Drinking Beer in Charlotte

[grodney]

We went to the new(?) Legion on West Morehead.  Cool place!  And they were brewing so the hop smell was crazy strong.  Plenty of tables/space outside out front though only umbrellas for shade.  Unfortunately, full wait-service, which isn't great if you just want to drink beer and hang out.  Bathrooms don't have paper towels.....only s**t-blowers.  

Verdict:  4/10 for a beer, 8/10 if you want lunch.

Edited January 5, 2023 by grodney

[CLTProductions]

17 hours ago, grodney said:

We went to the new(?) Legion on West Morehead.  Cool place!  And they were brewing so the hop smell was crazy strong.  Plenty of tables/space outside out front though only umbrellas for shade.  Unfortunately, full wait-service, which isn't great if you just want to drink beer and hang out.  Bathrooms don't have paper towels.....only s**t-blowers.  

Verdict:  4/10 for a beer, 8/10 if you want lunch.

Their pizza is actually phenomenal 

[grodney]

On 1/6/2023 at 10:24 AM, CLTProductions said:

Their pizza is actually phenomenal 

Yeah we had 2 of them and they were terrific!

[kermit]

I have not yet been to Bhramari, but I was in the neighborhood on Saturday evening and they were closed. A quick look at google maps says they are 'temporarily closed.' Their website, under hours, says they are closed all week but they have no other information.  Given their history (discussed above) there may be some good gossip about this (a group 'take this job and shove it' situation?)

Shrug. The beer business isn't what it used to be...

Quote

 

Edited January 17, 2023 by kermit

[InSouthPark]

17 hours ago, kermit said:

I have not yet been to Bhramari, but I was in the neighborhood on Saturday evening and they were closed. A quick look at google maps says they are 'temporarily closed.' Their website, under hours, says they are closed all week but they have no other information.  Given their history (discussed above) there may be some good gossip about this (a group 'take this job and shove it' situation?)

Shrug. The beer business isn't what it used to be...

 

The Asheville location also just closed its kitchen and laid everyone off.  

So this isn't a Charlotte thing.  Could be selling.  Could be closing.  Could be "just taking a breather" LOL.  

My guess, they are keeping the taproom open in Asheville to sell of remaining inventory and will see a story about them closing permanently in month or so.  Their south slope location is prime and they could be selling out.  

[grodney]

Re-posting here for those of you that aren't on the reddit machine.  From one point-of-view, the count is 26 local and 9 non-local.......the number of non-local is sort-of staggering to me.  (I removed Bhramari assuming that they're gone for good.....can re-add if they decide to resurrect.)

 

Edited January 29, 2023 by grodney

[CLTProductions]

Bhramari is def gone for good lol

[kermit]

12 minutes ago, CLTProductions said:

Bhramari is def gone for good lol

I am officially declaring this a cursed location.

(but it is a VERY attractive piece of real estate)

[CLTProductions]

34 minutes ago, kermit said:

I am officially declaring this a cursed location.

(but it is a VERY attractive piece of real estate)

To be fair, it has yet to have a competent operator lol

[wilmore]

1 hour ago, kermit said:

I am officially declaring this a cursed location.

(but it is a VERY attractive piece of real estate)

It's gotta be one of the worst locations for a brewery in the entire Greater SouthEnd area. 

[kermit]

6 minutes ago, wilmore said:

It's gotta be one of the worst locations for a brewery in the entire Greater SouthEnd area. 

At the moment, sure. But give it a few more years with apartments in the Gold DIstrict and the possibility of a stadium move (and new pedestrian connection) and it becomes one of the best spots in town.

[InSouthPark]

New neighborhood "community" self pour place opening on Carmel Road with a different strategy.   Dogs are not allowed (not even on the fake grass patio outside) but wild kids kids running around is encouraged (their words, not mine). They have spent millions building a fancy day care with beer.  Their big buzzword is "community" but for some reason, they don't believe dogs are part of our community and won't allow them anywhere, even though no food is served.

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/charlottefive/c5-food-drink/article272595447.html?taid=63f939ffebdba800016b19d0&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

There will be a greenway entrance 0.75 away and multiple new apartments planned right behind the place and in the area. 

I give it a year in its current format.  A place like this will need regulars, neighbors, etc to keep afloat. It's a weird location. I was at Resident Culture Saturday...at least half the people there had a dog, even though it was a crappy day.  Kids running around too.  All in perfect harmony. 

I don't want to go visit a fancy new beer bar with kids "running wild" as they say, especially if I can't bring my fur-kid on a nice Sunday afternoon.  I am all for a family friendly place, but lets make it family friendly for all our family members.  Banning dogs, even outside, isn't a great look for a "neighborhood community" type place.

Their press release is very misleading on the subject as well, I'm sure because there would be backlash if they actually said, no pets allowed.  "We will prioritize kids over pets".   Priority would imply pets have a place.  They don't, and they have confirmed the ban to me and others in Instagram.

Will I go occasionally? Sure, its a mile away.  But they don't offer anything I can't get elsewhere and will be in fact one of the only patios in Charlotte that doesn't allow dogs, including most restaurants.

Of course this is all just my opinion.  They spent over 2mil building the place and they can do what they want with it. Not my retirement.  Just sounds like a missed opportunity to truly be a neighborhood community place.  

 

 

 

 

 

[CLTProductions]

On 2/28/2023 at 10:28 AM, InSouthPark said:

New neighborhood "community" self pour place opening on Carmel Road with a different strategy.   Dogs are not allowed (not even on the fake grass patio outside) but wild kids kids running around is encouraged (their words, not mine). They have spent millions building a fancy day care with beer.  Their big buzzword is "community" but for some reason, they don't believe dogs are part of our community and won't allow them anywhere, even though no food is served.

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/charlottefive/c5-food-drink/article272595447.html?taid=63f939ffebdba800016b19d0&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

There will be a greenway entrance 0.75 away and multiple new apartments planned right behind the place and in the area. 

I give it a year in its current format.  A place like this will need regulars, neighbors, etc to keep afloat. It's a weird location. I was at Resident Culture Saturday...at least half the people there had a dog, even though it was a crappy day.  Kids running around too.  All in perfect harmony. 

I don't want to go visit a fancy new beer bar with kids "running wild" as they say, especially if I can't bring my fur-kid on a nice Sunday afternoon.  I am all for a family friendly place, but lets make it family friendly for all our family members.  Banning dogs, even outside, isn't a great look for a "neighborhood community" type place.

Their press release is very misleading on the subject as well, I'm sure because there would be backlash if they actually said, no pets allowed.  "We will prioritize kids over pets".   Priority would imply pets have a place.  They don't, and they have confirmed the ban to me and others in Instagram.

Will I go occasionally? Sure, its a mile away.  But they don't offer anything I can't get elsewhere and will be in fact one of the only patios in Charlotte that doesn't allow dogs, including most restaurants.

Of course this is all just my opinion.  They spent over 2mil building the place and they can do what they want with it. Not my retirement.  Just sounds like a missed opportunity to truly be a neighborhood community place. 

100% with you on this one. Most of the time, kids are infinitely more disruptive and annoying than dogs

[InSouthPark]

On 3/1/2023 at 11:41 AM, CLTProductions said:

100% with you on this one. Most of the time, kids are infinitely more disruptive and annoying than dogs

I was there for C5 tonight and confirmed service animals only inside and out.  I wore our dog rescue shirt to the media night in protest haha

[kermit]

I gotta assume that the volume of craft beer consumption is on the decline (this thread has been dormant for two months). Since this is likely to mean that most local breweries likely have excess production capacity now, I think it is time for one of the big locals to roll out a cheap(er) mass appeal beer. Something that  you find on nearly every tap list in town that is slightly cheaper than the mass market swill and just as ubiquitous.

Seems like with just a little effort we could have our own version of Iron City, Blatz  or Old Style (but better). Captain Jack, Gilde Pils or Rewind could do the job (I am sure there are other options). My first choice would be Copper to fill this role, but I suspect the maltiness of it limits its mass appeal.

[I saw a new OMB IPA in cans at the Honey Hunters game last night, I felt like OMB's skills at making consistent and straightforward beer are being wasted on efforts like breaking into the IPA market.]

Edited April 30, 2023 by kermit

[CLT Development]

On 4/30/2023 at 2:13 PM, kermit said:

I gotta assume that the volume of craft beer consumption is on the decline (this thread has been dormant for two months). Since this is likely to mean that most local breweries likely have excess production capacity now, I think it is time for one of the big locals to roll out a cheap(er) mass appeal beer. Something that  you find on nearly every tap list in town that is slightly cheaper than the mass market swill and just as ubiquitous.

Seems like with just a little effort we could have our own version of Iron City, Blatz  or Old Style (but better). Captain Jack, Gilde Pils or Rewind could do the job (I am sure there are other options). My first choice would be Copper to fill this role, but I suspect the maltiness of it limits its mass appeal.

[I saw a new OMB IPA in cans at the Honey Hunters game last night, I felt like OMB's skills at making consistent and straightforward beer are being wasted on efforts like breaking into the IPA market.]

Czech Pils please.

[CTiger]

On 4/30/2023 at 2:13 PM, kermit said:

I gotta assume that the volume of craft beer consumption is on the decline (this thread has been dormant for two months). Since this is likely to mean that most local breweries likely have excess production capacity now, I think it is time for one of the big locals to roll out a cheap(er) mass appeal beer. Something that  you find on nearly every tap list in town that is slightly cheaper than the mass market swill and just as ubiquitous.

Do you think actual consumption is down, or do you think the dormancy of this thread is more closely tied with a lull in the announcement of new breweries and taprooms?  Every brewery I've been to over the past couple of months is just as crowded as ever.  I would imagine there is a lack of new projects due to the overall economic environment (interest rates, inflation, employment) being more prohibitive  than a lack of demand, but just my two cents.

Also, I wish OMB's Bock Party wasn't seasonal because that is a delicious beer that I could see having mass appeal.  

[kermit]

On 5/2/2023 at 10:19 AM, CTiger said:

Do you think actual consumption is down, or do you think the dormancy of this thread is more closely tied with a lull in the announcement of new breweries and taprooms?  Every brewery I've been to over the past couple of months is just as crowded as ever.  I would imagine there is a lack of new projects due to the overall economic environment (interest rates, inflation, employment) being more prohibitive  than a lack of demand, but just my two cents.

Also, I wish OMB's Bock Party wasn't seasonal because that is a delicious beer that I could see having mass appeal.  

I feel like consumption is down, but only based on the classic scientific fauxpas of extrapolating from my personal experience (and I have gotten old enough that I have had to cut back my beer drinking).

Other than this thread, it feels like the local section at the Teeter and Pbx are much slimmer than they once were and I see a much higher ratio of 'macro-micros' on tap locally (e.g. Lagunitas, New Belgium , etc.).  I dunno, it just feels (to me) like peak Charlotte brewing happened in 2019ish. Happy to be wrong.

Edited May 4, 2023 by kermit

[videtur quam contuor]

Remembering today my first local craft beer experience, Johnson Beer Company. Susan and Tim Johnson were from New Orleans and moved here with Digital Corporation. That is an historic feature right there. After home brewing for a year they moved to an industrial facility on South Boulevard near Iverson. There was no South End at the time. I visited the facility and they welcomed me while wearing rubber knee high boots and hosing the concrete floor of their business. They sold bottle beer under their name to retailers, as I remember it. Two years later they moved to the former Pet dairy building at Hawthorne and Central. I visited there also. The effort and enthusiasm was apparent. There was a decline in the local/craft sensation and Dilworth Brewing went out of business around that time. It was at the current Bakersfield location on East Boulevard.  Johnsons struggled to remain afloat and began brewing for labels such as retailer and restaurant branded and others willing to pay for a special label. Their brand thus diluted they sought help with a public offering. My brother-in-law bought a few shares as he was a home brewer and this was his effort to reward those who had more ambition than he. Nonetheless the Johnsons went out of business about 2007  as the Biz Journal story relates.

edit: as the news story says Johnson went out of business in 2001, not 2007.

They missed the wave but are remembered fondly. 

July 2001 story:

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2001/07/30/story7.html

Susan and Tim Johnson began brewing beer on the porch of their Charlotte home in 1994 after quitting their jobs at Digital Equipment Corp.

In 1995, they moved the operation to South End. Within two years, production had grown to 6,000 barrels per year. In 1997, the couple moved to a 1920s Plaza-Midwood building that once housed Pet Dairy's bottling and ice cream plant.

That same year, Johnson Beer filed paperwork to go public under a state law that lets small companies sell shares without going through a full-blown initial public offering. The offering apparently fell short of expectations, and Johnson Beer allowed its registration to sell stock expire in fall 1998.

 

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by tarhoosier

[kermit]

Brewery tenant #5 or maybe 6 (Including one or two that never opened) since the start of the pandemic is coming to the Sunstead/Salty Parrot/Bhramari space on Graham (in the Gold district).

From the Ledger:

Quote

A brewery heads to South End: Frothy Beard Brewing Co. of Charleston plans to open a location in South End, at 1200 S. Graham St. It is expected to open in July and will have a kitchen serving pizzas, burgers and salads. (Axios Charlotte)

 

Edited May 24, 2023 by kermit

[grodney]

23 hours ago, kermit said:

 since the start of the pandemic 

 

 

To be fair, Sunstead's beer sucked even before the pandemic. 

[InSouthPark]

Frothy has been around a long time in Charleston (10 years) and makes solid, above average beers (and a very wide spectrum of beers with just a couple IPA's).  It's not a brewery people travel to go to, its a solid local place to go for a few beers and some pizza.   Nearby brewery hoppers that do come in from out of town for HopFly / RC might give it a go if they are tired of the IPA trail.  

I think the curse ends here.  The neighbors will embrace it and good word will go out after that. I never heard a sole say a good thing about the previous tenants...ever.  Had a good buddy stop by the Salt Parrot and his assessment was "all the beers were terrible" and he isn't a hard guy to please. 

Bhramari made a name for itself in Asheville with good food and "adventurous" beer.  They came to Charlotte with no food and fresh off the employee harassment (not to mention the reported disgusting cleanliness of the brewhouse), and they ran off the guy that slated to run the CLT location.  Was doomed from the start.  Some good social media will do this place good too.  Bhramari Charlotte social was pretty much terrible.  

[CTiger]

Counterpoint, Frothy Beard is a gross name for a brewery. 

[InSouthPark]

18 hours ago, CTiger said:

Counterpoint, Frothy Beard is a gross name for a brewery. 

Not sure they were going the Urban Dictionary route for the name...

[tozmervo]

2 hours ago, InSouthPark said:

Not sure they were going the Urban Dictionary route for the name...

It might be that Rick Santorum is a silent investor.