There are so many reasons you might feel you deserve a reward: you’ve worked hard this week, maybe you completed a big assignment at work or you finished that project on your honey-do list you have been putting off for a long time; you nailed that crossword puzzle; you bit your tongue when your in-law…
A Family Bond- Bond Brothers Beer Company, Cary NC
The theme of family goes beyond the sibling owners. Within seconds of our arrival at Bond Brothers Beer, we realized this was not the typical brewery crowd. For patrons of this brewery, this was a family outing. People brought their kids, who enjoyed playing on the outdoor patio area while Mom and Dad appreciated the…
Picking Favorites From Our First Year
FirstInFlights.com celebrates its one-year anniversary today. We have not yet achieved our ultimate goal of visiting every one of North Carolina’s breweries, but we’re well on our way. In honor of our first anniversary, let’s take a look back at some of our personal highlights from Year One. Mike’s Picks: Top Five Brewery Hangouts 1….
Building a better Gizmo- Gizmo Brew Works -Raleigh NC
So we all know “that guy” who has that really cool man cave, where he and his degenerate friend hang out all the time drinking beer. Maybe he has built it in his old barn, a garage, or boatshed. Maybe you’re lucky enough to be one of his degenerate friends who are there all the…
Hitting the Sweet Spot- Sugar Creek Brewing Company Charlotte NC
Charlotte is North Carolina ‘s largest city with a large number of young professionals so it is not surprising that is a hot bed for Craft breweries. Several of Charlottes breweries are well known by craft beer lovers throughout the entire state. It is fair to say that the majority of Carolina craft beer…
Fanatical Fun- D9 Brewing Company Cornelius NC
The Brew Crew and I had D9 on our radar for some time and as we planned our trip to the Charlotte area. After not so much discussion we knew we had to include a slight detour to the suburban town of Cornelius to visit this brewery. It was their unique beer list that attracted…
Kinston: City Of Motherly Love
As the year ended and I looked back at 2015, I realized that one of the highlights of the year for me was an overnight trip to Kinston, N.C. That struck me as a bit funny; a decade ago, who would have thought that the little old textile and tobacco town in Eastern North Carolina…
Rolling Down A River: Neuse River Brewing Co. Raleigh NC
Neuse River Brewing Co. (NRBC) is located in one of the best craft beer neighborhoods in the state, the five points area of Raleigh. Writing about Neuse River, I will find it difficult to not rave about the incredible community of Five Points. It is my belief that the owners of NRBC, Ryan Kolarov and…
Wedge Issue: Which Beer To Choose?
A burgeoning hub for craft beer enthusiasts, Asheville offers visitors a diverse selection of outstanding breweries spread across town. There’s a cluster of eight breweries in the district that stretches from downtown south toward McCormick Field (home of the Asheville Tourists minor league baseball team), and two more breweries farther south near Biltmore Village. Down…
Wilmington Brewing Co. Makes Drinking Even More Fun
Many of North Carolina’s plucky upstart breweries have come to the same realization: people like to have fun while they drink great beer. You don’t have to spend big money to create an upscale taproom as long as you create a fun space where people like to hang out. Wilmington Brewing Company executes that approach…
Flyby: An Update on Steel String in Carrboro
We stopped back by Steel String in Carrboro, reviewed by Mike and The Brew Crew back in June, because we’d heard they were branching out a bit in their beers. We’d heard right: of the five Steel String beers on tap this week, two were grisettes. Grisettes are typically light farmhouse-style ales designed to quench…
Malt-clad Beers at Ironclad Brewing in Wilmington
Ironclad Brewing is within walking distance of the old shipyards where its namesakes were crafted and the history of downtown Wilmington is woven into this bar. Down by the waterfront in Wilmington, NC, Ironclad Brewing is 0.3 miles (7 minute walk) from Flytrap Brewing and 0.2 miles (3 minute walk) from Front Street Brewing–a great walking…
First in Flights 