April is NC Beer Month #ncbeer

April is NC Beer Month. In April 2015, the North Carolina Division of Tourism and the North Carolina Brewers Guild join forces for the third time to celebrate NC Beer Month.

North Carolina is one of the best states for craft brewing. Specifically, we have breweries that boast multiple medals from the Great American Beer Festival and The World Beer Cup.


I've partnered with NC Beer Month,  Lowes Foods and Visit Winston-Salem, to bring you a series of content AND events throughout the month of April to educate, promote and entice you about the craft beer scene in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Did you know that Winston-Salem is the birthplace of North Carolina craft beer?

I've written about craft beer before, but it's not just me in this thing this time. I'm coming out of the gate blazing with a team behind me! Think of it like The Boondock Saints. But wielding cans of NC craft beer instead of guns.

This is getting interesting, no?

That's right. Before Sierra Nevada, Oskar Blues, and New Belgium, were twinkles in their forefathers' eyes and moved East Coast operations to the mountains of North Carolina, Moravians in Salem were purifying water, roasting barley, and producing beer in the Wachau valley, known today as the Piedmont Triad.

The Moravians settled in this area in 1766 by way of Pennsylvania, by way of Germany. The old Germanic ways of living, working and producing beer did not leave this devoutly religious group of people as they settled into North Carolina. Taverns and inns were very much a part of the landscape and what better to entice patrons to pay to stay than with a cold brew?

The first brewery in North Carolina began in 1774 in Old Salem. A whole two years before we declared independence, we were getting it in! The beer of the 18th century was very different from what we drink today. First of all, it had little to no carbonation. That's a modern invention that yeast and fermentation provide.

Small Batch Beer Co., which opened November 2013 has partnered with Old Salem Gardens and Museums, Inc. to recreate this 18th century receipt (what recipes were called back then) and have it for sale to the public during the month of April. Named Salem Lot 93, it's based on historic recipes and techniques. The new brew includes a four-hour boil and an open oak fermentation process.

Photo courtesy of Small Batch Beer Co.

Super. Cool.

To find more information about this brew, where to get it, Small Batch Beer Co., the beer scene in Winston-Salem or anything else beer related, click HERE.

Stay tuned throughout the month of April for more history, receipts recipes and chances to win travel prizes and opportunities to Visit Winston-Salem.