Raleigh, NC

Lil late, but I'd be remiss if I failed to mention last weekend’s World Beer Festival in Raleigh, NC. We actually kicked things off Friday night at Busy Bee Café where I ordered Fullsteam’s Sour Mashed Sweet Potato on draft. Glad I tried it, but not spectacular enough to get again. Kelly drank the Piper Down Scottish Ale (Bourbon Barrel Aged) from Ballast Point – was expecting a Wee Heavy but it’s a lighter Scottish Ale with lower ABV. His second beer on tap was the delightfully hoppy Terrapin Rye Squared.

Saturday heralded cold, clouds and crowds. After laying a solid foundation at The Flying Biscuit Café (WOW they’re not kidding about those creamy, dreamy grits), we lost critical time waiting to enter Moore Square. Not realizing the park offered access at two other corners plus a VIP gate, we joined the lemmings at S. Blount and E. Martin in a line that stretched around City Market. Eventually, with IDs checked and tickets scanned, attendees were armed with an event guide and tasting glass.

Two “beer gardens” (long rows of packed, increasingly loud and smelly tents) hosted 110 breweries – of which we sampled 30 – with an array of taps and bottles. The highlight, for us at least, was the quantity of unfamiliar Carolina breweries. That was the biggest draw and did not disappoint! Our favorite was Thomas Creek Brewery with their eight taps from Upstate South Carolina. I liked Raleigh’s own Big Boss, too.

Epic Acorn

With our delayed start, the noon-4pm timeframe felt tight so unfortunately we were unable to peruse the beer talks, food vendors or entertainment. And despite the guide’s “beer education” about responsible consumption, the inevitable rowdy binge drinkers showed up for unlimited samples. I’ll admit we succumbed to the closing bell scramble ourselves! With the exception of some shoving and one witnessed catfight however, the revelers behaved and cleared out for the 6-10pm session.

We capped off the experience by cabbing to The Cupcake Shoppe Bakery for an afternoon treat and then hit up The Raleigh Times Bar. I was content with chicken fried pickles and a salami brie burger (beer munchies, anyone?) but Kelly forged ahead with a flight of Bell’s Expedition Stout (years ’08, ’09 and ’10) and the Stillwater/Mikkeller collaboration, Two Gypsies Our Side. Then we drank a LOT of water.

My sister recently moved to Raleigh so we’re already compiling an itinerary for the next visit…definitely meeting some “Beer Knurds” at the legendary Flying Saucer and chowing down on Carolina BBQ at The Pitt. Any other suggestions for the agenda? Still in its infancy, Raleigh’s craft beer scene is certainly expanding and headed in the right direction. It exceeded our expectations and we look forward to future trips!