Beer Tour of Wilmington: Fermental

I had heard about Fermental since I moved to Wilmington but I rarely venture past the downtown or midtown area here. With Hey Beer and Bombers within a few minutes of my house, I didn’t feel much reason to venture out down Market that far.

That seems to have most definitely been a mistake. Now that I’ve visited the adorable house-turned-store once I’ll have to go back. Inside the walls are lined with racks of wine and shelves of beer. There is no wall space being underutilized, no room not filled to its capacity. You walk from room to room, each leading into the other, in constant surprise at how many delicious treasures a small room can hold.

We visited this weekend during Fermental’s third anniversary. It was an incredible celebration with what seemed to be at least twelve rotating taps at any one time. We had the opportunity to try several beers between the three of us.

• Prairie Artisan Farmhouse Raspberry Ale
  • Delicious but rather sweet to drink a whole pint of
• Knee Deep Imperial IPA
  • If you don’t LOVE hops, keep your distance. Just bringing your nose to the glass will knock you off your feet! This is a plus for me.
• Highland Devils Britches Red IPA
  • Pretty tasty, not overly hoppy.
• Terrapin Cinnamon Wake n Bake Oatmeal Stout
  • I hate a stout but my companions loved this one.
• Oskar Blues Cask Peach IPA
  • Loved this one! It was fruity, flavorful and well-spiced. I wish I could find it again…

Now I’m going to have to go back because between the Catch foodtruck, trying beers and the live music I didn’t have a chance to purchase wine ice cream or hop chocolate. What??

 

 

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48 Hours in Todd, NC

You don’t know Todd is? That is really shocking. It’s only a bustling community of approximately 2,000 people. To be honest, I really question Wikipedia for saying there’s 2000 people there. Even the general store is closed up and for sale.

I’m not painting a very good picture here. Todd is just off 421 right outside of Boone in western North Carolina. You don’t visit Todd to go somewhere, you go to Todd to just be. For my Christmas present and our Valentine’s weekend Tyler booked us a little cabin just past Todd. I have to admit, as excited as I was to spend the weekend in the mountains I was pretty hesitant about this trip. February is not my ideal time to go to a snowy, hard to traverse area. I’m not equipped to hike in snow.

Luckily snowy roads are a lot easier to travel when you’re driving a full size truck instead of a Honda hatchback. Also, fresh snow + cozy cabin + puppy dog + books – cell service is exactly what the doctor ordered. Even when we were in Belize, we had wifi. I don’t know the last time I couldn’t use my phone, the internet or watch TV. The only radio station we could get was a public radio station from Bristol, TN that played awesome bluegrass music.

So apparently there’s one store in Todd but it’s closed on Sundays so don’t try to go then (whoops). I highly recommend going to Boone but we were too busy drinking fancy beer and walking in the snow.

Take a mini-vacation y’all. You deserve it.

Beer Tour of Wilmington: Goat and Compass

This stop was badly needed. It was after a shockingly bad day at work that we set out for a beer. We went to the nearest place we could.

From the outside Goat and Compass looks like an English pub. Once inside it seems more like a neighborhood dive bar. I don’t say that in a bad way. It was small, a little dark and very casual. The beer selection told a different story. The draft and canned selection had plenty of local, craft beers. It was more than enough to please all of tastes (some like it light, some like it floral and some like it hoppy!).

Music started about an hour into our visit and was pretty pleasant. It wasn’t loud enough to drown out our conversation but added nicely to the atmosphere. We were too caught up in our work drama to think to check out the outside beer garden but I wouldn’t hesitate to go back to do so next time! Plus Goat and Compass offers open mic nights and a corn hole league in addition to its live music nights so it’s pretty much got something for everyone.

Beer Tour of Wilmington: Palate

Despite a large covered porch, Palate isn’t a destination for rainy days. Nonetheless on a rainy, stormy evening we sat in Palate’s beautiful covered seating area. If you make the same choice, sit away from the windows. That rain is coming in.

Palate is a gorgeous bottle shop and bar that features a lot of… you guessed it… pallet wood. The outdoor area is nice in the colder days as they crank up the gas fire pits in each seating area. The service is great with patient bartenders who are glad to help you figure out your choice. It’s beer and wine only with a grab-your-own area for bottles and cans. Draft beer and wine are behind the bar. Draft beer is primarily served in goblets rather than pint glasses which makes Palate lose points with me. I realize they’re supposed to be served that way.  I realize they’re typically high in alcohol but I think it’s important to have a few beers intended for the pint glass on tap as well. It takes away from the beer snob feeling and gives the atmosphere more of a “for every palate” feeling (see what I did there?!).

The selection for purchase to take home is also great. It offers a great many choices and it’s convenient location to my work makes it very tempting for the way home.

This may not be my favorite bar in Wilmington but it does make me feel fancy and relaxed which I greatly appreciate. I’ll be sure to be back soon!

Beer Tour of Wilmington: Flytrap Brewing

I love playing tour guide. I’m not saying I’m great at it, but I really enjoy it. Five weeks ago, my department got a Masters level fellow who is working with us for the summer. Being the kind, welcoming souls that we are another coworker and I started taking her to the finest spots in Wilmington…of the drinking variety. Wilmington may be small but it does not lack for watering holes.

The first stop on the list happened on a sunny day with relatively low humidity so I took us to a place we could sit outside. Flytrap Brewing uses its parking lot for picnic tables rather than parking as well as for food trucks a few nights a week.  We sipped on the Hoppy Tripel (delicious but if your last meal was a few hours ago… one is enough), Gose (tasty with a tiny tinge of sour) and the Saison (new to me and I’ll be back for more!).

Flytrap is hard to beat. The service is always excellent with patient, well-versed bartenders and the atmosphere is simple and welcoming. The artwork is always fresh and different and the beer is too.

If you’re new to Flytrap try a $5 beer flight on Tuesdays.

Thanks Flytrap!