North Carolina Craft Beer & Breweries

North Carolina Craft Beer & Breweries
By Erik Lars Myers
John F. Blair, February 2012, $16.95

Around 1710, a German colonialist living in New Bern, N.C., sent a letter to his friend back home requesting brewing equipment—“because my wife understands brewing so well and has done it for years, and the drink is very scarce here.” So begins Erik Myers’ account of North Carolina’s brewing history, which all adds up to the state’s robust contemporary beer culture. Since North Carolina’s Pop the Cap movement lifted ABV restrictions in 2005, over 20 breweries have opened in the state. Myers interviews the brewers who made North Carolina a destination, profiling each brewery, from the beer mecca of Asheville to the Raleigh-Durham college scene, and through the more remote areas, from the mountains to the coast, with stops in the Triangle and Piedmont regions. Myers is a tour guide we can trust: A veteran beer journalist, he hones in on what makes each brewery exceptional and tells their stories with that in mind. Grab a pint of Nantahala (or Mystery, or Duck-Rabbit, etc.), and start mapping your North Carolina road trip. ■