Journey Information to Craft Breweries in Wilmington, NC + Excursions and Retailers

Map of Breweries in Wilmington

Methods to use this map | Click on the icon within the top-left nook to open the Map Legend, then click on on any of the legend objects to show extra data. In case you have a Google account, click on the (very faint) star on the finish of the map’s title to save lots of this map to your account, then entry the map out of your smartphone throughout your journey.

The Wilmington Ale Path

Though Entrance Road Brewery was based in 1995, it wasn’t till 2014 that the craft beer scene developed in Wilmington. What began as just a few breweries grew to almost two dozen all through the Cape Concern area. And it continues to broaden.

“It was the Asheville Impact,” Ellie Craig defined. “Why drink craft beer within the mountains when you possibly can drink craft beer on the seashore?” Craig is the advertising supervisor for Entrance Road Brewery and president of the Cape Concern Craft Beer Alliance, which promotes and educates the general public about craft breweries.

The Wilmington Ale Path was shaped to promote the breweries, bottle outlets, and eating places supporting the Cape Concern area craft breweries. Collaborating places provide vouchers that may be bought by way of the Wilmington Ale Path web site. Every voucher to a brewery is value $6 and can be utilized for something on their menu.

The 1-Day Wilmington Ale Path bundle prices $15 and consists of 4 vouchers, whereas the 3-Day Wilmington Ale Path bundle prices $25 and consists of 7 vouchers.

Discover extra details about the packages and taking part breweries at https://wilmingtonaletrail.com.

Edward Train Brewery

When Gary Sholar determined to open a brewery, he bought a 1907 constructing on Fourth Road in Wilmington’s Brooklyn Arts District. The constructing served because the native firehouse for practically seventy years – you possibly can nonetheless see the arch doorway the place the hearth engine would screech out of the constructing.

After an in depth renovation, Edward Train Brewing opened in 2017. The inside was designed with the bow of a ship hanging over a stunning bar. White brick partitions and enormous home windows preserve the bar vibrant and ethereal throughout daytime. A patio overlooks a tiny gorge the place the railroad used to attach with the waterfront warehouses.

“Edward Train Brewing,” Zach, the pinnacle brewer, explains. “It was like a band arising with title. It needed to be one thing native and iconic.”

Their craft beers are equally named. Black Spot is their black lager, a tackle a German-style Schwarzbier, and Scallywag Session IPA is a light-weight American wheat beer. Benefit from the beers by the glass or order a flight to pattern all of them – they often have half a dozen on faucet, they usually rotate all year long.

Flytrap Brewing

Whereas engaged on a level at UNC Wilmington, Mike Barlas started brewing craft beer in his storage and found a ardour. In 2014, he opened Flytrap Brewing – named after the elusive Venus Flytrap native to the Cape Concern area.

Flytrap Brewing occupies a nook at Walnut and 4th Road in Wilmington’s Brooklyn Arts District. Pull up a seat on the wood bar, declare one of many excessive tables, or sit exterior on the concrete patio and benefit from the nice Cape Concern evenings. Barlas enjoys brewing American and Belgian ales, however he additionally produces IPA and stouts for a full menu.

Ironclad Brewery

In 2015, US Navy veteran Ted Coughlin based Ironclad Brewery, naming it after the well-known naval warships throughout the Civil Conflict. Shopping for a two-story business constructing in-built 1925, the group spent months meticulously renovating the area for his or her brewery, taproom, and occasion area.

Once they opened, the inside elicited a jaw-dropping expertise. Hardwood flooring, black metal frames, and uncovered rafters within the ceilings created a contemporary industrial look. Wooden tables and chairs, leather-based sofas and armchairs, and highbacked chairs across the bar gently whisper for individuals to take a seat for awhile and revel in their chilly craft beer.

Ironclad Brewery covers the vary of craft beer with their takes on the Kolsch, lager, IPA, and pale ale. Get a flight to pattern a number of at a time, or purchase it by the glass if you realize what you need.

Entrance Road Brewery

Entrance Road Brewery was the one which began all of it in Wilmington. Opening in 1995, it’s town’s longest-operating brewery and a downtown anchor alongside Entrance Road. The brewery and restaurant are positioned inside a business constructing accomplished in 1865 as a dry items retailer.

The previous constructing was heat, with creaking wood flooring and a white tin metallic ceiling, however the leather-based cushioned benches on the cubicles have been supremely snug. Brewmaster Christopher McGravey retains the contemporary beer flowing with lager, porter, and IPAs – the Coastal Pilsner is certainly one of their flagship beers. The meals at Entrance Road Brewery is famous. Beer-battered fish, sandwiches, and burgers – in the event you attempt something, it must be their well-known pulled hen nachos topped with every part you’ll ever need on nachos.

However the greatest shock at Entrance Road Brewery isn’t the award-winning craft beer or the favored meals menu. It’s the whiskey bar. With 480 whiskeys obtainable, Entrance Road Brewery is among the largest whiskey bars within the nation. For $15, diners can pattern three whiskeys of your selecting or let one of many educated servers select them for you.

New Anthem Beer Undertaking – Dock Road

When Invoice Hunter and Aaron Skiles based the New Anthem Beer Undertaking, they knew they would want a much bigger area. And shortly. In 2016, the duo renovated the final business livery steady in downtown Wilmington – positioned on Dock Road – right into a brewpub.

The McLellan Constructing taproom has a stunning bar wrapping round towering stainless-steel vessels on the heart of the area. It’s a snug place to take pleasure in a chilly craft beer. And it’s a handy place about two blocks from the Cape Concern Riverwalk and one block from Market Road.

In 2019, the brewery outgrew the livery area in downtown Wilmington. The homeowners discovered a business constructing close to Greenfield Lake south of downtown. After renovation, the second location opened as their foremost manufacturing facility and one other taproom.

Waterline Brewing Co.

Once you stroll into Waterline Brewing Co., ask to see the scrapbook. Tucked away on a shelf behind the bar, the scrapbook is filled with photographs of Rob and Eve Robinson and Brian Bell renovating the Nineteen Forties Jacobi {Hardware} constructing right into a brewery.

When it was opened in 2015, the homeowners preserved the most effective elements of the previous {hardware} constructing, just like the concrete ground, rustic brick partitions, and industrial ceilings. It’s standing room solely across the fashionable bar high, however there are many high-top tables inside – and out of doors, you’ll discover cornhole and picnic tables. After an enlargement into an unused portion of the constructing, the shiny stainless-steel manufacturing facility was accomplished, and guests can take a peek inside whereas having fun with their craft beers.

New Anthem Beer Undertaking – Greenfield Road

When Invoice Hunter and Aaron Skiles based the New Anthem Beer Undertaking, they knew they would want a much bigger area. And shortly. In 2016, the duo renovated the final business livery steady in downtown Wilmington – positioned on Dock Road – right into a brewpub. A beautiful bar wraps round towering stainless-steel vessels on the heart of the area.

In 2019, the native brewery expanded to a second location close to Greenfield Lake, about ten minutes from downtown. Two blocks of previous business buildings and warehouses have been renovated into fashionable mixed-use areas. On the nook, the New Anthem Beer Undertaking constructed a manufacturing facility and taproom in a shiny industrial constructing ten instances bigger than their first residence.

The entrance quarter of the constructing options painted concrete flooring, vaulting ceilings, and enormous home windows flooding the area with daylight. Guests can sit at high-top tables or on the bar whereas they pattern the craft beers. The oldsters at New Anthem aren’t afraid to experiment, and it’s inconceivable to peg them to only one kind of beer.

It’s among the finest locations to go to in the event you’ve by no means tried craft beer and are uncertain what you’ll take pleasure in.

Bowstring Burgers and Brewpub

When Ben Yannessa, Brad Bowles, and Matt Golden collaborated to open Bowstring Pizza and Brewyard in Raleigh, they selected an intriguing web site: a former Gulf Oil service station. The gorgeously renovated constructing makes use of storage doorways for an open-air restaurant on snug days. The inside options Twenties service station décor like Charlotte’s Gas Pizza, a neighborhood chain based in a transformed station.

In 2023, Golden reduce the ribbon on a second location in Wilmington. Following the development of changing previous areas, Bowstring Burgers and Brewpub is in a renovated soda bottling manufacturing unit in Wilmington’s Soda Pop District.

The restaurant retains the commercial vibe with concrete flooring and excessive ceilings. Scrumptious burgers are served with crunchy tater tots. And, in fact, there’s a menu for the chilly craft beer.

Hello-Wire Brewing

In 2013, Bryna Frosaker and Adam Charnack opened Hello-Wire Brewing in Asheville on the reverse finish of the state. Since then, the brewery has expanded throughout 9 states.

In Wilmington, Hello-Wire renovated a former business constructing right into a taproom funhouse. Painted concrete flooring and an uncovered ceiling are offset with lovely murals and lovely wooden tables. Seize a flight to pattern a number of of their beers, head over to the ping pong tables, or seize a desk exterior beneath the string lights and open skies.

Bull Metropolis Ciderworks

Some individuals don’t contemplate me a real craft beer fanatic as a result of my favourite kind of beer shouldn’t be an IPA – it’s a tough cider. In 2013, John Clowney, Ben Inglod, AJ Nelson, and Ryan Bogard collaborated on opening a tough cider brewery in Durham.

The group renovated a 1947 Carpenter Motor Co. service storage right into a tiny brewery restricted to solely filling growlers on demand. However by 2016, the brewery’s reputation allowed them to maneuver into a much bigger location and open a taproom.

Bull Metropolis Ciderworks opened its fifth location in Wilmington. A big business constructing was renovated into a snug taproom with concrete flooring, outsized home windows, and comfy seating. The gravel patio includes a firepit and Adirondack chairs for these cool spring and autumn evenings.

Panacea Brewing Firm

In 1993, Artie and Robin Hill started experimenting with fermentation in highschool. Shh! Don’t inform anybody. In 2016, the couple based Panacea Brewing Firm within the Burgaw Incubator Kitchen, a co-op area designed to assist contemporary companies get began. With a 1975 Volkswagen Westfalia transformed right into a cellular taproom, the couple traveled to native farmers’ markets and occasions promoting their kombucha.

What’s Kombucha | Kombucha is a fermented black or inexperienced tea that’s sweetened with a really low alcohol by quantity. Often known as mushroom tea – though it’s really micro organism and yeast – proponents declare kombucha has a number of well being advantages.

In 2017, they moved into their first everlasting residence. Three years later, they moved into a brand new area on Oleander Drive. Brightly coloured, mismatched furnishings and eye-popping murals await guests to the comfortable area. The awning over the door publicizes, “Funky Meals and Ferments,” completely foreshadowing what you’ll discover inside.

Wilmington Brewing Firm

Every thing modified when Wilmington natives John and Michelle Savard vacationed in Europe. After touring breweries in Belgium and Germany, the couple returned residence to Asheville with a ardour for residence brewing. In 2014, they moved to Wilmington and opened the Wilmington Brewing Firm.

The business constructing close to the center of city – and simply minutes from the UNC Wilmington campus – is inviting, with cushioned bar stools at a bar wrapped in corrugated metallic. Pattern their craft beers inside or take them exterior to wood picnic tables. Whereas visiting, try their sister firm, Wilmington Homebrew Provide.

Flying Machine Brewing Firm

In 2018, David Sweigart and Grant Steadman opened Flying Machine Brewing Firm in midtown Wilmington. The 17,000-square-foot fashionable business constructing includes a cavernous inside with painted concrete flooring and vaulting ceilings – make sure to search for the bocce ball course. Outdoors, take pleasure in drinks with a view of the substitute lake.

Their intensive menu consists of easy-drinking cream ales and lagers, IPAs, ciders, malty stouts, sours, and a small collection of wine. Purchase them by the glass or take pleasure in a flight of 4 beers to pattern their menu.

Invoice’s Brewing Co. Taproom

In 2016, John Musser and his daughter, Brookes Musser, opened Invoice’s Entrance Porch on Market Road. The brewery was at the back of the constructing, with a small entrance seating space. For 4 years, they welcomed guests whereas perfecting their craft.

Then, they modified every part.

In 2020, they renovated the constructing and rebranded it as Invoice’s Brewing Co. Taproom. Head brewer Jim Deaton moved to a brand new facility, and your entire constructing on Market Road was transformed into an occasion area and taproom. Guests can order savory meals from Capt’n Payments Yard Grill subsequent door, together with the superb tater tot skillets, and get it delivered whereas sampling the beer menu.

Catawba Brewing Firm

Billy and Scott Pyatt fell in love with residence brewing in 1994 – and it took simply six years for them to show a interest right into a career. In 1999, Billy, his spouse Jetta, and Scott opened Catawba Brewing Firm in a dilapidated warehouse in Glen Alpine, North Carolina. Immediately, the 30-barrel brewhouse has moved to Morganton, and the brewing firm has six places throughout the Carolinas – the brewpub in Wilmington opened in 2021.

Situated on New Centre Drive close to the UNC Wilmington campus, the brewpub is a contemporary and lovely area. Shiny, stainless-steel fermenters stand off to the facet, surrounded by snug tables and chairs. Extra tables and chairs are scattered beneath string lights on the patio exterior – the right place to hang around after the solar has gone down.

Catawba’s hottest craft beer is their White Zombie White Ale, however they at all times have a wide range of others to attempt. Order by the glass or attempt a number of in a flight.

By the Seaside Brewing

Man Gulutz is a well-known craft beer story: a ardour for brewing beer developed from a house brew equipment. After years of brewing at residence, Gulutz and Kim Findley renovated a business constructing into a house for By the Seaside Brewing.

Video games are widespread on the small hole-in-the-wall brewery. Cornhole, pool, darts, and board video games can be found for purchasers ingesting their chilly craft beer. There are many locations to take a seat and benefit from the ingesting expertise.

The brand new brewery continues to be increasing, and lots of choices are coming quickly. Reside music will quickly fill the air on weekends. And, they’ll quickly be certainly one of my favourite sorts of institutions – freshly brewed espresso by day and beer by evening.

Broomtail Craft Brewery

Barry Owings is a water chemist. His spouse, Lisa, is an artist. In 1990, the couple transformed the household barn right into a brew analysis facility. In 2014, the husband-and-wife group took their love of brewing to the following degree after they opened Broomtail Craft Brewer. Enterprise was good, and simply three years after opening, the couple tripled their manufacturing capability.

Broomtail Craft Brewery is in a business district alongside Market Road on town’s north facet. From the skin, the drab business constructing hides the joyful inside. A small wood bar wrapped in corrugated metallic awaits guests wanting to attempt their beers. Chalkboard menus hold on the brightly coloured wall.

The Owings like experimenting however largely persist with ales, IPAs, and sours. Purchase a beer by the glass or pattern the menu with a flight. There are snug seats and a foosball desk if you’ll find room inside. Outdoors, a number of areas within the car parking zone have been taken over by out of doors seating within the shade of an enormous tree.

Outer Dunes Brewing Firm

Shortly after Phil and Ellie Mabe met in 2005, they realized they shared a ardour for brewing. Like many breweries, theirs began with a five-gallon homebrew system in a tiny house. In 2021, the Mabes purchased a former tavern and opened Outer Dunes Brewing Firm.

Excessive chairs encompass a darkish wooden bar contained in the small constructing with low ceilings. However exterior, the brewing firm presents a magic really feel with lights strung between the thick limbs of oak bushes that forged a perpetual shade from their leaves year-round. Picnic tables and patio units are unfold throughout the bottom, the right place to take pleasure in their porters, IPAs, and pale ales.

Waterman’s Brewing

In 2017, Bob Excessive, Craig Gee, and Don Webber opened Waterman’s Brewing simply minutes from Wrightsville Seaside – and all these thirsty beachgoers returning residence. Excessive introduced Zac Brown – the person, not the band – throughout the nation to run the brewery. Now, head brewer Alexis Scrivani places her diploma in Fermentation Science from App State to good use.

Inside, Waterman’s Brewing is among the coziest breweries within the Cape Concern area. A hearth anchors one wall, surrounded by snug chairs and tables. Swiveling excessive chairs on the bar provide a peek on the shiny manufacturing line by way of a big window. Lovely pictures adorns the partitions.

From the start, a kitchen was a part of the brewery’s plans. The brunch menu, served on Saturdays and Sundays, presents a small pattern of breakfast objects and burgers. The common diner menu has a larger collection of appetizers, tacos, and burgers – the loaded tater tots are significantly savory.

Mad Mole Brewing

There are two issues the parents at Mad Mole Brewing Firm need everybody to know. The primary is how the title happened. In 2018, mates and associates Martin de Jongh, Ole Pederson, Chris Worden, and Thomas Varnum opened the newest brewing firm within the Cape Concern area. The title is a play on the founders’ names – take the “M” from Martin and “Ole” from Pederson, and you’ve got Mole. They known as it Mad Mole to reference the mad scientist position performed by the pinnacle brewery in each brewery.

The second factor they need individuals to know is their beer is “brewed by the solar.” Photo voltaic panels on the roof present all the ability they should course of their small-batch craft beers. Their beers usually align with IPA and pale ale with their very own tackle the domestically standard Kolsch.

Inside, the taproom has a stunning wood bar and some tables scattered throughout a concrete ground. Outdoors, tables and chairs on a patio are excellent for these cool evenings when the solar hits the horizon and the temps drop ten levels.

Wrightsville Seaside Brewery

Wrightsville Seaside native Jud Watkins spent his youth fishing for oysters within the shallow waters along with his father and grandfather. The concept was developed throughout their lengthy conversations for a brewery to accompany the tasty oysters. In 2017, Jud and Amber Watkins realized that dream after they opened Wrightsville Seaside Brewery.

The brewery is in a stunning constructing about fifteen minutes from the seashore. Naturally stained wooden tables cowl the ground within the cavernous constructing. On the entrance, a bar stretches the width of the constructing with snug excessive chairs. Almost twenty beers are stored on faucet at any time, a powerful sight whereas sitting on the bar.

Head brewer Chris Zirnheld began in homebrewing and now has a number of skilled certificates within the craft brewing business. He covers the vary of craft beers with IPA, pale ale, Kolsch, pilsner, and stout. Their 007

is an attention-grabbing blended drink that begins with their Kolsch Krush beer, provides vodka and orange juice, and leads to a mix of flavors greatest left tantalizingly undescribed.

DrumTrout Brewing Firm

Ali and Joe Bagwell are the quintessential North Carolina couple. Joe graduated from NC State College, and Ali graduated from UNC Wilmington. They’ve lived in Wilmington for nearly 20 years. After which, they opened DrumTrout Brewing Firm.

The brewing firm is within the Fulton Station buying heart on Faculty Highway between Wilmington and Carolina Seaside. It’s a straightforward brewery to go to, with loads of parking and fewer congested site visitors than a downtown brewery.

From the skin, it appears to be like like every other enterprise within the brick-walled retail constructing with a metallic awning. However inside, it’s something however odd. The concrete ground is painted to resemble the ocean. A beautiful bar surrounded by snug chairs is the point of interest. And there’s a patio within the buying heart that gives a yard really feel.

Good Hops Brewing

Good Hops Brewing combines two of my favourite issues to do when touring: craft beer and disc golf. The brewery sits on 4 acres in Carolina Seaside, about 20-Half-hour from Wilmington. Michael Jones and Christopher Richards constructed a 9-hole par three course within the wooded space behind the brewery.

The brewery opened in a small retail constructing with numerous traditional craft beers, like IPA, Pale Ale, and Pilsner. There’s loads of snug seating inside on chilly or wet days. But when the climate is sweet, you’ll wish to sit on the patio dealing with the disc golf course.

The oldsters operating the brewery advise individuals to carry their very own meals and discs. I at all times have mine packed within the automotive.

Craft Beer Retailers

Generally, you solely wish to seize a case of craft beer to take residence. However craft breweries don’t at all times promote their beers in bottles or cans. How else are you able to carry your new favourite craft beer residence?

4 retailers in Wilmington provide a powerful collection of craft beer in bottles and cans. And it’s not simply the native breweries – a few of these markets have craft beer nationwide.

Tipsy Goat Bottles and Faucets

Tipsy Goat is a beer market and taproom – the right sort of place to go to. A few dozen craft beers are on faucet at any time. The market has an incredible collection of craft beers, onerous ciders, and mead all through the nation.

Fermental Beer & Wine

Fermental Beer & Wine is greater than only a craft beer market and taproom – it’s a Wilmington vacation spot. It was the primary craft beer market within the metropolis and shortly turned a go-to place for craft beer lovers all through the area.

And it’s in a former Nineteen Fifties fuel station! I like the highway journey connection. Refrigerated coolers are similar to those in fashionable fuel stations – besides these are filled with chilly craft beer from all through the nation.

Session Beer Market

Session Beer Market is Wilmington’s latest place to purchase craft beer in bottles or cans. A small taproom bar is wedged into the nook of the market. It’s extra like a vineyard than a bar, although, with just a few seats for an off-the-cuff expertise.

The place to Keep

The locals love the craft beer scene in Wilmington as a result of it’s perhaps a thirty-minute drive to get residence on the evening’s finish. However for vacationers, we want one other place to remain. Wilmington is a bustling metropolis for business, and the college attracts hundreds of tourists all year long. What does that imply?

There are numerous nice motels in Wilmington. Listed here are some locations I like to recommend for spending a number of nights in Wilmington.

The Consolation Inn close to the UNC Wilmington campus is a good lodge for a number of nights. The lodge options free on-site parking and an outside swimming pool. Rooms embrace two full beds or one king mattress.

The Vacation Inn Specific was wedged onto a property in the midst of city between a automotive dealership and the bottom of a Walmart – but it surely’s a pleasing place to remain. The lodge options free on-site parking and a pleasant out of doors swimming pool that will likely be peaceable within the evenings. Rooms embrace two queen beds or one king mattress.

Greatest Western Plus – previously the Shoreline Inn – is certainly one of Wilmington’s greatest locations to remain. The downtown lodge is on the riverfront, with rooms providing spectacular views however no balconies. Free on-site parking is included. Rooms function two full beds, one king mattress, and the King Suite has one king mattress and a sleeper couch.

Hampton Inn & Suites is the high beneficial place to remain in Wilmington. The lodge is a 20-minute drive from downtown however solely a 10-minute drive from Wrightsville Seaside. The out of doors options free on-site parking and a stunning out of doors swimming pool. Rooms embrace two full beds or one king mattress, and the suites embrace a king mattress and sleeper couch. Some rooms embrace a totally outfitted kitchen with a small eating desk, excellent for touring households.

Aloft is among the latest motels in downtown Wilmington. Situated on the Shoreline Middle, town’s conference heart, the lodge is strolling distance of most eating places and buying within the historic district. Rooms embrace two queen beds or a king mattress with views of the Cape Concern River or downtown, and a number of the rooms embrace a balcony.

Hampton Inn in downtown Wilmington is a good place to remain if you wish to be inside strolling distance of breweries, eating places, buying, and leisure. The lodge includes a small indoor swimming pool and glorious complimentary sizzling breakfast each morning. Rooms embrace two queen beds or a king mattress.

Resort Ballast is the high beneficial place to remain in downtown Wilmington. The lodge has direct entry to the Cape Concern Riverwalk on the waterfront. The lodge options personal parking for a further charge, an outside swimming pool with a river view, and an on-site restaurant and bar. Rooms embrace two full beds or a king mattress, views of downtown or the river, and the one-bedroom suite features a king mattress and a sleeper couch.

Ceaselessly Requested Questions