This article was featured in RVAMag #23: Winter 2015.
This article was featured in RVAMag #23: Winter 2015. You can read all of issue #23 here or pick it up at local shops around RVA right now.
7 Hills Are Pouring Plenty of New Brews
After opening in September at their S. 15th St location with only guest drafts available, 7 Hills are finally able to pour their own beers. In terms of year-round offerings, customers have Belle Isle Blonde (a Belgian Blonde Ale), Pipeline Pale Ale (an American Pale), Shiplock IPA, Brown’s Island Brown Ale, and 42nd Street Stout (a low-alcohol, dry stout) to choose from. Looking ahead to the even colder months, 21st Street Strong Scotch Ale should be debuting in December, and in January, North Bank Imperial Stout should be available for slow sipping. Guest drafts, wine, and spirits are also available.
Lakeside Nanobrewery Final Gravity Has Some Fine Choices Available
A scarce few months after opening, Final Gravity already has an incredibly diverse lineup of beers available. Malty offerings vary from something as light as Firestation 5 Amber to something as intense as Irish Goodbye Imperial Stout (made with VA-grown and malted barley). Saison De Meyer and Big Payback (a Belgian Strong Dark Ale) cater to Belgian beer lovers. Hopheads aren’t exactly left out, with Venus IPA and Venus Rising Double IPA in the lineup. Both are made with Citra and Mosaic hops. In the works is a pre-prohibition-style American Pilsner (stronger and hoppier than typical pilsners) and an American Pale Ale featuring Galaxy and Citra hops. A spiced Sweet Potato Brown Ale and Funky Drummer, a Brown Ale on coffee, are also available.
Ellwood Thompson’s Roll Out Taps For Growler Fills
As if Ellwood Thompson’s beer selection wasn’t already good enough, customers now have even more options to choose from, in the form of three taps, available both for growler fills and draft pours for those dining in. The focus for Ellwood’s draft list is on the local — anything that is brewed within 100 miles of the store is fair game. Soon enough, limited edition Ellwood Thompson’s-branded Shine Craft Vessel growlers will be available. In the future, Ellwood’s is looking to create unique, collaborative brews with local brewers, which will be available only at The Beet Café.
Strangeways: No Presents On Christmas, But Plenty To Drink
As would befit a brewery that promises strange beers, Strangeways is not really making any Christmas beers for Christmas. However, if one is the mood for something spiced, Room 237 Biere D’Hiver, their high-ABV winter warmer, is back on draft. Also returning, albeit to bottles, is the red wine barrel-aged English Strong Ale, Virginia Stingo. In terms of new beers, we have a wild yeast-fermented Belgian-style Tripel Ale to look forward to, as well as several barrel-aged variants of an Imperial Stout. The Stout was brewed with chocolate and vanilla, and the bulk of it is being aged in bourbon barrels, with other portions of it being aged in tequila and rye whiskey barrels.
