Thirsty Nomad, Charlotte’s newest brewery, to host grand opening July 23
You may not know Brad Ledbetter, but perhaps you’ve spotted him at area festivals and beer events. He’s often wearing his signature top hat and goggles, the very personification of the Thirsty Nomad Brewing Co. logo.
Ledbetter is one of the owners and brewers at Thirsty Nomad, which will hold its grand opening from 2-10 p.m. next Saturday, July 23.
He looked in Concord for a while, too, but eventually set his sights on Charlotte proper. A nomad no more, he and his business partners have found a home at 4402 Stuart Andrew Blvd, Suite A. The brewery and taproom is located in a 3,900-square-foot space inside of an office park, not far from The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery and the LoSo district.
Ledbetter’s hat is a tip of the cap to the brewery’s steampunk aesthetic, which can be found throughout the taproom. Ledbetter cautions, however, that they won’t be going “full-on, super nerdy steampunk.”
“That’s one of the big guiding principles I’ve put into the decor,” says Ledbetter. “I want it to look more Victorian or semi-modern so that nobody feels like, ‘this is weird.’”
My friend and expert #cltbeer photographer Eric Gaddy described the taproom as reminiscent of “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen,” and that rings true. It’s a small but comfortable space, tastefully appointed with items and artifacts Ledbetter and his team have been stowing away.
What you won’t find in the taproom is a window looking into the brewhouse. That’s located through a “parlor” and behind a door, where a three-barrel brewhouse sits. Since a barrel of beer is 31 gallons, that means for every batch of beer Thirsty Nomad brews, they can expect to yield around 93 gallons. It’s a fraction of what larger breweries make per batch, and will require Ledbetter to brew double batches to get the volume the brewery wants.
“It’s always been the question with the small system,” says Ledbetter, “Can we produce enough?”
[Related: Are nanobreweries a good first step for N.C. breweries?]
He’ll have a better idea after the brewery is open and he can better determine demand, but right now he anticipates brewing 2-3 times a week. The taps will vary, as Ledbetter says they want to always offer a broad selection with styles that fall into a few categories (light yellow and fizzy; dark and malty; browns or ambers; and hoppier styles). Chances are the beers will be associated with fictional characters as well.
More inventive offerings will fall under the Mad Scientist Experiment (MSE) series (two in this series, a Berliner weisse and dark blonde, will be on tap for the grand opening). And they will have their own beer engine, a device used to dispense beer from casks for a creamier mouthfeel. Check out the full taplist for the grand opening here.
Thirsty Nomad plans to serve wine, Windy Hill cider, and Stumptown coldbrew from a nitro tap. That will help fill the taps and take some of the burden off the brewery’s small system, and Ledbetter plans on doing more collaborations as well (the brewery has already brewed a strawberry hibiscus saison with High Branch Brewing in Concord, fittingly named “Branch in the Road”).
The grand opening will take place from 2-10 p.m. on Saturday, July 23, after which the brewery will be open from 4-10 on Friday and noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Thirsty Nomad Brewing: 4402 Stuart Andrew Blvd, Suite A. Website. Facebook. Twitter. Instagram.
Photos: Daniel Hartis
This story was originally published July 14, 2016 at 1:00 AM with the headline "Thirsty Nomad, Charlotte’s newest brewery, to host grand opening July 23."