When we started this road trip in Raleigh I had a perfectly laid out schedule. We were going to see twelve beer related places in two days across my home state from Raleigh to Asheville and as many stops as we could cram into our two days along the way. It seems the saying “all the best laid plans go awry” is true. We checked out of our hotel, morning bright, and promptly threw the plan aside. Maybe that is why the trip went so perfectly. Raleigh Brewing Company was meant to be the first stop but it wouldn’t open for a few hours more. I scanned through my meticulous list of breweries and brewhouses and their open times and locations. Aviator Brewing would be opening soon and was just outside of town. By the time we got there we would be able to get our first pints of the trip.
AVIATOR BREWING
[ezcol_1third]Aviator Brewing is located just outside of Raleigh in a town called Fuquay-Varina. The brewery was started in 2008 in an airplane hanger at the nearby Triple W airport by Mark Doble. Doble, an aviation enthusiast, used the hanger to house his own plane and used the extra space to brew beer. Not unfamiliar with brewing himself, the beer ended up being good and became popular with the locals. As Aviator grew they moved to a larger facility in the same small town. Now you can find Aviator throughout your favorite crawls and hotspots across North Carolina. Aviator’s main brewery is in an industrial park not far out of town, but the place to get the brews for us was in the lovely downtown area along the train tracks.
Tree lined and with ample parking it made for the perfect backdrop for our first pints. There was an Aviator on either side of the street, the Taproom and the Smokehouse. The Taproom was still closed but luckily the smells that were coming from the Aviator Smokehouse were calling our name. We’d eaten scarcely a half hour ago but that didn’t stop us from thinking about eating again.[/ezcol_1third][ezcol_2third_end]
[ezcol_1half]The Smokehouse was awesome inside with dark colors, bright windows, and a huge bar took center stage. At the forefront of the bar were the colorful taps shaped like airplane props. Giant chalkboards with the food specials on one side and all the on tap beer choices on the other side of a massive TV. We found ourselves stumped on what to order. Bartender to the rescue, she helped us decide on the Mad Beach Wheat for my brother and I drank the Hot Rod Red Ale.
The Mad Beach Wheat is an American Pale Wheat ale that shines with a golden color and topped with a bright white head. The smell was unique, and the beer itself was light like a pilsner. It worked perfectly for my brother, Jon, who wasn’t quite on the good beer bandwagon quite yet. The beer was smooth and he loved it. We would win him over. The Hot Rod Red was in the style of an Irish Red weighing in at a 6% ABV with a nice caramel color and a white head. It had a pleasant malty smell and flavor. [/ezcol_1half][ezcol_1half_end]
Our bartender also explained a bit about the BBQ they offered. Nearly everything was local, even the pork came from North Carolina. We were told that the BBQ Sampler plate was the thing to get. It came with pulled pork, chopped pork, and one brisket slider. She also recommended the smoked wings, but warned that the sauces were not for the feint of heart. We fought the urge to eat and payed our tab. Aviator was a great start. Happy and strangely hungry again, we ventured out. Back to downtown Raleigh we found ourselves next at the Boylan Bridge Brewpub.
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BOYLAN BRIDGE BREWPUB
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[/ezcol_2third] [ezcol_1third_end]Boylan Bridge Brewpub is a small microbrewery and restaurant that sits right on the outside of downtown Raleigh on the corner of a beautiful residential area with large old houses and lined with giant ancient trees. Once you can overcome the challenge of finding a parking spot you find yourself inside a bright and diner-like restaurant with a gently curving bar with comfortable booths, retro style prints on the walls, a lot of hand drawn signage and menus posted throughout. The back wall is made up of huge glass doors and windows that allow the patrons to glimpse at the big brew tanks and fermenting tanks where their beer[/ezcol_1third_end]
[ezcol_1third]is made. The inside is nice. The inside, however, doesn’t hold a candle to the patio and the view of downtown.
The Patio
The patio is made from the same thick weathered boards that docks and piers are made of. A massive trellis stands over head giving shade to the tables and small serving station beneath it.[/ezcol_1third][ezcol_1third]We were lucky and went in the early afternoon but the tables and high tops were already quickly filling up. Beer people, dog people, and hungry people intermingled overlooking the absolutely gorgeous view of downtown. It was sunny so the view was perfect. We imagined the night crowd would be bigger and more rowdy as the skyline lit up. I longed to make myself a regular at this bar. Boylan Bridge was known for this view and patio, but we needed to check out their beers.
The Beers
On tap Boylan Bridge had a few guest beers but we focused on what they made in house. Jon opted for the Endless Summer Ale and I [/ezcol_1third][ezcol_1third_end]ordered up the Autumn Amber Ale. Strange as it sounded being spring and all, we dove in. Because Jon was still working his way into beer snobbery, the Endless Summer was more up his alley. It was an American Blonde style beer with a light golden color and a faint citrus smell and flavor.
“Jon was still working his way into beer snobbery”
For my choice, the Autumn Amber, came out with a thin white head and a dark amber color. It tasted sweet and of caramel. Both beers were good and not overly complicated. Time was short [/ezcol_1third_end][ezcol_2third class=”where-ate”]
Where We Ate
[/ezcol_2third] [ezcol_1third_end]according to the list that actually didn’t matter anymore so we tabbed out and left Boylan Bridge. I was sad to see it go. We grabbed a bite to eat at a local hot dog shop and then made our way to the last stop before leaving Raleigh. I had my heart set on visiting our next brewery while we were in the state capital so we popped Big Boss Brewing into the GPS and hit the road.[/ezcol_1third_end]
BIG BOSS BREWING
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Everything about Big Boss is big and imposing. The taproom doors are huge solid wooden monsters with sledgehammers for handles. Inside is dark and the walls are lined with retro aviation art and airplane sheet metal painted with the logos of their beers. The taproom is also fully equipped with pingpong, shuffleboard, and other bar games and various rooms and couches for socializing. We bellied up to the bar and tried to take in their giant beer menu.
The beer selection is hands down the best we had seen yet. Twelve beers, half seasonals, were lined up all with their ABVs, styles, and IBUs in one of those perfect chalkboard charts that all the best breweries have. They sold their beer in flights or pints, growlers, or bottles. They also had some great merchandise which we of course gobbled up. We also gobbled up a few pints. I had a Monkey Bizz-ness and my brother, by this time still not full grown into his big-boy-beer-pants, drank an Angry Angel kolsch.
The Beers
[ezcol_2third]The Monkey Bizz-ness was a Farmhouse Ale that weighed in at a hefty 9.0% ABV, just the thing I needed for a mid-afternoon beer. It was a dark burnt orange color and had a sweet yeasty flavor. It was strong. The glass was small but the beer was not. Jon’s beer, the Angry Angel Kolsch was a light gold color with a typical white head. It was a light flavored bear with just a hint of light hops. It was a good beer with enough body to get my brother’s beer drinking shoes on a little tighter. A few more pints, a few spurious merchandise purchases, and with our wallets lighter we reluctantly left Raleigh.
Next: Part II – Charlotte, Durham
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