The Answer Archives

RVA ON TAP: Hallobeer, Booz Crawls, & Punk’in Carver Parties

Caley Sturgill | October 23, 2019

Topics: Ardent craft ales, beer, beer column, Bingo Beer Co, Black Heath Meadery, Blue Bee Cider, Buskey Cider, Castleburg Brewery, Cobra Cabana, courthouse creek cider, Hallobeer, Halloweek, Halloween, Hardywood, Isley, Isley Brewing Company, Lickinghole Creek, Reservoir Distillery, RVA On Tap, Stone brewing, strangeways, The Answer, The Veil Brewing Co., Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, three notchd, Vasen Brewing Company

What’s happening, craft beer lovers of RVA?! Welcome to this week’s RVA On Tap, RVA Magazine’s weekly column for all your craft beer-related events, releases, festivals, and all the booze news your hearts desire.

If you missed the last column, you can check that out here. Our kegs are overflowing this week with beer releases and festivals, events, and other cool happenings around town, so hold on to your mugs.

This week, you’ll have so many choices for events that you won’t be able to attend enough in one day. Hardywood Park Craft Brewery is kicking off HALLOWEEK with their Haunted Food Truck Court tomorrow night, Hallobeer is going down at The Answer Brewpub, Cobra Cabana is hosting Stone Brewing Richmond for a Punk’in Carver party, the Scott’s Addition Booz Crawl is back, and Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery is hosting a costume party — and that’s only the beginning.

It’s the mooooost wonderful tiiiiiime of the year! Halloween is right around the corner, which means HALLOWEEK is back at RVA Magazine. Hardywood Park Craft Brewery is releasing a beer as the official beer of the week, Farmhouse Pumpkin. In the spirit of the season, HALLOWEEK means all the awesome beer, shows, events, and haunted houses you can take in one week. It’s kicking off with our pals and co-hosts at Hardywood, starting fresh tomorrow night with the Haunted Food Truck Court at Hardywood. They’ll be dropping a “ghoulish” new brew, hosting food trucks with Halloween-inspired menus, “devilish” selfie stations, and — of course — costumes galore!

Come dressed in your best and grab goodies from the Richmond Zombie Walk, plus get tips on how to make the best costumes of all from Aisthesis Productions (the hands behind the scariest costumes around, and the recent locally-produced horror movie Last Call). As Aisthesis says, “Less Bore, More Gore.”

Hardywood’s also releasing their Quydrawine in bottles this Friday, honoring the beloved Quy Pham of The Answer Brewpub. This barrel-blended ale was brewed with inspiration from Quy, with his positivity and generosity that will stay in the hearts of his loved ones forever. Quydrawine is a bourbon barrel-aged Imperial Stout blended with a hyper-hopped fresh American barleywine — which means it’s packed with big, burly, bold flavors “that will Kong even the strongest of late night warriors.”

In more Hardywood news, Trickery (pictured first) is coming back out this Saturday at the brewery. Another Imperial Stout, this milk stout hits in at 13.5% ABV with ten months under its belt in apple brandy barrels. It has flavors of blackstrap molasses — yum! — with warm caramel and chocolate-covered cherries, to bring out the fall love in us all.

Speaking of events honoring Quy, The Answer Brewpub is hosting their extra-awesome 13th Annual Hallobeer on Monday, with Mekong Xpress playing the music of Elvis all night long.

Proceeds from the event will benefit Quy’s family, and in addition to tunes by The King himself throughout the evening, The Answer will be putting out some special drink releases. They’ll also have a Street Fighter tournament for those who are interested, plus costume contests with prizes if you want to come out in your best-dressed Halloween costumes (or Elvis getups, according to The Answer) to celebrate Halloween and Diablo.

*PHOTO: Cobra Cabana & Stone Brewing Collab*

Two of my favorite places in one event!! Stone Brewing Richmond is partnering up with Cobra Cabana for the Punk’in Carver Party — nice puns, y’all — with pumpkin carving in Richmond’s Carver neighborhood. With the best beer at the best spot, this is one you won’t want to miss.

Local pumpkins from Gallmeyer Farms will be on deck, and carving tools will be provided (but in true punk fashion, your crusty old pocket knife will also work just fine). Stone’s bringing out their special release, Ghost Hammer IPA, for the occasion to go along with the regular beers on the patio, so if you’re too cheap for craft beer this week, a $3 Lone Star will do. And for the witchier of us, Madame Onça will be out doing Tarot Card readings!

They’ll also have DJ Al Hitchcock out “spinning spooky tunes” through the evening, and fundraising efforts will benefit the Halloween Parade.

Boozy neighborhood friends rejoice: the Scott’s Addition Booz Crawl is back, and it’s happening all day this Saturday. If you’re an adult who is bummed by the no-trick-or-treating-without-kids rules of society, then this is good news for you.

The Booz Crawl lets you bounce around “trick-or-treating” through the neighborhood to try all the beer, ciders, meads, and whiskeys of the neighborhood. If you pick up Booz Crawl cards at the spots on the list, you can even win a $25 gift card individually to each location from getting three unique stamps at the breweries and being entered to win.

Participating breweries include (in alphabetical order) Ardent Craft Ales, Bingo Beer Co., Black Heath Meadery, Blue Bee Cider, Buskey Cider, Courthouse Creek Cider, Isley Brewing Company, Reservoir Distillery, Strangeways, Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, Vasen Brewing Company, and The Veil Brewing Co.

*PHOTO: Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery*

It’s costume time on the farm! Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery is hosting a Halloween Costume Party this Saturday complete with bonfires to bring fall’s best activities all together. There’s nothing like the smell of a fire pit or hanging out on a farm when it first gets chilly outside, and I couldn’t be happier this time of year.

If you’re down for the drive, head out to Goochland for one of my most favorite spots in the area. They’ll have live music rolling all evening with Mobius Strip, plus eats from the Firesides food truck, and probably the best part of all, always lots of dogs. I meet the cutest dogs when I’m out there, and if you haven’t seen their farm, it’s truly something special to find this close to the city. Lickinghole Creek is a gem, and this is the best season to spend some time with them.

Happy birthday, Isley! I just love this brewery, and I’m stoked to see them complete another trip around the sun.

Isley Brewing Co. is celebrating their 6th birthday this Saturday with tons of limited releases, live music, giveaways, games, and food trucks to accompany the Scott’s Addition Booz Crawl. They’ll be giving away VIP cards to the 6th and 66th guests at the brewery for *four free drinks per day!!* at Isley for the entire month of November. If that isn’t something to get stoked about, I don’t know what is.

Beer releases and returns throughout the week leading up to the event include: Cookies & Cream Porter, Irish Cream Porter, Fastidious Father Banana Peanut Butter Porter, Booze Mother Bourbon Barrel Aged Peanut Butter Porter, Stunt Dubbel Pumpkin Belgian Double, and their Mixed Berry Gose.

For eats, they’ll have The Return of the Mac food truck with gourmet macaroni and cheese, and The Lab Confectionery local bakery specializing in stroopwafels, Unicorn Cake, and freshly-baked goods. With live music, open mics, and pumpkin carving, there’s more than enough for everyone to have a blast throughout the day.

Releasing tonight, Väsen Brewing Company has partnered up with Blue Sky Fund to drop their collab beer: Wanderlust 10. This Wanderlust recipe will give 10 percent of proceeds back to the Blue Sky Fund in honor of the #HikeForKids campaign, and this malty, dark chocolate-flavored beer doesn’t disappoint.

You’ll catch flavors of vanilla, German beechwood, and smoked malt together with the dessert flavors and cocoa nibs, plus real vanilla beans and a hint of smoke from the beechwood malts. As the brewery says, this beer “will have you pining for a crisp fall hike followed by an evening spent around the campfire” — and they have the first part covered!

They’re hosting a group hike this Saturday and enjoying this beer together afterward at the post-hike party at the brewery.

This Friday at Three Notch’d RVA Collab House, head over for First Tap Friday, where the brewery is releasing their Throwing Back Blueberries Imperial Gose.

The beer is coming out along with Three Notch’d collab partners Throwing Back Sunday, an emo throwback cover band that’s also headlining the Nightmare on Emo Street Big Ass Halloween Party (another part of RVA Magazine’s HALLOWEEK!) at The Broadberry later Friday night.

It’s Halloween at Castleburg Brewery and Taproom, as well! They’re hosting their 4th annual Halloween Party this Saturday with Cashmere Jungle Lords.

Unlike a lot of costume contest parties, this one will have more than one winner. Castleburg’s giving away cash prizes to contestants in all three categories of Scariest, Best Overall, and Best Couples costumes. Along with prizes, the brewery is hosting tons of great beer along with surf rock playing throughout the night.

That’s it for this week’s RVA On Tap! As your weekly columnist, I’m here to take all your beer releases, event info, ideas and questions. If you’re a brewer, send me your release info at [email protected], and if you’re a beer enthusiast, drop me a line anytime to talk booze. Catch y’all next week!

RVA ON TAP: Pride in Richmond & Triple Releases

Caley Sturgill | June 19, 2019

Topics: beer, beer column, Castleburg, Center of the Universe, fine creek, garden grove, Hardywood, kindred spirit, Lickinghole Creek, RVA On Tap, Steam Bell Beer Works, The Answer, The Veil, Triple Crossing Beer

If you missed the last column, you can check that out here. Our kegs are overflowing this week with beer releases and festivals, events, and other cool happenings around town — so hold on to your mugs!

Did you miss me? This week, we’re jumping back in after a week off (thanks to all our beautiful beer people for being patient while I took my first vacation break from writing the column since last fall). I’m home from a lovely week with the fam, tanner than ever, and super stoked to be back to my beer world. We’re going to check out some extra-awesome events this week, and catch up on a few special releases that happened over my holiday. Local brewers are dropping tons of multiple releases this week, too, so if you’re in the mood to try something new, we’ve got you covered. Drink up, y’all!

Happy Pride Month, everyone! Your faves at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery are celebrating big. This coming Sunday, Hardywood is honoring all the folks over the years who have worked tirelessly, marched bravely, and stayed strong in the fight for human rights despite our nation’s enduring resistance to equality.

As Hardywood so notably stated, these rights are grounded “on the foundations of love and equity,” and they continue to write love into our future. Well said, y’all. And on that note, they’re throwing a party to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality with what they do best: beer.

For the high-spirited occasion, they’re bringing back a brew made for uplifting times like these. Tropic Like It’s Hot is Hardywood’s passion fruit, pineapple, and dragon fruit-laced sour recipe that comes along with a tart, dry finish to stay refreshed on hot days. During the event, they’re hosting three live bands plus two drag shows, and tons of awesome local vendors. Catch places like Dayum This is My Jam, Maven Made, Chop Chop RVA and more, plus food trucks like Haulin’ Balls and King of Pops. Yum!

The Veil Brewing Co. has more than one something up their sleeves. Cherry-Mang Tastee dropped last night, along with Taste Test and the return of Crucial Shredder.

Cherry-Mang Tastee started off the group, and it’s not your usual brew. This smoothie-style sour ale was created with milk sugar and cherry and mango purées. You can catch it at the brewery now (while they last), along with Taste Test: a West Coast-inspired Double IPA. Taste Test is fresh to the taps, a brand-new release brewed with Simcoe, Amarillo, Centennial, and whole-leaf Cascade hops. The Veil’s third release in this week’s Tuesday night series, Crucial Shredder, is making its second debut at the brewery as a blend between two old favorites. I’m sure you remember Crucial Taunt, a fan favorite and delightfully-hoppy beer that’s now been blended with Master Shredder to create this 5.5% ABV collab brew.

Speaking of old favorites, Pegasus Double IPA is making its way back to Final Gravity Brewing Co. on Friday. This “mystical blend” of pineapple, citrus, and fresh pine was made to send your tastebuds soaring — and it’s meant to create a surge of flavor reminiscent of the magnificent beast it’s named after.

According to Final Gravity, much like the legend that “the winged horse struck his hoof to the Earth,” Pegasus DIPA will inspire its drinkers with the surge of flavor that comes from its Falconer’s Flight hops. It carries a golden haze in color, and it’s got a nice citrusy-hop flavor in its profile.

Richmond brewers are really upping their multiple-release game this week. First with The Veil and again with Canon & Draw Brewing Company, this trend is one I’m on board with. Canon & Draw is dropping their Peaches n’ Cream fruited IPA this Friday alongside their Sole Accomplice IPA, brewed with Simcoe hops and coming out as part of their fruited IPA series. Sole Accomplice is going to be a recurring theme over at the Main Street brewery, a rotating series that’ll highlight a specific hop with each new recipe it makes.

An extra-cool part of this week’s series is that Peaches n’ Cream is coming out on National Peaches n’ Cream Day. Who knew this was a thing?! Who’s been keeping this from me? I can’t wait to celebrate it.

While I was shoulder-deep in the ocean living the dream last week, The Answer got fresh goods in to your favorite brewpub in town. Everyone knows The Answer for their stellar glasses (let us not forget all the times they’ve excited gamers, fandoms and more with glassware for every interest) and they introduced a brand-new design. Their Platinum house glasses went on sale right after our last RVA On Tap together, so go grab one while you can!

In more news at The Answer, Medical Glycol Card dropped over our break as well. This Double IPA was brewed in collaboration with Burley Oak, and with its Cashmere, Enigma, and Cascade hops, the brewers noted its healing properties — but reminded us to “always consult your glycol shaman before you imbibe.”

Last Friday, in the spirit of more multiple releases, Triple Crossing Beer put out two fresh recipes and one beloved return in Fulton. Triple Crossing is already known for multiple releases, but they’ve set the standard for how to do it damn well every time.

Interstellar Burst started off last weekend’s new beers, a Double IPA with flavors of passionfruit, pineapple, grapefruit, and mango that was generously hopped with Galaxy, Citra, and El Dorado hops. It’s got deep and plush fruit flavors, according to the brewers, and it was the crowd favorite of the week. Nectar and Knife also made a new debut in Fulton, made with Simcoe and Mosaic hops to give off the bright, grapefruit-pulpy zest and softness of a DIPA well-done — and zero bitterness. Origins Double IPA returned to Triple Crossing as well, and it was inspired by the beautiful Northeastern U.S. It’s got a balanced caramel-malt sweetness to complement the bitterness of its hops — Simcoe, Centennial, Mosaic, and Amarillo — and its style was pioneered in the “densely-wooded” states it was made for.

In more events this week, don’t miss the Powhatan Music Festival with our buds at Fine Creek Brewing Company. Hosted out at the Village Meadow, the festival will be packed with live music all day long with artists like Maddie Leitch, East of Hollywood, PumpHouse Blues, Kyle Davis, and The Commonwealth Bluegrass Band.

You’ll get to catch some of your favorite local wineries in addition to the delicious brews served up by Fine Creek, and this “One Day of Music” will certainly be one for the books. Bring your kiddos along for cheaper tickets (and the littlest ones for free), and grab some grub and beer for the best Virginian-music spirit.

Kindred Spirit Brewing is dropping a new summer release on the first official day of the season, their Orange Dream fruity recipe. This orange and vanilla cream ale is designed to remind you of Dreamsicles and daydreaming under the clouds, and like Peaches n’ Cream, it blends the best kinds of fruit with the pillowy-softness of a cream ale. It’s coming out this Friday out at Kindred Spirit’s spot in Goochland, so head out west and start your weekend off right.

In *another* double release this weekend, Steam Bell Beer Works has two awesome recipes to bring to the table (or bar). On Friday, Idolic and Patchronce are coming out to the taps. Idolic is a complex malt, according to the brewers, with strong notes of caramel, raisin, and plum to give this Belgian ale’s yeast the room to work its magic. It’s “dangerously drinkable” at 10.7%, so don’t drink this one lightly — or do, and don’t remember your Friday. That’s on you, pal. It’s fruity and soft at the same time, and it’s coming out with Patchronce: A light-bodied French Saison that was brewed with raspberries and blackberries.

Keeping the trend going: More double releases, and this one’s special. Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery is proud to introduce Hemp in the Hills and Juicy #12 this weekend, with food trucks like Sandtopia and Firesides stopping by over the course of the weekend.

If you’re feeling the events and the new releases at the same time, Lickinghole Creek’s got you covered. These beers are coming out with live music to go along with them, like Dropping Julia on Saturday and Michael Melvin on Sunday.

Rather than a one-day double release, these two are being celebrated all weekend long (so if you’re trying to make it out to more than one boozy event like myself this weekend, you can put Lickinghole Creek on your books no matter what).

As if you didn’t need more reasons to wag your tail, Center of the Universe Brewing has a huge one for all of us: Dogs! Bring your pups out tonight for Tail Waggin’ Wednesdays, with food trucks and live music outside at your favorite Ashland spot to brighten up your mid-week blues.

Proceeds from these Center of the Universe events go back to the Friends of Hanover Dog Parks and to the Hanover Humane Society. Freekin’ Rican is coming out for catering, and Ryan Hearn Music will be out rocking the Biergarten stage.

In case you didn’t hear, there is a *ton* of awesome live music coming up at Castleburg Brewery and Taproom. In the next week, we’ve got a good group of upcoming shows to plan on: like Kate Stedelbaur live at Castleburg this Friday, The Embalmers go Surf-Psycho on Saturday, Jim Lord live on Sunday, and Miki Fiki coming up next Wednesday. Castleburg is getting in gear for a good time, as it seems, and they’re here to make sure hardly any nights of your week go unfilled with fun.

*PHOTO: Garden Grove Brewing & Urban Winery*

Head over to Carytown, my friends, and join Garden Grove Brewing & Urban Winery in collaboration with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation for Brew For A Cure. JDRF is making their way to Garden Grove on Saturday to drink beer for a cause (what’s better than that?) and further their mission to find a cure for type 1 diabetes with research support from the event and its attendees. With raffles and live music from 1:00-10:00pm, you can swing by any time of the day to grab a brew towards making a difference.

Indie Film Last Call Finds the ‘Twilight Zone’ In the Richmond Bar Scene

Sage Cannady | April 11, 2019

Topics: Aisthesis Productions, Last Call, Monica Moehring, RVA 36, The Answer, Tim Moehring, Todd Herrington, tony foresta

*This article originally appeared in RVA Mag #36, on the streets now at all your favorite spots.

With a mashup of local idols as its actors and musicians, Richmond-produced indie film Last Call is a River City dream. Spearheaded by Richmond-based production team Aisthesis Productions, the film tells the story of a bartender who endures a tragic quest one night without ever leaving the bar — also named Last Call. The feature-length film was shot over the course of nine months, and its “Twilight Zone-Esque” mood depicts, according to director Tim Moehring, “a relatable theme of regret and what we can do to change our lives.”

Not only was Last Call filmed in Richmond, every aspect of its soundtrack has Richmond connections as well. The soundtrack was assembled by local musician Coldon Martin (Positive No), and features other Richmond acts Mekong Xpress, Sports Bar, and Tim Barry. Local thrash heroes Municipal Waste even grace the film with a live performance.

As a local crew with Richmond roots, it was important to Aisthesis to produce a locally-oriented film. To that end, Last Call’s action was filmed inside a popular Richmond hotspot, The Answer Brewpub. Situated on Broad Street in Richmond’s West End, the bar is renowned by locals and national beer enthusiasts alike. The reason for choosing it for the film was simple. “We wanted the bar to be believable, a bar everyone would go to,” said producer Monica Moehring.

The Moehrings were both born and raised in Richmond, and continue to base their work here. “I’m lucky that my partner in life is also my partner in art,” said Tim Moehring. “Whether we’re writing together or discussing production details, we share an artist’s vision and the insane energy it takes to actually do it. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Together, Tim and Monica Moehring lead Aisthesis Productions. However, the company is firmly a group effort; throughout the process of filming, the couple strove to account for each worker’s viewpoint on the results. Understanding that filmmakers tend to butt heads within the industry, the Moehrings want to be sure they do their work surrounded by those they get along with.

For that reason, it’s no surprise that the Aisthesis team consists of the couple’s friends — an extra-localized situation that helps create a friendly and inclusive atmosphere within the production team.

When putting Last Call together, the creators weren’t interested in playing it safe. “For all of the production design and detail we wanted the audience to ‘feel’ things with us, from arousal to nausea,” said Monica Moehring. “The music, the lights, the acting, and everything had to feed into that.”

For Tim Moehring, pacing was of particular importance. Throughout, he strove to make sure that the story unfolded in a manner that would create the mood and tempo he wanted the film to have. For Monica Moehring, this sometimes meant obeying the classic literary advice from William Faulkner: kill your darlings. “The playwright in me is long-winded,” she said. “I think there was more heartbreak in the writer’s room than the editing room.”

To cast the film, the Moehrings turned to local actors that have been working with Aisthesis for years. Indeed, the film was written for the actors who were eventually cast. “Lines are crafted for the specific talent we’ve chosen,” said Monica Moehring. Lee Reynolds plays the bartender in Last Call, a complex character who devolves on screen as the story unravels. According to Tim Moehring, Reynolds “gave us 110%. He truly gave his blood, sweat, and tears bringing this character to life.”

In its Twilight Zone state-of-mind, Last Call largely derives its mood from the 1950’s TV show, suspended somewhere between reality and fantasy. The classic series is best known for its unforgettable shocking moments, but beneath the obvious elements of weird fantasy and horror lies an unexpected, but important, moral vision; one that’s given weight by the series’ particular approach to cinematography. The Moehrings worked to achieve a similar cinematic effect through close collaboration with director of photography Doug Bischoff, who Tim Moehring calls “a master of his craft.” Explaining the atmosphere they sought, Tim Moehring said, “We wanted to transport the audience into another world with this movie — the world of Jason, the bartender who has always been the life of the party.”

Even low-budget independent films take tons of effort and funding to create, and Last Call is no exception. “A film doesn’t just fall into your lap,” said Tim Moehring. “There are a lot of moving pieces and preparation is the key. Luckily we had people like Will Towles and Saskia Price making sure all the moving pieces kept moving! We didn’t settle on any details, and that didn’t come easy. It meant rehearsals, and rewrites, and hours of production meetings.”

“When you’re watching a movie, you’re seeing the puzzle completed,” said Monica Moehring. “You’re not seeing the ten million pieces that had to be put together.”

As yet, Last Call has no set release date; however, its trailer is viewable on YouTube. It’s sure to get local film, music, and craft beer fans chomping at the bit.

Photos by Glenn Cocoa

RVA ON TAP: 25 Legendary Years, Beer Fests at NASCAR, and the Wild & Weird

Caley Sturgill | April 10, 2019

Topics: beer, beer column, Castleburg Brewery, Center Of The Universe Brewing, Final Gravity, Fine Creek Brewing Company, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, Jack Ryan Music Festival, Legend Brewing, richmond raceway, RVA beer, Safety Team Brewing, The Answer, The Veil Brewing Co., Triple Crossing Beer

What’s happening, craft beer lovers of RVA?! Welcome to this week’s RVA On Tap, RVA Magazine’s weekly column for all your craft beer-related events, releases, festivals, and all the booze news your hearts desire.

Get ready to get out of the house, because there are so many good events this week you’re not gonna want to go home.

HAPPY 25TH, LEGEND! We’ve been waiting for this day for *months* and it’s finally here. Legend Brewing Company, Richmond’s OG craft brewery, is celebrating their quarter-century in trips around the sun with a huge banger this Saturday. Starting at noon and running all day, with free admission (so more money for beer!) you can head over to the Manchester brewery for live music, food, and brews. Bring your kids, bring your pups, and enjoy the day in the beer garden and looking over the James with one of our all-time faves here in town. For music, catch performances by The Remnants, Greater Richmond Pipes and Drums, Wade Reynolds, and Suggesting Rhythm. All food and beer is in-house from Legend, and it’s so good you won’t want to miss it. We’ll see you there!

*PHOTO: Richmond Raceway Craft Beer Fest*

If you like beer and cars, boy do I have the event for you (and me, especially me). This Saturday before the big Toyota Owners 400 night race under the lights, Richmond Raceway’s hosting their Craft Beer Fest to bring fans a taste of the city. There’s a lot going on at the track that day — like the beer fest, which is open to the public regardless of race tickets, as well as live mural painting, and tons more you’ll want to swing by early to catch.

Over at the fest, Richmond Raceway has partnered up with the Virginia Craft Brewers Guild to let fans try the flagship beers of breweries all across the state. The best part: unlimited tastes! RVA Magazine will be out doing live coverage from the race that day, so be sure to keep up with us on social media during the fun (@rvamag on Instagram and Facebook). I’ll make sure to tell you all our favorite brews from the fest when we come back for next week’s column, but I can tell you one thing now — knowing myself at a beer fest, it’s pretty hard to pick just one.

Happy birthday, Triple Crossing! Our Fulton Hill favorites are celebrating half a decade in business all weekend, and if we know anything about Triple Crossing, it’s that they’re one of the best. These guys are known for their perfectly-balanced brews packed with just the right amount of every flavor, and they’ve got five releases to commend their first five years.

Pabst is Prologue is first on the list. This mixed-culture Golden Ale measures at 5% ABV, full of white peaches and fruit to ring in the springtime for good (finally). Their special 5th anniversary lager, Jubilee Jubilaums Bier, is making its debut at the party. They’ve also got Just to Get a Rep DIPA, Space Falcon IPA, DDH Anniversary Falcon Smash IPA, and a few more TBA.

The releases start on Friday, and the party continues on into Saturday with ZZQ and one of my home bars, Cobra Cabana. BTW — if you haven’t tried Cobra’s food yet, you’re missing out. They’ve also got yerba mate (yeah, the real kind) that can pair with your favorite mixers, and y’all, Yerbajäger might just kill me this summer. TBA on that, too.

I meant it when I told you it’d be hard to pick your plans this weekend. Fine Creek Brewing Company’s Wild & Weird Festival is heading back to your favorite farm spot for their 2nd anniversary. Wild & Weird brings out the sour, the funky, and the best mixed-fermentation beers from around Virginia, from both breweries and cideries. A few names participating that you’ll recognize: Väsen Brewing Company, Steam Bell Beer Works, Ardent Craft Ales, Triple Crossing, Champion Brewing Company, Strangeways, and my loves at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery.

Head out to the festival from 1-5pm this Saturday to get tastes of gems like Hardywood’s Berlinner with Pine Needles & Rose Hips, Ardent’s Understanding of Bonds American White DSSOLVR Collab, and plenty more to get your tastebuds going.

Would you believe it if I told you The Answer Brewpub won ANOTHER award this year? Of course you would, because The Answer’s the best! Like Legend, The Answer has had a lot to do with building the craft beer scene in Richmond that is now recognized across the nation — and this brewery is no stranger to awards of its own. From being named one of the best breweries in the country to making one of Craft Beer and Brewing Magazine’s favorite beers of 2018, if you want to know where to get a good brew, everyone knows the answer is The Answer.

This time around, The Answer was named USA Today’s best brewery in America… and they won by a lot. In its bracket for the gold, our River City hometown brewers were chosen by 71 percent of voters over their rival.

We would never expect anything less. Congrats again, guys, and I know we’ll be saying congrats for all the awards coming in 2019. Keep being awesome!

Hardywood’s releasing their Capital Trail Pale Ale for #FreshCanFriday this week, brewed with Falconer’s Flight, Willamette, and Mandarina Bavaria hops. This palate-invigorating recipe starts off with refreshing citrus flavors and finishes “pleasantly dry,” and it’s good for the environment, too. Every purchase of a Capital Trail Pale Ale supports the link between Richmond and Jamestown, preserving and enhancing our state’s 52-mile long walking and biking path. Raise your can in honor of the foundation, Hardywood says, and in honor of your next adventure.

Hey! Remember when I made my mountain-famous ham biscuits for the Southern Food Fest at Center of the Universe? Well, I won! And not only did I get a super sweet shirt that you’ll see me rocking all summer, I also got to eat some of the best damn food I have ever tasted. And I really, really mean that.

Y’all, I got a half pound of pulled pork from Grandpa Eddie’s Alabama Ribbs & BBQ and that stuff was so good I inhaled it in about a minute. I have never tasted better BBQ in all my days in Virginia. Go get some. Or else. I also finally got to try Capitol Waffle Shop, and you know what it’s like when you go to grandma’s house for Thanksgiving and those fall-spiced, warm baked apples are making you drool over the smell from the living room? Capitol Waffle shop basically did that with fucking peaches, dude. It was incredible. Capitol Waffle Shop literally put sliced-up, warm, cinnamon-ey glazey peaches on a waffle with whipped cream and syrup, and it’s been three weeks and I can’t stop thinking about it. It should be a crime for anybody who hasn’t had it to go another week without trying this place.

*Anyway,* there’s more good stuff happening at Center of the Universe this week. They’re dropping their Crazy Bet Imperial Red Ale this Saturday, and this variation was brewed over at Origin Beer Lab. It’s got a balanced bitterness and intense aroma from its Nugget and caramel malts. Crazy Bet is named after the Crazy Bet herself, Richmond’s Elizabeth Van Lew, the 1800s abolitionist and philanthropist, who both “built and operated an extensive spy ring for the Union Army during the Civil War.” Do yourself a favor and read more about this gal, and do us all a favor and give her beer a try this weekend.

Friends and fans of Greek Mythology, Final Gravity Brewing Co. has the brew for you. Cassiopeia is fresh to the taps this Friday, and she is absolutely *made* for this weather. With delicate-but-strong aromas of melon, coconut, pine, peach, and whispers of pineapple, according to the brewers, this gal goes down the hatch with a smooth bitterness. You’ll also catch flavors of lemongrass and tangerine to accompany this “heavenly congregation” of radiant flavors to captivate your senses — and let’s be real, who doesn’t love a goddess?

The Veil Brewing Co. dropped Grape Berry Tastee last night, a smoothie-style sour ale. This delicious dessert in a can was brewed with milk sugar (yum!), concord grapes, and blackberries to bring you the creamy-goodness of a berry shake to top off a perfect summer day. I can taste this just thinking about it. Be sure to swing by soon, because we all know The Veil is a local treasure, and everyone will be looking for a taste!

The 2nd Annual Jack Ryan Music Festival is also coming up this Saturday, with several local favorites from Richmond heading out to serve up brews. Look forward to seeing Intermission Beer Company, Kindred Spirit Brewing, Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery, and Steam Bell Beer Works — and lots of great bands like Old Dogs, New Tricks Bluegrass Band, Timber Revival, Josh Lief, The Steel Tips, and Jack Ryan & His Band.

If you’ve had your hopes up for Safety Team Brewing Company to open up in Northside, we’re sorry to report that they won’t be going through with the new spot. Opening something as large-scale as a brewery is no easy feat, and after getting into the ins and outs of construction planning, it looks like the location is a no-go for now. Brookland Park will stay a little bit dryer for a little bit longer, and the old Quick Splash Car Wash will be vacant until further notice.

Even more releases are on their way this Friday, with Castleburg’s Kingslayer TIPA. This triple-banger is sure to make you hazy, and at 10% ABV, I think it’s fair to say it’ll slay most people that drink it. Kingslayer started off with a “massive amount of Irish pale malt” and flaked wheat, then treated to an “absurd amount of El Dorado hops.” This guy was conditioned over 20lbs per barrel with pineapple puree to bring out the natural fruity flavors in these hops, and it is a seriously-powerful brew.

“The king is dead, long live the Kingslayer!”

RVA On Tap: Bless Our Southern Hearts

Caley Sturgill | March 20, 2019

Topics: Ardent craft ales, Castleburg Brewery, Center of the Universe, Final Gravity, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, Isley, Legend Brewing Company, RVA On Tap, Stone brewing, The Answer, Väsen

This week, we’re diving into lots of special occasions as the springtime rolls in, and our calendars are starting to fill up with the best warm-weather times for the River City.

Oh man, this is gonna be good. Center of the Universe Brewing is hosting their 2nd Annual Southern Food Festival this Saturday, and it looks like a dream. They’re not only bringing together some of Richmond’s best Southern cookin’ establishments — like Mama J’s, Capitol Waffle Shop, Jake’s Place, Grandpa Eddie’s Alabama Ribs & BBQ, and more — they’re also inviting all of us (!!) to submit our own favorite family recipes to enter into the competition. Y’all might even catch my famous ham biscuits there (if you’re lucky). The submit date for the competition ends TONIGHT, so if you want to get your fav apple pies and cornbread into the mix, you better get cooking and head over there ASAP.

Y’all, I can’t wait for this one. The brewery will also have a special limited beer release on tap, Bless Your Heart, a Peaches and Cream ale that I am absolutely drooling over already. Fuck me up, COTU. I’m bout to pass out in a peach-beer-ham-biscuit-apple-pie-coma and none of you can save me.

Further down at Hardywood this weekend, Raspberry Short Kate is dropping for Fresh Can Friday. Named after a beloved member of the staff (whose height we can’t confirm), this 7% ABV Milkshake IPA is probably the best way to start off a hopefully-hot weekend. Brewed with milk, sugar, and tons of wheat and oats, Short Kate is soft on the feel and full of body from its Cascade and Huell Melon-hop profiles. They’re also working with Sure Hand Signs to bring out some new artwork for Tropication on Friday, so be on the lookout for both of these warm weather brews through the week.

Back roads and beer. Two of my most-favorite things are coming together next week at Legend Brewing Company, for a film preview of Back Roads: People, Places and Pie Around Virginia. This documentary follows Bill Lohmann and Bob Brown, with filmmaker Randy Scott and his crew, documenting the travels of these two buds as they make their way through every corner and cave of our state — and apparently getting in some healthy doses of sweet Virginia pie along the way. Legend is releasing a special beer for the occasion, Back Roads Black Lager, a Schwarzbier-style recipe that holds a nice drinkability for the classic dark brew. If you come with an appetite, you can also get some tastes of Legend’s documentary-inspired dishes topped with gravy and served up with pie and beer: clearly, the best way to celebrate the release of their long-awaited film.

While we’re on events, don’t forget to close out your weekend over at Stone Brewing for their Sunday Farmer’s Market. It’s the first of the year, and it’s probably one of the few farmer’s markets in town that makes it acceptable to day drink while you shop… plus, it’s almost certainly the only one that doesn’t start at the crack of dawn, and who really wants to get up that early on a Sunday? Since the city’s full of local vendors, makers, and farmers, there’s usually something for everyone at markets around here. It’s 21+ for booze, but all ages are welcome, so bring the kiddos along for the afternoon if you’ve got ‘em.

Can we say yum? Ardent’s releasing their Pineapple Guava Gose tomorrow night, and the 5.6% ABV wheat beer marries the tropical to the tart. With salt and coriander blended with pineapple and pink guava purée, it’s perfectly-pink to the eye and perfectly-flavored to the tongue — and its softer, juicy taste complements the acidity of the gose. Get one while you can, because this one’s not out in cans or bottles. Coming up next week, you can also head over to Ardent for History on Tap: Women Making History, and Alcohol to get your knowledge on about the history of gals in beer production. Who knew — we know stuff, too! Mind-blowing. Anyway, it’s painfully underreported, so props to Ardent for setting this one up. Blue Bee Cider is coming out to host, too, and they’ve made a collab with Ardent called Jane’s Persimmon from an 18th-century Virginia women’s cookbook for the event.

The Answer Brewpub brought back Summer Showers IPA last week on Pie Day (bless), made with Australian Summer hops. It’s a soft, hazy IPA according to The Answer, and it’s packed with cantaloupe aromas to bring out the best type of refresher for the springtime. “Like a cloudburst in the summer,” they say, this ripe-melon, citrus, and tea-hinted brew will be gone as quickly as it came.

A new Belgian-fruited sour is on its way to Väsen Brewing Company tomorrow, and after being conditioned with hundreds of pounds of papaya and mandarin orange, it carries its name. Papaya Mandarin Sour has a mostly-tart flavor, but to even it out, Väsen added a hint of lactose to bring out a sweeter balance to add to its “dangerously smooth” tastes. They’re hosting their Geeks Who Drink trivia night alongside the release, so gather your nerd friends and grab a Goatocado bowl to compete for the night.

Final Gravity’s got a double whammy. Head out to Lakeside on Friday for a taste of another one of their famous Session IPAs, Dwarf Star, and its DIPA brother, 3 Mile. Dwarf Star is an especially-drinkable beer, hitting in at 4.5% and brewed with the trusty Mosaic, Citra, and Amarillo hops for a full taste and a tropical, smooth flavor. 3 Mile brings in more fruit, with pear, grapefruit, and passionfruit to complement its hop profile, and created as a homage to the brewery Running Club’s second anniversary this week. The tastes were picked to refresh your senses and “get you going,” so if you’re in need of a sidekick for all the marathons you’re running this season (count me out, but I’ll watch y’all from the bar), it’s right up your alley.

Where the hops and the hip connect: bring out your haggling mood, because Isley’s got a shopping Spring Fest coming up on Saturday with our favorite thrift + antique shop. Class and Trash is partnering up with the brewery to celebrate the first day of spring, plus Isley’s releasing a brand-new-brew to kick off the season. I’ll Bee Bock is a Honey Bock Lager with a German backbone, flavored with honey and finished with a thick, creamy head. No matter the weather, this lager will sit well with you to check out the vendors and bring home the goods.

Castleburg Brewery and Taproom is bringing back their Lemon Peppercorn Saison this week, fresh and zesty to pack in all the citrus. If you’re unsure about the pepper, don’t worry: Castleburg says it’s but an aftertaste to the lemony-deliciousness of the Saison, and at 6.7%, it’s a solid drinker for any time of the week.

RVA ON TAP: Snow Law, Winter Warmers & Furry Fundraisers

Caley Sturgill | December 12, 2018

Topics: ardent, Final Gravity, Hardywood, Isley Brewing Company, Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery, RVA On Tap, strangeways, The Answer, three notchd

If you missed the last column, you can check that out here. Our kegs are overflowing with news this week with beer releases and festivals, events, and other cool happenings around town — so hold on to your mugs!

Snow week! I hope you’re all staying warm out there, and I’m sure a good bit of you are participating in Richmond’s honorary Snow Law tradition: Which means, in effect, that snow means no rules and we all pause the city to hang (and drink) at home. It’s the perfect opportunity to whip out that special-occasion craft brew you’ve been saving.

Another triple release is coming up this Saturday at Strangeways, and girl, do they look good. Atoms for Peace, a 6.5% India Pale Lager, is named for a speech: The original Atoms for Peace program was set by Eisenhower to show the public how scientific endeavors could be used for peace. Ditch the war, hello to peace. This lager got its name for taking its regular process and turning it into something new, as well — Atoms for Peace utilizes some of the traditional techniques from macro breweries and shows how they can be used in craft brewing. With that comes a crisp, refreshing lager made with Strata Hops, one of Indie Hops’ newest varieties.

Sing With Dier is next for this weekend’s release, a milk stout that starts with the same base as Sing With Animals but brings in Dier House Coffee Roasters’ Tobosi coffee instead. It shares the graham cracker, molasses, coffee, and baker’s chocolate background of its predecessor, but brings in some milk chocolate notes with almond and raspberry. Pyrus drops this Saturday as well, and this Foraged Pear Saison gets its name from the pears that were foraged directly from Strangeways’ brewery grounds in Fredericksburg. How much more authentic can you get? This one’s got a dry but round body, delivered by Virginia malted wheat and with a touch of fruity notes.

If you’re in the market for events this week, be sure to check out the Strangeways Gingerbread House Competition tomorrow night. Bring your creativity, and tacky Christmas sweaters are strongly encouraged!

Ardent is championing the chilly-weather brews this week, with Winter Warmer fresh at the brewery. Winter Warmer dropped over last weekend, and this perfectly-spiced beer is truly made for the season. With nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and honey malt with brown sugar, it couldn’t be more “December.” The sweetness from the spices is balanced out with the addition of East Kent Golding, an English hop, and it comes in at 7.5% ABV. According to its brewers, it tastes like Christmas in a glass — and you’ll definitely find it on my to-try list this holiday.

Let the shopping continue! Craft shows in December are the best — full of all the best handmade goods from makers around the region. The tradition continues at Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery this Saturday, and the festivities will be rolling all day at the farm. It’ll be catered by Wooded’s Pulled Pork Plus (one of my all-time favorites), and you can catch live music by Pat Russell in the afternoon. Swing by the farm to see their giant Keg Christmas Tree and see how big it really is.

Out at the brewery, Eric stands about 6’6” next to this monster keg tree… so my best guess is I’d come up about halfway short. If you make it out, drop your photos with the keg tree in the comments on this article — I’d love to see how you all measure up!

Our friends at Hardywood have jumped in this week on the national trend of helping Butte County’s Camp Fire fund, with 100 percent of the profits from their Resilience IPA releasing this Friday going toward the fund. We first learned about this one in a previous column, and since it’s coming up this week, it’s time to get excited! Go use the opportunity to drink for a good cause, and enjoy Hardywood’s craft IPA while knowing you’re helping out the Sierra Nevada Camp Fire Relief Fund.

Following up on Saturday, Hardywood’s releasing their Double Barrel GBS + Mega GBS. The Gingerbread Stout season is one of Richmond’s favorites with Hardywood, and it feels like all over Virginia, these beers are in the fridge when I travel. Who doesn’t love a Hardywood GBS? The season is coming to an end with a bang this week, with a double release of two latest variations. Their Double Barrel GBS is aged in Bowman’s bourbon barrels for “eight glorious months,” then in grape brandy for a few more to top it off. Mega GBS is a perfect blend of ginger, honey, cinnamon, and vanilla all wrapped up into one tasty milk stout to make those cold winter nights a little more cozy.

Oooooh, Final Gravity Brewing Co. has something good up their sleeves. The Return of 12 Parsecs is back and as spacey as ever, with this Star-Wars inspired brew. This one’s a fan favorite, according to the brewers, and it’s made with the hops from Falconers Flight to make this DIPA “burst with citrus and pine aroma, while tasting ever-so-smooth.” It sounds like the perfect weekend blend, and it’ll be ready just in time for this week’s when it debuts on Friday. It’s available in Crowlers, and they’re expecting it to go fast… so get your hands on it while you can!

For this week’s Tap That Friday, Three Notch’d Brewing Company is coming out with their Lip Service New England IPA, at 6.3% AMV and collaborated with David Hunter and friends. It’s named after the “epic lip-sync battle that took place after the first keg was tapped,” and wow, I wish we had a video to accompany it. According to the brewers, it’s a little more bitter with less ABV than a typical NEIPA, so it’s more approachable, and lets you pack that deep taste in without such a high alcohol content. It’s still got the super-smooth feel going down the hatch that “regular NEIPA-drinkers have fallen in love with,” and with its Amarillo and Mosaic hops, it’s perfect for providing a nice fruity finish with a blend of citrus, melon, and tropical flavors. It sounds like a nice break from the holiday brews (which, no shade, we all know they’re my *favorite*), and a good way to get some of those all-year flavors in your fridge.

Healthier pets, happier people, better world. If you’re looking to show your support for your four-legged friends, check out Isley Brewing Company’s Furry Fundraiser this Saturday to raise money for local animals in need of homes. A percentage of sales all day will benefit the sweet residents of the Richmond SPCA, and even has a tacky sweater contest for your pups! What more could you want? Every year, the Richmond SPCA saves more than 4,000 pets, and with its life-saving programs in adoptions and through the SPCA’s Susan M. Markel Veterinary Hospital affordable healthcare, the Richmond SPCA truly does do its part — and as a former resident herself, my pup can vouch for that 100 percent.

That’s it for this week’s RVA On Tap! As your weekly columnist, I’m here to take all your beer releases, event info, ideas and questions. If you’re a brewer, send me your release info at [email protected], and if you’re a beer enthusiast, drop me a line anytime to talk booze. Catch y’all next week!