USA, NC: Whistle Hop Brewing to be inaugurated on December 9

Whistle Hop Brewing opens Friday, December 9 in a red caboose in Fairview. And though the brewery is small — just 20 seats, not including a 40-seat patio, and a one-barrel brewing system — head brewer Thomas Miceli wants to focus on big flavor. And, within a year, the brewery hopes to expand to a 10-barrel system, Asheville Citizen-Times reported on December 6.

Miceli said he'll turn out beers that are a little "out there, but with a good flavor to them," with a focus on local ingredients, when applicable.

“That’s what got me started in home-brewing," said Miceli, an engineer at Linamar who's going into business with his father Frank, his mother Lu-Lu, and his brother, who goes by Spanky. "I was not finding beers that I liked that much — beer that sounded good but when I tasted it, I couldn’t pick up the notes I expected to.”

Opening-day brews are likely to include Whistle Hop's own Banana Wheat or SOB Porter, the latter flavored with chocolate and pasilla chiles, also known as chile negro. Both ingredients are common in Mexican mole. Opening brews might also include Miceli's Orange Blossom-Ginger Trippel, made with orange blossom honey.

Miceli favors using honey over beet or any other added sugars, he said. "Honey is more expensive, but it has these delicate notes that come through with it. It's a lot more subtle. We spend a lot on ingredients, which means we’re not going to make a lot of money — but I like the beer, so it's worth it."

The brewer acknowledged that a one-barrel system is going to be "a problem," and already had plans to expand even before the Whistle Stop's doors opened. Within a year, the Micelis will expand to a 10-barrel system, also adding a boxcar to expand the taproom, now a 300-square-foot caboose. The boxcar is about 60 feet in length to the caboose's 30

The brewing facilities, next to the caboose, are already big enough to allow for the forthcoming 10-barrel system.

Miceli's brewing background is mainly as a home-brewer. He learned the ins and outs of brewing through classes at Asheville Brewer's Supply on Merrimon Avenue. He's apparently impressed ABS's owner Tedd Clevenger; Clevenger may even moonlight as a bartender at Whistle Hop.

Meanwhile, Miceli will keep his job at Linamar. Right now, the brewery is a labor of love, he said. “It’s hard, but I'm not the only one who’s done it.”

Whistle Hop, along with the soon-to-open Turgua Farmstead Brewery, will make two Fairview breweries with a focus on out-of-the-box flavors and local ingredients. The local animals stand to benefit too; Whistle Hop already gives its spent grain to nearby Hickory Nut Gap farm for animal feed.

Trout Lily, a nearby local foods market, will provide some sandwiches for Whistle Hop's limited food menu, which will also include meat and cheese boards incorporating Hickory Nut Gap's cured meats and cheese from Looking Glass Creamery, also in Fairview.

“It’s a really cool little community out here,” Miceli said.

Whistle Hop Brewing is at 1278 Charlotte Highway.

06 December, 2016