Ancillary* Fermentation
This isn’t actually a brewery—not one with a permanent address, anyway. Instead, it’s a side project from the minds behind Bond Brothers (see below) and Fortnight Brewing that debuted in 2018—a themed, once-a-month pop-up that benefits a nonprofit. Despite the low profile, the beer is getting national buzz.
Bond Brothers Beer Company
202 East Cedar Street, Cary, 919-459-2670, bondbrothersbeer.com
Among the most acclaimed breweries around, Bond Brothers excels at a wide variety of styles, from IPAs and sours to saisons and brown ales.
Botanist & Barrel
105 Persimmon Hill Lane, Cedar Grove, 919-644-7777, botanistandbarrel.com
You probably haven’t tasted a cider like Botanist & Barrel’s before. Blurring the lines between cider, sours, and wine, B&B leans on whole-fruit fermentation, eschewing additives or forced carbonation. The adjuncts it does use—for instance, aging in tequila or port barrels—add to the flavor profile rather than overwhelming it.
Brewery Bhavana
218 South Blount Street, Raleigh, 919-829-998, brewerybhavana.com
This brewery—also a dim sum restaurant, bookstore, and flower shop—is sometimes overshadowed by its sister elements, but it shouldn’t be. The beers, from the basic session IPA to the mango peppercorn saison, live up to the high standards set by Bhavana’s much-heralded food.
Bull City Ciderworks
305 South Roxboro Street, Durham, 919-237-2357, bullcityciderworks.com
It didn’t take long after Bull City Ciderworks opened in 2013 for it to become a Durham favorite. The Off Main, its signature cider, is a mainstay on taps all over the city, but Bull City is big on seasonal offerings and experiments, too.
Crank Arm Brewing
319 West Davie Street, Raleigh, 919-324-3529, crankarmbrewing.com
A bicycling-culture-focused brewery in the Warehouse District, Crank Arm makes high-quality, always-unfiltered beers that are painstakingly produced and never disappointing.
Durty Bull Brewing Company
206 Broad Street, #104, Durham, 919-688-2337, durtybull.com
IPAs put asses in the seats, but Durty Bull is really focused on sours and barrel-aged ales produced with old-world techniques. That’s a mixed blessing, as Durty Bull makes some mighty fine IPAs that aren’t always in production.
Lynnwood Brewing Concern
1053 East Whitaker Mill Road, Raleigh, 919-424-7533, lynnwoodbrewing.com
In 2017, Lynnwood was ranked the third-best brewery in the country (and the best in North Carolina) in the U.S. Open Beer Championship, and was awarded a gold medal for its Hop on Top IPA, Hop Sauce West Coast IPA, and Once You Go Black IPA. Not too shabby.
Steel String Brewery
106 Greensboro Street, Carrboro, 919-240-7215, steelstringbrewery.com
Like its hometown, Steel String loves to get weird, using local and sometimes foraged ingredients to produce taste-bud-poppers like the Obvious Child, a sour, mixed-culture saison made from local malts and midsummer herbs including honeysuckle and ginger.
Trophy Brewing Company
656 Maywood Avenue, Raleigh, 919-803-1333, trophybrewing.com
Trophy ranks among the most prolific IPA makers around, and might make the cleanest, tastiest session IPA—Trophy Wife—in the state, as well as stouts and pilsners galore. And that’s just the beginning of Trophy’s myriad concoctions.
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