I stumbled across this tour by accident, but I am sure glad we booked. Brew-Ed is such a great name because you really get to learn about the education behind beer making. It really makes you appreciate beer more. Our tour guide Cliff was incredible. Very very knowledgeable about beer and the history of Asheville. Can’t say enough great things about him.
We started our tour at Hi-Wire Brewery. We got to taste 4 of their tops sellers (lager, brown ale, IPA, & stout). Let me tell you, it’s not just a taste, basically a full glass. My husband is “craft beer” person, but myself am more of a wine drinker. After what Cliff teaches you about smelling and appreciating the beer, it really changes the way you taste beer. I have never in my life liked the taste of an IPA. I drank not one, but two glasses. We then headed off to Bhramari Brewery. It was about 3 blocks away. We stopped along the way to learn about the history of Asheville. Very cool.
Once we got to Bhramari, the greatness of knowledge from our tour guide Cliff continued. The only down side (no fault to Brew-Ed or Cliff whatsoever) was Bhramari gave away our reserved table. Very crappy of them, because the place was packed. Cliff even mentioned he called them that morning to let them know we were still coming. We had to resort to standing by the beer tanks in the crowed section of the bar. It kinda took away the awe of the tour. The beer was good though, we tasted 3 different types (brown ale, sour, and bourbon stout). The names that Bhramari have for their beers are very created (so creative, I can’t even remember them). My husband ended up leaving with a 4-pack of the Bourbon Stout (Beware, the price was a little shocking. $20 for a 4-pk).
The tour ended at Bhramari, and we could have opted to stay there for lunch but honestly after they gave up our reservation I was kinda ticked and didn’t want to stay there (shame on them). Cliff then recommended us to a place that had one of the best burgers in Asheville (The Rankin Vault, I’ll write a review on that too).
Overall, the price and the small hiccup, it was very worth it. My husband whom brews his owns beer and already has a wide variety of knowledge on beer and beer making was also very impressed because he learned a lot more things he never knew (Cliff gave him some pointers on some home brewing techniques as well). I learned to appreciate beer more as well. We will definitely do this tour again when we visit Asheville again.
Thank you to Cliff and Brew-Ed for the amazing experience. Sorry, I didn’t take any pics to share but everything was very clean and as expected.