Brew Flowers in the Queen City: Part 2
To get you up to speed, it had been awhile since I really celebrated my birthday, so Mac suggested a Brew Flower Road Trip! I grabbed Lady Bitteroot, Golden Wheat, and Poppy (don’t give me hoppy) and we headed to Charlotte, NC to check out the beer scene.
If you haven’t checked out Part 1 yet, you can do so: HERE!
In Part 1 I talked about our first stop at Bloom & Bottle, which you can also read about in complete detail: HERE!
I let you know where you can find a perfect pint of Guinness, served with a side of Irish brogue.
I tell you about my first trip to Salud Cerveceria and share with you the details of flights I sipped at Divine Barrel and NoDa brewing!
Now for Part 2!
Free Range Brewing
From here we headed to Free Range Brewing. This was my favorite brewery we visited. I loved the atmosphere and they had truly lovely beers. It felt very female-centric and very safe. I could see this being a perfect hang out for my girlfriends and I. I loved that you could see the brewing tanks right there in the taproom. The ladies working behind the bar were fun, knowledgeable, and extremely helpful!
When they found out about Brew Flowers they recommended that I try Susie, the Queen Bee (4.5% ABV). Susie, the Queen Bee is a farmhouse ale brewed in collaboration with Pink Boots and The National Honey Board using as many locally sourced ingredients as possible. (88% in fact). Only adding to the beauty of the brew, Free Range used avocado honey, calendula flowers and assorted foraged flowers. It was as charming and delicious as you can imagine.
I also had to try their Shellem’s Mussel Beach (3.9% ABV) as I enjoy both mussels and stouts! I couldn’t believe they had a beer that combined both of these unique flavors! I also couldn’t get over how much the beer smelled like mussels! Salty and briny. This might not be your thing, if you don’t like stouts or shellfish, but I LOVED it!
Another neat feature of Free Range Brewing, is that they are the home of an Art-o-mat! If you don’t know what that is, look it up! It’s a repurposed cigarette machine, up-cycled to dispense ART! These were all over the city where I attended undergrad, but I never had the extra cashflow to buy any of the art. So, this was my chance! I bought three pieces to bring home to my family and it was so satisfying! Two of the pieces (one of a rainbow and one with flowers painted on each side) are currently sitting on my mantel. The third ended up being a pair of wooden, beaded earrings, so they are trickier to display.
The Free Range ladies also suggested our next stop, and boy were they on point!!!
The Degenerate
The Degenerate has beer, wine, and cocktails. The most important offering of The Degenerate, however, is the delicious food! My biggest complaint with the Charlotte beer scene is the lack of breweries and pubs with bar food. As you may know, Brew Flowers love to snack while they sip and they are more likely to stick around if there is a warm soft pretzel or other savory treat on the table to pair with their brews. Luckily our new friends at Free Range Brewing suggested where we could grab a delectable bite and within walking distance of their taproom! The Degenerate was only about a five minute walk from Free Range Brewing. Conveniently, they are located on the same lucky street!
Here’s the thing, the food at The Degenerate was exactly what our evening needed. It was amazing! We each ordered something different and shared. This is Golden Wheat’s favorite method of dining.
Poppy ordered the Pierogis, which were stuffed with cheddar cheese, bacon, shallots and where FRIED. This was per our Free Range friend's recommendation. The pierogis are a must if you visit The Degenerate. They were amazing!
Golden Wheat ordered the hummus plate, which paired well with the pale ales we all ordered.
I ordered the Grilled Cheese. I know this may sound odd, but I love grilled cheese. I even had grilled cheese mid bar hopping, on my 21st birthday. The Degenerate’s Grilled Cheese ended up being a real treat. It was made with sharp cheddar, gruyere, provolone, and parmesan. There was a thin layer of crispy cheddar on the outside as well. To top it off, this cheesy masterpiece was served with a side of tomato soup. I cannot resist dipping grilled cheese into tomato soup. This experience was perfect, as far as I’m concerned.
Lady Bitteroot ordered the churros, which we all agreed were the best churros we had ever had! Along with the pierogis, the churros are an absolute MUST if you make it to The Degenerate.
We’re still talking about the pierogis! Wait, did I mention the pierogis?!
Birdsong Brewing Co.
Our last stop of the evening, before heading back to the hotel, was to the Birdsong Brewing Co. tap room. It had great outdoor space, which I could see making it perfect for families. The bathrooms were well maintained and each stall had its own cup holder. In addition, the ladies’ room had a changing table, also suggesting that this tap room was family friendly. To wrap up the night, I ordered my last flight of the trip.
The Rain Sour was very easy to drink (6.2% ABV and 10 IBU). It was fruited with blueberries and strawberries giving it a slightly purple tint. It was very refreshing, which made me wish it was available in the heat of the summer.
The Three Birds Rice Lager was brewed in collaboration with another Queen City Brewery, Triple C., brewed with flaked rice it was also refreshing and easy to drink (4.4% ABV and 15 IBU). I could see this pairing well with a burger or fish tacos.
The Good As Helles lager (5.4% ABV) was a bit hoppier than I was expecting (30 IBU), but still good . I could definitely see myself enjoying this brew with a slice of salty pizza.
The Mexicali Stout (5.8% ABV) was a great way to round out my flight. Truly a stout with strong flavors of cocoa and coffee (35 IBU), but with a bite of heat from the habaneros. Should this be a part of a new style of beers called Chili Brews? I think so!
Zada Jane’s
The next morning we headed to Zada Jane’s, which was another recommendation from the Free Range Ladies. The outside was painted a happy spring green and flowers were blooming all around their patio. If it was a bit warmer when we visited I would have loved to have sat outside. Inside was really neat too with cheery yellow walls and a purple ceiling! The walls were also decorated with lots of interesting artwork.
Brunch is probably my favorite meal, so the Zada Jane’s morning menu was right up my alley. The only problem was that I wanted to try everything! I ended up ordering the Zada Jane 28205 Basic Breakfast. This plate had lots of options. It came with "happy eggs” and choice of bacon, local sausage, turkey sausage, or soysage. If given the option of breakfast bread, I always will choose a biscuit and theirs were delicious! I was also excited to try their herb roasted spuds. Those potatoes were excellent!
With our bellies full, we headed to our last stop before home.
Ikea
We live in a small town, so going to a store that has its own zip code is a must! We definitely got in our steps before we hit the road again. As usual there was so much to see. Plus we had to grab a snack before we headed back. That’s when we found the pretzel we had been looking for all weekend! If only Ikea served some of those craft brews as well!
I had about twelve places on my list that I wanted to visit and we got to seven of them, which I felt was pretty amazing!
If you have recommendations for our next road trip, please let me know!
Cheers!
