The Eighth State Brewing Company

 

 

Stopped by on our way home from touring Clemson with my son.

Fairly busy when we got there, but not overly. Beertender was fairly nice, but could see she was a bit frustrated. Other guy took my order. Got a flight of five beers. Three darkies and a couple IPAs and lagers. Hit or miss.

Was interested in some bottles, but they were asking $42 for a 12 oz bottle. Easy pass.

Decent sized tap room, walled off with some barrels. Kind of a dirty place. Several tables weren't cleaned. Very dusty areas.

Overall, checked off a brewery I've wanted to visit for a while. Not overly eager to return, unless in the area.

Underneath and adjacent to some corporate offices, their hours may be a little flexible as they let the white collars cutting out of work early come in before open. Aside from the somewhat stiff aura they bring with them--and there were a lot of them--the vibe here is actually pretty cool, sitting amongst the barrels, wax pots, and the like. What's of particular note to me is that the bar is adult-sized. High even to the taller body, it allows this hunchback to not have to crook over to rest his elbows.

At this thoughtful bar, the taps provide an amazing backdrop. And by that, I mean to compliment whatever or whoever produced them, as they are each uniquely crafted out of iron and wood or what have you. The whiskey shelf above them also happens to feature the most ridiculous selection I've seen at any brewery, and that includes Side Project. For longer than it probably should have, this had me scratching my head as to why Ohio cities much closer to Kentucky and of similar or larger populations have a harder time getting such bottles.

That being beside the point, the taplist is fairly varied and long, supplemented by bottles and cans, both not just consisting of their own wares, but also from many different breweries across the land. Their beer itself is solid at times, but I found myself more impressed by their unusual sours than their hype stouts and barleywines, which all seemed to be collabs with other breweries. There darker liquids are just all way too sweet for me, but the other styles we explored were interesting.

Since we camped out for a while, we also had some food, and the BBQ jackfruit sandwich wasn't half bad.

They’re doing a nice job with covered outdoor seating. Solid tap list with options across multiple styles. I split a sour flight and a stout flight with my bro. This place came highly recommended but every one of their beers was a sugar bomb. Just too sweet to my taste. A welcome addition to the Greenville scene.

Small brewpub located under an architectural firm next to the tracks. Short bar opposite the entry seats about 7 with a dozen tables on the floor. 7 of their beers on tap plus 5 guests and a killer bottle list (unfortunately for on-premise consumption only). I had the Outer Sunset and it was excellent. Friendly bartender. Small bar snack menu, but I did not try the food.