Wild Wolf sold, closing Jan 30

It's probably been 7-6 years since I visited the Nellysford location. The property itself is quite impressive and there's a lot of potential for the new owners if they get creative. If it turns out to be who I think it is I know they have been trying to get that property for probably close to a year. Really nice timing too as it may take a few months to get the space ready but just in time for weather to get better and welcome all the people that travel Rt 151 checking out the breweries, wineries, cideries, hiking, etc.

As for WW's beer, I was never a fan of anything they brewed other than one batch of Primal Instinct I tried 4 or 5 years ago. The Irish Stout and Scotch Ale was decent but overall it's pretty meh compared to others in the area. They never really evolved beyond what they have been brewing for years. Last I tried them was when they has the spot in C'Ville just off downtown a few years ago which seemed like was open then closed in the blink of an eye. I believe the owner's son, who was also the brewer, ended up moving out of state a while back so who knows who has been handling the brewing for the past couple years. Might be why they never really brewed many, if any, new recipes.

 

The betting odds are it being Three Notch'd. I believe last year they began discussions with Mary about purchasing the property and leasing it back to WW so they could continue as is but don't think she was too keen on that idea. I guess she held out as long as she could and ultimately decided to sell and just close altogether.

 

Might be a long game play but the WW location shapes up well with their multiple buildings on site they could setup dedicated spaces for expanding their seltzer production. I've seen they already hold the naming rights to Three Notch'd Distilling Company so they could branch into spirits since they do offer craft cocktails. They recently announced more in their N/A lineup and since they serve only serve their own craft colas, root beers, ginger beers, etc and not Pepsi, Coke, etc in their Craft Brewery & Kitchen locations could even look into that. Maybe even bring back some iteration of their former Sour House or do more barrel aging. Really a lot more space and there is no shortage of options for them to explore. It could even be a smaller version of what Devils Backbone has done with their Basecamp location.

 

This saddens me as Wild Wolf and Blue Mountain and DB were some of the first craft breweries I ever visited and even bought a Wild Wolf Tshirt . Beers were meh but the place was cool. I’m thinking this was around 2011-2012 timeframe perhaps? This was way back when Blue Mountain was arguably the best brewery in Virginia (or was getting a lot of hype on the forums anyway), Richmond breweries were not even on the map yet, so that really shows you how the craft beer landscape has changed.

 

My experience is much like yours. I used to primarily stop there on the way home from the Festy at Devils Backbone (Blue Mountain was my stop on the way to the Festy). Haven't been back since the Festy moved and ultimately ended.

Always enjoyed the food and thought the property was nice. Talked to the owners son/brewer a few times. At the time his main goal was to win a medal at GABF, for a stout I think. He thought that recognition was all that was needed. Didn't know he moved on.

I went to the c-ville location 2x or 3x and liked the place, but it seemed to have issues with beer availability and food items. But the food we got was good a priced well. Then all of a sudden closed.

 

Three Notch’d closed the deal earlier this week. They will spend the next 7-8 months renovating the property before re-opening.

 

Interesting a 6th location, seems a bit close to their Cville and Harrisonburg spots, best of luck to em. Their other 5 spots are pretty good, just visited their newest one in Virginia Beach which is in nice loc VB Towncenter, where Gordon Bierch used to be.

 

I think this new spot will be unlike any of their other locations. Maybe like a smaller version of DBB’s Basecamp with multiple buildings, live music stage, etc.

IX Park where their CVille spot is located is also for sale which includes the building so if/when that sales and depending on what the new owner plans the 151 location could even serve as their new HQ. Starr Hill has had success with their CVille taproom at Dairy Market even though the Crozet home base is on 20 mins away.

 

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