welcome Regression is a Triple Dry Hopped Triple IPA with Simcoe, Vic Secret and Eclipse hops. Anytime Burial drops a new Triple IPA I am excited but this one was superb. It has that classic Burial hint of sweetness without being overly boozy.

Triple Vegan from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY

Triple Vegan is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy and Nelson hops. As you may know, it is the triple version of their iconic brew The Vegan. Coincidentally I just had the original brew, The Vegan, yesterday and it pales in comparison to Triple Vegan. This is rich in flavor and incredibly easy to drink.

Hyperbolic from The Eighth State Brewing Company in Greenville, SC

Hyperbolic is an Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Imperial Stout aged 1 year and 11 months in a Laird's Apple Barrel with toasted coconut, cassia bark, and Madagascar vanilla. It was tough for me to choose just one Eighth State Stout to include on this month’s top beers list, but Hyperbolic soared above the rest. Apple Brandy Barrels are always my favorite! I enjoyed this at their Altered States festival.

Fostering Divine Culture collaboration brew from Resident Culture Brewing Company in Charlotte, NC and Divine Barrel Brewing in Charlotte, NC

Fostering Divine Culture is an Imperial Stout aged in Laird’s Applejack barrels for 22 months then conditioned on rum barrel chips, wild Thai banana, toasted coconut, and vanilla. This was brewed in celebration of Divine Barrel’s 5th Anniversary. I enjoyed it at Community Tap in Greenville and I snagged a bottle at Resident Culture’s taproom once it dropped!

One Thousand Years from The Veil Brewing Company in Richmond, VA

From The Veil: “One Thousand Years was the 1000th batch of beer ever brewed at The Veil back in early 2019. The recipe is an amped-up recipe inspired equally by Pallbearer, Circle of Wolves, Sleeping Forever, and one of our favorite Imperial Stout collaborations. It spent 12 months in Laird's Apple Brandy barrels and then another 12 months in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels.” In my eyes this is basically a cuvee of The Veil’s best brews and it was absolutely phenomenal!

Sequence Collaboration Brew from Homage Brewing in Pomona, CA and Highland Park Brewery in Los Angeles, CA

Sequence is a barrel aged Saison with spent Matsumoto peaches, spent nectarines and Osmanthus flower. Eighth State was pouring this at one of their events before the festival. Sequence is refreshing, flavorful and unique.

February 2023

February flew by in a breeze but I somehow tried 152 different beers in this quick month. Bottle shares and beer flights always mean getting to try a wider variety of beers which I love! This list of beers has the best of the best that I had over the past 4 weeks which I rated a 4.5 or above on Untappd.

This month included a trip to Savannah and the Jacksonville Beach, Florida area to hang at the beach and explore the local brew scene as well as the local beer fest Queen City Brewers Festival, a bottle share, a Superbowl share, many visits to local breweries and lots of great beers at home in between.

In no particular order, here are the best beers I had in February 2023:

Even More Daily Servings from Trillium Brewing in Boston, MA and Evil Twin Brewing in New York, NY

Even More Daily Servings is a Fruited Sour with raspberries and marshmallow. This is an amped up version of Twice the Daily Serving which is already my favorite Sour, so add more fruit and marshmallow and it can only get better! Another superb collaboration from Trillium and Evil Twin.

Paulus from Schilling Beer Company in Littleton, NH

Paulus is a Helles Lager with Noble hops. Schilling crushes the Lager game and I am so excited to be seeing more of their beers around North Carolina. I enjoyed this at Salud Beer Shop in Charlotte, in a big ole dimple mug as it should be done.

Medium Raw from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

Medium Raw is a multi-oat/wheat Triple IPA with Citra and Freestyle Motueka hops. This was a fantastic brew from Root and Branch. Especially for it being a Triple IPA this was way too easy to drink and I wish I had more cans of it!

Searching For The Proof That We’ve Truly Lived from Percent Tap House in Harrisburg, NC and Forgotten Road Ales in Graham, NC

This is a wine barrel aged Farmhouse Saison with pairs, honey and locally grown Green Szechuan. It is pictured right in the photo above. These two breweries tend to be a little quieter in the North Carolina brew scene but are always cranking out delicious beers! This was a very interesting collaboration with superb flavor.

Flora (Batch 10) from Hill Farmstead Brewing in Greensboro Bend, VT

Flora is the wine barrel aged version of Florence, a wheat Farmstead Ale. This was barrel aged for over two years. Hill Farmstead continues to crush this style of beer.

Double Barrel Coconut Fionn from Angry Chair Brewing in Tampa, FL

Double Barrel Coconut Fionn is a rum and bourbon barrel aged Imperial Porter with hazelnut coffee and coconut. While in Florida a dark beer from Angry Chair is always a must. I enjoyed this one at 9 Zero Pour in Jacksonville, FL. The rich notes of coconut were fantastic!

Infiltrator from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

Infiltrator is a multi-oat/wheat IPA brewed and dry hopped with New Zealand grown hops from Freestyle Hops. Normally it is difficult for a single IPA to be overly impressive when you can pack so much more flavor into a Double or Triple IPA, but Infiltrator is a top-notch beer. I’ve had this beer in the past and am always impressed by just how incredible it is!

Genealogy of Morals: Buena Vista Organic from Hill Farmstead Brewing in Greensboro Bend, VT

From Hill Farmstead: “We have chosen three barrels as the base for this single country origin coffee and cacao nib variation. After aging more than 26 months in select bourbon barrels, we conditioned the beer atop organic Buena Vista beans from Caranavi, Bolivia, sourced and roasted by our friends at The Coffee Collective in Copenhagen, Denmark, as well as organic Bolivian cacao nibs.”

Check back next month to see my top beers of March! Cheers—Alexis

January 2023

Some people do dry January. This year I did what I would refer to as an underwater January. There were a lot of beers consumed between my birthday, Mosaic’s Puppy Pawty, bottle shares and more. This was the first month that I did not take a trip since the depths of Covid, so there was less brewery hopping but more high quality beers consumed.

This was also my first ever month of using Untappd so I now have super accurate data around my top beers which is really nice. I checked in 131 beers in January (!) and you can follow me on Untappd here.

Here were my top beers in January, in no particular order:

Kyle’s Axe collaboration brew from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY and Horus Aged Ales in Oceanside, CA

Kyle’s Axe is an Imperial IPA with Citra, Nelson and Peacharine hops. It comes in at 8% and is absolutely superb. This is potentially the best IPA I have ever had in my life. I had this brew twice and loved it both times.

The Bones of the Things Around Us collaboration brew from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY and Troon Brewing in Hopewell, NJ + Triple Jasper + Triple Jasper with Nelson from Fidens Brewing

3 juice bombs from the fine folks at Fidens! The Bones of the Things Around Us is a Double IPA with with Citra, Mosaic, Simcoe and Amarillo hops. Triple Jasper is a Triple IPA with Citra hops. Triple Jasper with Nelson is a Triple IPA with Citra and Nelson Sauvin hops. These were all insanely delicious beers that I was lucky enough to try a couple of times and loved! Fidens has been absolutely crushing the game lately.

Beer: Barrel: Time (Rye 2022) from Side Project Brewing in Maplewood, MO

BBT Baby! I’ve had BBT once before but the rye version was new to me and exciting to get to try. This is one of the most hyped Stouts in the world so it is always a real treat to get to taste! From Side Project: “We finalized a blend which consisted of 2 different recipes, brewed 3 different times and then finished in 3 different barrels for 18 to 42 months. The younger portion represents threads which were brewed right around the 2020 release in plan to become part of this 2022 blend. The much older threads consist of the exact same brew/barrels from the 2020 release, barrels which we held back and allowed an extended aging. The result of this layering focuses this blend more in line with how we blend our BBT releases, with a showcase of our production over time, layering in age and youth in a way that can only come from time spent in a barrel. Derivation Blend #3 recipe aged in Willett 5 year Rye Barrels since 7/23/18; Vibes recipe aged in Willett 4 year Rye Barrels since 7/2/20; Vibes recipe aged in StilL630 Rye Barrels since 7/28/20.”

Double Dry Hopped Ghost, Holy Ghost and Infinite Ghost from Parish Brewing in Broussard, LA

Double Dry Hopped Ghost in the Machine is an Imperial IPA with Citra hops. Holy Ghost is a Triple IPA dry hopped with Nelson Sauvin, Galaxy and Citra Cryo. Infinite Ghost is an Imperial IPA with hand-selected Yakima Valley Citra hops and Citra Terpenes. The Anniversary Ghost releases are always superb! This year I had each can individually and then also did a blind side by side with my second can of each. My ranking blind was Infinite-Holy-DDH.

100 Triple Dry Hopped with Citra from Burley Oak Brewing in Berlin, MD

This is an all Citra Triple Dry Hopped Imperial IPA. The 100 series from Burley Oak focuses on a single hop at a time and this brew was fantastic. Citra is always a favorite but this was dangerously easy to drink.

The 12° from Lesser-Known Beer Company in Winston-Salem, NC

The 12° is a Czech inspired Pale Lager from the fine folks at Lesser-Known. Their Lagers are fantastic and I highly recommend a visit if you have not checked them out yet. Check out my Winston-Salem beer guide here.

‘22 Three Year Blend from Fonta Flora Brewery in Morganton, NC

This is an Appalachian Gueuze-inspired three year blend of spontaneously fermented ales from the winters of 2018, 2019 and 2020. This is my favorite beer I have ever had from Fonta Flora. There are still some bottles floating around out there so be sure to snag one while you can!

Check back next month to see my top beers of February! Cheers—Alexis

Winston-Salem Beer Guide

Winston-Salem, North Carolina is a small city an hour north of Charlotte with college-town vibes and a thriving brewery scene. I did the excruciating work of visiting every brewery in town (most spots multiple times) in order to learn more about the Winston-Salem beer scene.

Lesser-Known Beer Co.

Lesser-Known is the newest brewery in Winston-Salem and already the best brewery in town. They focus on underrepresented beer styles, the majority of which are Lagers. Lesser-Known is just south of downtown and has a nice patio space as well as a small indoor taproom. They have a small food menu when they don’t have a food truck onsite. They are quickly gaining notoriety and should not be missed. Inside their taproom The Walk In has guest taps and guest bottles as well.

Incendiary Brewing Company

Incendiary makes great beers in a variety of different styles. Their IPAs in particular are fantastic. They are located at Bailey Power Plant with a huge shared patio space and Cugino Forno Pizzeria is next door with delicious ‘za to accompany your beers. Incendiary also has a second location in Lewisville.

Radar Brewing Company

Radar makes unique and delicious beers. They have a small taproom and a nice patio space. Radar and Wise Man are just a block away from each other north of downtown Winston-Salem.

Hoots Beer Co. & Hoots Satellite 

Hoots has two locations in Winston-Salem: The original taproom and their satellite taproom in the heart of downtown. The original taproom has a nice outdoor patio, pinball and chill vibes. Hoots Satellite is a smaller space with a covered patio and a small tap list. If you only have time to hit one, go to the original for the authentic vibes and more beers available.

Fiddlin’ Fish Brewing Company

Fiddlin’ Fish is in downtown Winston-Salem with a wide variety of beers. They have a pretty large taproom and a nice patio as well. They offer specials during the week and have solid beers all around.

Foothills Brewpub

Foothills has a restaurant-style set-up with solid beers and delicious food. They make a wide variety of beers but specialize in Stouts. They are located right on the edge of downtown Winston-Salem with patio seating and spacious taproom.

Wise Man Brewing

Wise Man has a very large tap list and makes a wide variety of beers. They have both indoor and outdoor seating and frequent events. They are located just north of the city in the Industry Hill neighborhood.

Photo courtesy of Joymongers as I failed to take any pictures here somehow

Joymongers Barrel Hall

This is the Winston-Salem location for Greensboro-based Joymongers Brewing. They are located in the West End neighborhood and have warehouse-style vibes and a small patio. Their Barrel Aged beers are brewed at this location and what they are best known for.

Small Batch Beer Co.

Small Batch feels more like a dive bar than a brewery and is located right downtown. The small tap list has average beers but they also have wine, cider and cocktails. They have a food menu as well if you are hungry.

The Best Breweries Within 1.5 Hours of Charlotte

The city of Charlotte has a ton of fantastic breweries, but sometimes you get sick of going to the same places all the time or you want to get out of town for a little adventure. Here are the best breweries within an hour and a half drive from Charlotte that are worth exploring:

Fonta Flora Whippoorwill Farm in Nebo, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 1 hour, 36 minutes

Okay yes, this is slightly further than an hour and a half but I promise you it’s worth those six extra minutes. Fonta Flora has been a powerhouse in the North Carolina brew scene since they opened in 2013. They are consistently pushing the boundaries with their Wild Ales and have absolutely nailed the Lager game. They recently dipped their toes into the Hazy IPA world as well with several collaboration brews and they have each been phenomenal.

In 2018 the Fonta Flora opened Whippoorwill Farm. This location is an expansive farmland with a plethora of outdoor seating and a small barn that houses the brewery and indoor seating. Singlewyde is their onsite food truck that makes incredibly delicious wood fired pizzas and other fantastic snacks. There is no better way to spend an afternoon than at on the grassy lawn of Whippoorwill Farm.

High Branch Brewing in Concord, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 30 minutes

High Branch is located in Gibson Mill, an old—you guessed it!—mill, with a food hall coming soon. They opened in 2015 and were originally in a smaller space in the mill. They make superb beers of all styles, but their Hazy IPAs and Fruited Sours are their best work.

Newgrass Brewing Company in Shelby, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 55 minutes

Newgrass is best known for their insanely flavored Fruited Sours, and for good reason, but don’t sleep on their Stouts either. A flight is definitely the best approach at their taproom to try a variety of their brews. They have a two story taproom with games and a small side patio space. They also offer a full farm-to-table food menu with delicious eats.

LESSER-KNOWN BEER CO. in Winston-Salem, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Lesser-Known is the newest brewery in Winston-Salem and already the best brewery in town. They focus on underrepresented beer styles, the majority of which are Lagers. Lesser-Known is just south of downtown and has a nice patio space as well as a small indoor taproom. They have a small food menu when they don’t have a food truck onsite. They are quickly gaining notoriety and should not be missed. Inside their taproom The Walk In has guest taps and guest bottles as well.

Slow Play Brewing in Rock Hill, SC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 32 minutes

Slow Play is located right behind Winthrop University’s campus just across the border from Charlotte in South Carolina. They make great IPAs and Fruited Sours in particular, and you are bound to find a style you like on their large menu. They have frequent live music and other events to keep you entertained and a nice patio for relaxing outdoors.

Cibi Cibi is their onsite food truck serving up hot chicken sandwiches, smash burgers, and an array of other tasty dishes and sides. This is one of the best food trucks in the Charlotte area, so be sure to arrive hungry.

Percent Tap House in Harrisburg, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 26 minutes

Percent Tap House is the closest brewery to Charlotte on the list but it is still overlooked. Percent is a quaint little brewery in a shopping center in the CLT suburb of Harrisburg. They are part beer bar, serving up some killer guest taps. Their own beer is top notch as well—their IPAs, Fruited Sours, and Stouts have all been great. They have a small indoor taproom and a patio for enjoying your brews.

Royal Bliss Brewing in Denver, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 30 minutes

Royal Bliss is located in a shopping center in Denver, just northwest of CLT. Their IPAs, Pale Ales, and Pilsners are their strengths and there is always good vibes. They have a nice turf patio space, an upstairs deck, and spacious taproom overall. Their beers are great, but their grilled cheese sandwiches are next level. The Carolina Mac Melt with macaroni, muenster, and mozzarella (pictured above) is one of the best grilled cheese sandwiches I’ve ever had.

Incendiary Brewing Company in Winston-Salem, NC

Distance from Uptown Charlotte: 1 hour, 16 minutes

Incendiary in located in the Bailey Power Plant with industrial vibes and large outdoor space. They opened in 2018 with noteworthy IPAs and Lagers. Snag a pizza from Cugino Forno next door to enjoy with your brews! I also recommend checking out Fiddlin’ Fish while you’re in the Winston-Salem area!

What are your favorite breweries Worth the drive from Charlotte? Let me know in the comments! Cheers —Alexis

My Top Beers of 2022

2022 was another fantastic year of beer! A few highlights:

• I visited 287 new-to-me breweries, including some of the top breweries in the world.

• I traveled 42% of the year, exploring new breweries around the country and abroad.

• I had killer beers locally and via monthly bottle shares.

• I delved deeper into the Lager world, became obsessed with Saisons and tried somewhere over 2000 beers.

• My favorite breweries to score beers from were BlackStack, Monkish, Santa Adairius, Root and Branch, Burial, Fidens and Bottle Logic.

In no particular order, here were my top beers of 2022:

Check out my top beers from 2021 here!

EVERYTHING AT MONKISH BREWING IN TORRANCE AND ANAHEIM, CA

Is this cheating? Yes. Too bad. Everything Monkish brews is incredibly delicious and I was so thrilled to have the opportunity to visit both of their taprooms on my SoCal trip! I had the following beers and I would recommend them all:

• Conscience Be Free: Double Dry Hopped Double IPA with Galaxy, Nelson Sauvin, and Simcoe

• Foggier Window: Double Dry Hopped Double IPA with Citra, Nelson Sauvin, and Galaxy

• Sticky Traffic: Double Dry Hopped Double IPA with Nelson Sauvin, Citra, Mosaic, and Galaxy

• Biggie Biggie Biggie: Triple IPA with Galaxy and El Dorado

• One Tree: Triple IPA with Strata and Idaho 7

• M 9.5: Saison aged in oak barrels for 18 months and conditioned on spent Blenheim apricots

ETERNAL FOREVER AT PURE BREWING IN SAN DIEGO, CA

Eternal Forever is a blend of Single and Double Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stouts with Cacao & Wild Thai Banana. Pure released this in celebration of their 6th Anniversary and I luckily was in town for the release. I actually had this beer twice while I was in San Diego, at Pure Balboa Park and at Pure Carlsbad, because it was just so good. The banana flavor was epic.

APPLE BRANDY BARREL AGED STEPPING ON TOES COLLABORATION BREW FROM WESTBROOK BREWING IN CHARLESTON, SC, THE EIGHTH STATE BREWING COMPANY IN GREENVILLE, SC, EVIL TWIN BREWING IN NEW YORK, NY AND EDMUND’S OAST BREWING IN CHARLESTON, SC

This is an Imperial Stout aged in Laird’s applejack apple brandy barrels for over two years then infused with toasted coconut, banana, macadamia nuts and vanilla beans. This beer is basically everything I love infused into one brew—apple brandy barrel aged, coconut, banana, and vanilla! This was an exceptional brew. I had the original Stepping on Toes last year and this one completely blows the other out of the water. Highly recommend if you can get your hands on it!

EVERYTHING AT SANTE ADAIRIUS RUSTIC ALES IN CAPITOLA AND SANTA CRUZ, CA

I visited both Sante Adairius locations while in Northern California—the OG taproom in Capitola and The Portal in Santa Cruz. I was insanely impressed with every single beer that I had:

Queen of the Season Foudre aged Saison; Wisdom is Learned Barrel Aged Saison with peaches; The Gift of Comfort Barrel aged Blonde ale with rose hips and Meyer Lemon; Landscapes #3 Oak aged Saison dry hopped with Kohia Nelson; Anais House Saison; Cellarman Oak aged Saison in collaboration with Triple Rock; Tomorrow, Today IPA with Citra, Simcoe and Mosaic

THE BEER FORMALLY KNOWN AS LA TACHE FROM THE ALE APOTHECARY IN BEND, OR

The Beer Formerly Known as La Tache is a Table Sour made of malted barley, wheat, Goschie Farms Cascade Hops, honey and house lactobacillus culture. It then spends 3-9 months fermenting in barrels prior to a month-long dry-hopping in oak barrels. Everything The Ale Apothecary makes is unique and funky, and this was no exception. I was taken aback by just how fantastic this was.

VERY SPECIAL LORD WHANGDOODLE FROM THE VEIL BREWING IN RICHMOND, VA

Very Special Lord Whangdoodle is an Imperial Chocolate Milk Stout aged in a blend of Bourbon, Cognac, Maple, and Apple Brandy Barrels conditioned on double hazelnuts, double truffle, double vanilla, and double coconut. This was an insanely delicious beer. The Veil’s Stouts are always impressive, but this was superb.

ADIEU ADIEU FROM MONKISH BREWING IN TORRANCE, CA

Adieu Adieu is a Double Dry Hopped Triple IPA with Citra hops. Monkish is consistently great with their IPAs, but Adieu Adieu takes it to another level. This was arguably the best IPA I had all year.

MAWMAW’S HUMBLEBERRY PIE COLLABORATION BREW FROM TWO TIDES BREWING IN SAVANNAH, GA AND INNER VOICE BREWING IN DECATUR, GA

MawMaw’s Humbleberry Pie is a Fruited Sour with raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, vanilla, cinnamon and graham cracker. It is packed with flavor and extremely easy to drink, but still comes in at 7% ABV.

THE HEART OF CHAOS TRIPLE IPA FROM FIDENS BREWING IN COLONIE, NY AT SNALLYGASTER

The Heart of Chaos is a Triple IPA with Citra, Nelson and Mosaic hops. This was brewed to celebrate 3 years of Fidens! This was my favorite beer from the Snallygaster beer festival in D.C. and a delicious brew.

BARREL AGED PASTRINAUTS (FOUR ROSES) COLLABORATION BREW FROM OTHER HALF BREWING IN NEW YORK, NY, J. WAKEFIELD BREWING IN MIAMI, FL, BOTTLE LOGIC BREWING IN ANAHEIM, CA, HORUS AGED ALES IN OCEANSIDE, CA AND MOKSA BREWING IN ROCKLIN, CA

Pastrinauts is an Imperial Stout with bananas, molasses, marshmallows and freeze dried ice cream. This version was aged in 15 year old Four Roses Barrels and clocks in at 14% ABV. This was insanely delicious and I wish I had another bottle!

Cheers to another year of delicious beers!
—Alexis

November and December 2022

November and December launched us further into Stout season and into a slue of delicious beers! I spent two weeks in New Zealand drinking a plethora of delicious Hazy IPAs, explored some new breweries and adopted a sweet little brew pup—Mosaic! In no particular order here were my top beers of November and December:

Check back next week for my top beers of the year!

I Heart NYC collaboration brew from Garage Project in Wellington, New Zealand and Other Half Brewing in New York, NY

This is a Hazy Pale Ale combining Other Half’s High Density Hop Charge with Garage Project’s Double Shot co-fermentation technique to create a ‘DSHDHC’ Hazy with Calypso, Citra, Simcoe and Strata hops. Best enjoyed on a trail summit with a killer view in Fiordland National Park.

Barrel Aged Pastrinauts (Four Roses) collaboration brew from Other Half Brewing in New York, NY, J. Wakefield Brewing in Miami, FL, Bottle Logic Brewing in Anaheim, CA, Horus Aged Ales in Oceanside, CA and Moksa Brewing in Rocklin, CA

Pastrinauts is an Imperial Stout with bananas, molasses, marshmallows and freeze dried ice cream. This version was aged in 15 year old Four Roses Barrels and clocks in at 14% ABV. This was insanely delicious and one of my favorite beers of the year.

Double Barrel Whale Rider from Weathered Souls Brewing in Charlotte, NC

Whale Rider is an Imperial Stout with toasted coconut, coconut and Madagascar vanilla beans. This version was double barrel aged in a Willet 8 year rye barrel and 15 year Woodford Reserve Masters barrel. Weathered Souls opened their Charlotte brewery in November and this was a fantastic beer to kick off their CLT beginnings.

Peter from Parrotdog Brewery in Wellington, New Zealand

Peter is an Imperial IPA. A lot of Hazys in New Zealand were delicious but Peter was a stand out!

Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Notable Ascent from Back Channel Brewing in Spring Park, MN

This is an Imperial Stout with Madagascar Vanilla aged in an Apple Brandy barrels. I am a sucker for apple brandy barrel aged beers and this was a perfect execution of flavors. I enjoyed this brew at Heist’s Night & Day 3 Festival. I need to get my hands on some more Back Channel beers!

Double Dry Hopped Ghost in the Machine from Parish Brewing in Broussard, LA

DDH Ghost is always delicious but this year’s batch was superb. DDH Ghost is a Double Dry Hopped Double IPA with all Citra hops. Juicy, smooth, flavorful and delightful.

Double Barrel Junie from Transient Artisan Ales in Bridgman, MI

This is an Imperial Rye Stout with Violet Sky cocoa nibs and salted caramel aged in Henry McKenna Bourbon barrels and Blis Maple Syrup barrels. Junie is a flavorful barrel forward brew from one of the best breweries in Michigan. I enjoyed this brew at Collect Beer Bar in Detroit!

Triple Eugene’s Axe from Fidens Brewing + Alex’s Axe collaboration brewing from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY and Troon Brewing in Hopewell, NJ

These were both phenomenal beers so I am cheating and doing a two-for-one here. Triple Eugene’s Axe is a Triple IPA with Citra and Galaxy hops. Alex’s Axe is a Hoppy Triple IPA with Nelson, Strata, Peacharine and Galaxy hops that is a collab with Troon. Generally I find Troon to be a bit overhyped, but this brew was incredible.

Bourbon Barrel Aged Bananaversary (2022 Edition) from Other Half Brewing in New York, NY

Bananaversary is an Imperial Pastry Stout with wild Thai bananas, coconut, toasted coconut, vanilla and macadamia nuts that is aged in bourbon barrels. I held onto this bottle for almost a full year before cracking it open and it was worth the wait. This has the perfect combination of adjuncts and barrel notes while being thiccc and lucious.

Check back next week to see my top beers of 2022! Cheers —Alexis

The Best Brewery Food in Charlotte

I’ve done the excruciating work of eating and drinking at every brewery that has their own food in Charlotte and created a ranking of the absolute best food at breweries around the city. A lot of breweries have rotating food trucks, but these are places with a permanent onsite restaurant or food truck.

Brunch at Legion SouthPark

In ranking order, here is the best brewery food in Charlotte:

Monday Night Brewing

Monday Night’s pizza is wildly delicious. It simply cannot be beat. The Hot Honey is my personal recommendation that I have ordered far too many times, but it is a delight. Highly recommend!

Salud Cerveceria

Pizza is also what Salud does best, but their appetizers, salads and sandwiches reign supreme too. Order upstairs in the brewery or downstairs in the beer bar and bottle shop.

Livy’s Neapolitan Pizzeria at Heist Brewery and Barrel Arts

Coming in third place is Livy’s at Heist’s Barrel Arts location. Their Neapolitan pizza is extremely delicious and their appetizers are also fantastic. There is no shortage of pizza and beer in Charlotte.

Resident Culture South End

BBQ is the name of the game at Resident Culture’s South End taproom. Chef Edmar Simoes hails from Brazil and put together a menu of BBQ classics and fresh twists. It includes shareables, BBQ Plates, Sandwiches, Desserts, and even a breakfast menu in their café. Pro tip—don’t skip the mac & cheese. They’ve also got a food truck outpost at the Plaza Midwood location.

Legion Brewing

Legion has four taprooms in Charlotte and they all have kitchens, but the menus at each spot are very similar so I’ve lumped them together versus ranking each one individually. They are in Plaza Midwood, SouthPark, West Morehead and their Trolley Barn location is in South End. Expect apps, sandwiches, salads, entrees, and brunch. The Legion pretzel is always a favorite, and West Morehead and SouthPark also have pizza.

Lenny Boy Brewing Company

Lenny Boy’s menu has a variety of appetizers and sandwiches. Their pretzels are delicious and they offer several different varieties—the everything pretzel with beer cheese and house-pickled veggies is top notch. Lenny Boy’s charcuterie is also not to be missed!

Heist Brewery NoDa

The original Heist location in NoDa has a large menu with anything from an appetizer to a full entrée and even brunch.

The Suffolk Punch

Suffolk Punch specifically crushes the brunch game. They even have weekday brunch instead of just weekend brunch like most places. Their main menu is also delicious and quite large—there is something for every palate!

Katsu Kart at HopFly Brewing

Katsu Kart specializes in Japanese Katsu Sandos that are unique and phenomenal. They have a permanent truck parked on the side of HopFly and another truck that rotates around the city.

Brewers at 4001 Yancey

Yancey’s menu is consistently delicious. Whether it is a unique appetizer, a pizza or a beer dinner, everything is always done well. They have more of a restaurant vibe than a brewery so it is a great spot for a regular sit-down meal.

Brewers at 4001 Yancey

Other CLT breweries with food, in alphabetical order:

Burial Beer Company

Burial’s Charlotte taproom menu is simple with burgers, fries, wings and tacos.

Devil’s Logic Brewing Company

Devil’s Logic has a very small menu with a couple of snacks, two types of pizza, a cuban sandwich and pork carnitas tacos.

Frothy Beard Brewing Company

Frothy Beard makes pizza on the counter top without a kitchen, it’s a no from me.

Gilde Brewery

Gilde has a full menu of German classics such as pretzels, schnitzel, spaetzle and more. They also have brunch on the weekends.

The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery

Olde Meck has a full food menu with German fare, salads, appetizers, burgers and sandwiches. They also have brunch on the weekends.

Panzú Brewery

The Caribbean menu here includes tapas, soups, and a lunch-only menu with tacos, sandwiches and more.

Protagonist

Protagonist is best known for their massive pizza slices and whole pies. They also have appetizers and salads.

Sugar Creek Brewing Company

Sugar Creek has a bit of a unique menu with soups, salads, small plates, paninis and doner kebabs.

Sycamore Brewing

Sycamore’s menu includes typical bar foods like apps, burgers, pizzas, salads and spreads.

Town Brewing

Town’s menu includes appetizers, sandwiches, salads, flatbreads and weekend brunch specials.

Izzy’s at Triple C Brewing Company

Izzy’s menu includes pizzas, appetizers, wings and sandwiches. I expect some folks will be outraged with this not being included in the “best brewery food” list above, particularly with the hype around their burger, but I have found the food to be very underwhelming.

Wooden Robot South End

Wooden Robot’s food menu is based around appetizers and sandwiches. They also have their own coffee.

Fonta Flora x Papi Queso at Optimist Hall

Breweries at Food Halls:

Fonta Flora Brewing at Optimist Hall

Fonta Flora is a superb brewery and their location at Optimist Hall makes it easy to snag food from one of the vendors upstairs and bring it to the taproom or patio. My favorite tenants are The Dumpling Lady, Papi Queso and Suarez Bakery, but there is a huge variety to choose from. You can also order online and just pop up into the food hall to grab your goods when they are ready.

Free Range Brewing at Camp North End

Free Range opened a taproom at the fabulous Camp North End. This outdoor food hall and event space is full of different types of vendors. My favorite food stops are Babe and Butcher, Bleu Barn and La Caseta.

What do you think is the top brewery food in Charlotte? Let me know in the comments! Cheers—Alexis