On the last day of my trip to North Carolina for my brother’s wedding, some of my family that was still in town all decided to go explore downtown Asheville. I had heard of Asheville plenty of times. My parents had visited enough to have a few favorite local breweries, and my friend Lindsey had always touted it up to be such a fun and eclectic type of city. It was only about a half hour away from our cabin in Hendersonville, so we thought it’d be a fun little evening trip.
LIVELY STREET WALKING
We found a parking deck pretty easily and started to walk around, wandering the streets and soaking up the culture. The weather was perfect. It still felt like summer but there was this great breeze as the sun set. I loved looking at all of the styles of the buildings, they seemed so welcoming and full of character. The people we saw had a lot of character themselves. There were a good mix of hipster-types and plenty of hippies.
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The city was full of young, quirky people. Many of them were sitting on sidewalks in big groups, playing music and telling stories, laughing with each other. For a minute, it almost felt like I was back at Camp Bisco. In fact, you could hear live music just about every place you walked in Asheville - one of my favorite parts of the experience! Check out the video on the right for an idea of what Asheville sounded like.
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Another interesting thing I saw was something called a Pub Cycle. It’s basically a bar crossed with a tandem bicycle, so you peddle while you drink and take a tour of the city. It looked like a pretty fun time!
THE THIRSTY MONK
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The first brew pub we went to check out was called the Thirsty Monk. It was a purple building, so right off the bat I knew I liked it. One thing that made this place unique was all of the decor, there was so much artwork everywhere you looked. Check out some pictures below! The main floor was pretty crowded for our party of eleven, so we decided to check out the basement level. While everyone was figuring out whether or not they wanted to stay, I headed straight to the bar to check out their beer selection.
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The bartender was really helpful in finding something that I’d like. I’m not the biggest fan of most styles of beer, but the name of one on tap sparked my curiosity - Psycho Kinesis from Grimm Artisanal Beers. I settled for a sample because the bartender was sure I wouldn’t like it (most people don’t at first). It didn’t look like beer, it didn’t smell like beer, and it definitely didn’t taste like beer. I loved it! So I quickly ordered a pour of my own.
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Psycho Kinesis is a Dry Hopped American Sour style Ale. It was tart, definitely sour and hinted of watermelon. It had a finish that reminded me of a dry wine, and then finally the hoppy notes of an ale popped in my empty mouth. It was unlike any beer I had ever had, and might have fooled me for a cocktail if someone hadn’t told me. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to savor it because my mom wasn’t impressed with the tap selection downstairs, on top of everyone having more of an appetite than the Thirsty Monk’s small-bite style menu could really accommodate.
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I shortly found myself back up on the busy musical streets of Asheville with my cousins who stayed back so I could finish my drink. The rest of our group went ahead to get us a table at our next stop. We saw and heard plenty more interesting things on our walk. One thing that really stuck out was a giant chalkboard painted on one of the walls. Big and bold at the top were the words “Before I die….” Underneath this were countless lines where passing strangers could write out goals from their own bucket lists. It was very unique and special, and it stretched for almost a whole block, filled with hundreds of things people wanted to accomplish before they died. If I had some chalk with me, I would have added to it!
WICKED WEED BREWING
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Not long after that, we finally arrived at Wicked Weed Brewing. I had heard plenty of stories about this place from my family who had been before. The brewery gets its name form a famous quote by King Henry VIII, “Hops are a wicked and pernicious weed.” There was a comfortable yet curious atmosphere, plenty of dark corners, vintage artwork, and worn in stools. By then, I was starving so I was happy to hear that a couple of artisanal cheese plates and other appetizers were already on their way. We ordered a round of drinks, too. I pondered the impressive beer selection, looking for a style that would stick out to me. The Pernicious IPA seemed like a popular choice. Just about everyone else ordered a beer, but I couldn’t resist it when I saw Basil-Cucumber Gin and Tonic listed on the cocktail menu. It was so refreshing, and you caught a whiff of the freshly muddled cucumber before every sip.
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The cheese plate was my favorite thing I ate that night. There were three types to try along with the different nuts and dried fruit (pictured top to bottom). The first was a Spanish goat cheese which had a unique tang and was surprisingly a hard yellowy cheese (most goat cheeses are soft and white). The next was my favorite, a French soft-ripened triple-cream cheese called Délice de Bourgogne that was so creamy and smooth, it melted the second it hit your mouth. And last was a beautiful green semi-hard cheese called Sage Derby, named after the herb that gives it it’s distinct flavor and color. The plating style was rustic and beautiful, and I loved trying all the different combinations of flavors!
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We sat and nibbled and drank a while more before our dinner came. I ordered the Bison burger that came topped with blue cheese, fresh slaw and shoestring fried onions. I also asked for a side of their house honey mustard to dip my fries in. The burger wasn’t bad, but I enjoyed the honey mustard substantially more. It was a thin sauce, with the perfect balance of sweet and tangy.
While we digested, I wanted to explore the brewery a little more. So far I had only seen the upstairs, which only showed a bar and dining area. The actual brewery portion was downstairs, where you could take tours and do tastings. So, I convinced the younger half of the crowd to go check it out with me. All along the walls of the dimly lit staircase, we saw playful chalk signs guiding us forward, promoting the live music of the night. We were too late to hear music or get a tour, but we were able to walk through and peek at some of the hardware.
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We sat and hung out at a picnic table while we finished our drinks and enjoyed each other’s company for the last time it would be for a while. Everyone was heading off in different directions the next day, so I was thankful for the extra time I got to spend with my cousins. By then it had gotten late and everyone was tired from the exhausting wedding weekend, so our trip to Asheville had to come to an end. It was a really great visit and I’m glad I got to check out that funky little town!
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Bill, Kyla, Me, Sarah, Kristen and Joey!
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I’d definitely go back some time soon and check out some of the other great bars and restaurants. I loved exploring Asheville, especially since I had some of the best people to do it with.
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