USA, NC: New Belgium delays opening of Asheville brewery

New Belgium has pushed back the opening of its Asheville Liquid Center tasting room until March and brewery tours until April, company spokeswoman Susanne Hackett said. The Liquid Center was originally announced to open this month, with tours beginning in March, Geenville News reported on February 2.

The delays come as New Belgium continues to test brew at its massive West Asheville brewery on the French Broad River, Hackett said, "We have finished some batches of beer," she said. "We want to get the beer out the door as soon as possible, but we want to get the right beer," she said. "We are taking our time with that."

New Belgium is testing its brewing system with batches of Fat Tire Amber Ale, 1554 Black Lager and Ranger IPA. Those beers were chosen for testing because of their different profiles and processes for brewing.

Construction is down to "the last 15 percent" at the brewery, which will be Asheville's largest, and one of the biggest in Western North Carolina, along with Sierra Nevada in Mills River and Oskar ;Blues in Brevard. The New Belgium brewery itself will be 127,000 square feet and The Liquid Center tasting room will be 6,000 square feet and include indoor and outdoor seating.

At full build-out the brewery could produce up to 500,000 barrels of beer for sale in the eastern United States. The original New Belgium brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado, will continue to serve the western half of the country.

The brewing scene in Asheville and Western North Carolina continues to grow, with 22 breweries in Buncombe County and another 24 open around the mountains, with more under construction or planning.

03 February, 2016