I like beer. I have since high school. Before you start judging about underage drinking, I went to high school in Germany. I was taught from a young age that beer was something to be enjoyed not chugged. My parents would regularly allow me to have one beer with dinner (and occasionally a shot after dinner, which is common in some areas of Germany). Every little town in Germany has a brewery, many are attached to a Gasthaus, or little pub / restaurant / inn. Everyone gathers and enjoys food, conversation and of course beer. BTW, my favorite meal I would order at the Gasthaus was the Jagerschnitzel with Spaetzle and German Red Cabbage Kraut. To this day, that is one of my more popular blog posts.

Anyway, German beer is good. When I moved back to the States for college I discovered something. American beer wasn’t that good. I wasn’t trying to be a beer snob, but coming from the Mecca of beer to America in the 1990’s was disappointing from a beer options perspective. Most of my college friends didn’t really care about what the beer tasted like, if I’m being honest. I figured that is why they chugged it so often. I would stick with Heineken or Amstel which were the only imports I could find. Towards the end of my college career, micro breweries started popping up. I remember Samuel Adam’s as one of the earliest to have mass distribution and while I wasn’t a big fan of their beer at least they had some variety.

Jump forward to now and America is crushing it. In our little town we have breweries popping up on every other corner. A short drive north and we have Asheville, NC. Don’t get me started about the breweries up there. A couple of hours east and Charleston, SC is also exploding with new and amazing breweries.

This summer I decided to chronicle my beer journey. These are not all the beers I tried, these are the ones I really liked. I’m sure I missed a few. The header image is a Greenville brewery called Birds Fly South Ale Project and it is a fav. Super cool spot with lot’s to do and amazing beer.

Here are the breweries and a few photos of my favorites.

• Birds Fly South Ale Project, Greenville, SC
• Edmund’s Oast Brewing, Charleston, SC
• Freehouse Brewery, Charleston, SC
• Highland Brewing, Asheville, NC
• Lazy Hiker Brewing, Franklin, NC
• Southern Tier Brewing, Charlotte, NC
• Wicked Weed Brewing, Asheville, NC

Birds Fly South – Radio Silence

Birds Fly South – You & I

Birds Fly South – The Blueprint

Edmund’s Oast – Bound by Time

Edmund’s Oast – Something Cold

Freehouse Brewery – Folly’s Pride Blonde

Freehouse Brewery – Green Door IPA

Highland Brewery – Mandarina IPA

Lazy Hiker – Trail Mate Golden Ale

Wicked Weed – Brettanomyces Farmhouse Ale

Wicked Weed – Lunatic Blonde

Highland Brewing – Daycation IPA

Southern Tier – Nu Skool IPA

The winners in no particular order:

Birds Fly South – The Blueprint IPA, %6.5 apv

Old school meets new school in this balanced juicy double dry-hopped IPA. Brewed with guava puree for full flavor and complexity and hop-bursted with Mosaic, Centennial, and Citra. This balanced pint has a fresh taste and a classic, slightly bitter finish.

Freehouse – Green Door IPA, %6.2 apv

Generous additions of organic American hops – citrusy, grassy, and herbal – combine with just enough malt backbone to strike the perfect balance. A crisp and fresh, hop-flavored IPA. Open the Green Door.

Edmund’s Oast – Bound by Time IPA, %7 abv

This oat-infused olfactory explosion of a beer bursts at the seams with aromas of freshly cut cantaloupe and naval orange. Made with good old-fashioned hop-bursting techniques and irresponsible dry-hopping technology, Bound by Time is an offering to those looking for something brimming with hop character and as unadulterated as a butterfly’s wing.

What can I say, I’m an IPA guy. Love to hear about any beers you are really in to. Like I said, America has come a long way and it is very exciting.