8.03.2009

Triangle Brewing Company

This is the 200th post on CoreyInscoe.com!! What better way to celebrate than talking about beer!


This is the part of Durham that you always hear about: the part where you find yourself locking your door and praying that the stoplights stay green so you don't have to stop. I was winding my way through tiny streets lined with broken down houses on one side and warehouses on the other, wondering if MapQuest had dealt with some technical difficulties while processing my directions.

I turned right on Pearl Street, where cars lined the street. To my right there was a big black warehouse surrounded by a fence crowned with barbed wire. Three sheets of paper were taped to the door, each displaying one letter: "T-B-C."

"No way," I thought to myself. This isn't what I expected when I decided to visit the Triangle Brewing Company a couple weeks ago.

My fears were put at ease when I walked inside. The inside of the warehouse is almost completely bare except for a couple ping pong tables, a Daytona 500 arcade game, a bar and, of course, a room full of fermenters. Now we're talking.

Every other Saturday, the two-year-old Durham craft-brewery holds tours and free tastings for anyone willing to brave the more questionable parts of the city. I can't think of a better way to spend a Saturday.

At first I wasn't sure if there was really a tour. As I walked in, I was handed a pint glass and instructed to fill up as many times as I liked. Over 100 people were already crowding the main room, all with beer in hand. For about an hour nothing happened. I thought they must have been using the word "tour" loosely.

Then Andy, the "sales" half of the two-man crew that makes up TBC, got everybody to gather around for the tour. He took us through each stage of the brewing process and described how it works, where the different flavors come from and told a little bit about the history of the brewery. I would tell you more details, but I was about three beers in at this point....


Andy on the right, Luke the beer intern on the left

The tour was OK, but the real highlight of visiting the brewery is getting to sample the beer. They usually have about five flavors on tap at a time. During my visit, I was able to sample the India Pale Ale, Belgian White, Belgian Golden and Xtra Pale Ale. My personal favorite was the XPA, which I got a growler of before I left.

I highly recommend taking a trip to Durham to visit these guys. It's a great way to spend a Saturday. They even have a little outdoor area to sit and enjoy a nice summer day. Check out what events they have coming up on their calendar.

This trip got me motivated to visit some of the other craft breweries in the area, like Big Boss, Carolina Brewing Company, Carolina Brewery and Red Oak. Look out for more sudsy posts in the future.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that's Andy, not Rick.

Unknown said...

I think you might be right. Thanks for the catch.

matt dudek said...

While I can appreciate how your view of Durham, and especially East Durham, has been influenced by lazy tongues wagging in the summer's heat over the past 30-50 years, but Durham is not dangerous, not in the least. You don't have to worry about Mad Max dragging you from your car or any other post-apocalyptic scenario. Sigh.

Triangle Brewing Company is in between two great neighborhoods, (my neighborhood) www.clevelandholloway.blogspot.com, and http://goldenbelthistoricdistrict.wordpress.com/

I'm sure you didn't mean to disparage our community, I understand the comedic effect it has, but it gets tiresome constantly hearing people talk about East Durham as if it were the South Bronx in the 80s.

Glad you liked the brewery, they're fantastic neighbors and we're happy to have them.

Unknown said...

I wasn't trying to generalize Durham. There are definitely good areas and the city has done a lot to change it's image.

I wasn't really that scared, but it definitely wasn't the best side of town. That's all that I was trying to say.

I love Durham, and it has a lot of good things to offer. But, just like most cities, it has it's rough parts.

matt dudek said...

Yeah, I'm sure I'm being over sensitive, and I know you didn't intend anything malicious by it. Just wanted to throw some context out there I guess.