When you are in Nashville and think of a word that begins with "C" the vast majority of people would say Country Music. Well now you can safely say "Craft Beer". Yes the revolution has hit Nashville and good craft beer is growing in the home of country music. Hey......Country Music Stars about a song about the craft beer revolution in Dixie. Truthfully, I did not have Nashville on my list of cities to visit on the quest. But thanks to a nephews graduation at Middle Tennessee State, I made the trip and was pleasantly surprised by the number of good brewpubs that I discovered in the Nashville area. I also added Kentucky to the state count and found a very interesting brewery in Lexington. So as always here are a few of the breweries that I particularly enjoyed in the Grand Ole Opry City.
- Yazoo Brewing Co.- located on the south side of downtown, known by the locals as the Gulch, this brewery is one of the first and largest brewery in Nashville. The tasting room attached to their 40 bbl brewhouse, has a nice large open indoor area and a small patio to enjoy your brew outside. They usually have a food truck scheduled in the parking lot if you want some food with your brews. My favorites on my sampler flight was the Sly Rye Porter, Hop Project and SUE, a nice smoky porter.
- Jackalope Brewery- just a few blocks from Yazoo, in the Gulch you will find Jackalope, no not the mythical Jackrabbit /antelope critter, but another neat brewery. The brewer is a Vanderbilt Law school grad that used her degree to join the beer revolution. The brewpub has a nice seating area with the bar and a larger attached gathering room. The beer was good and I would recommend the bear walker maple brown and the Dire Wolf IPA.
- Fat Bottom Brewing Co.- moving to the east side of Nashville this brewery opened the old Fluffo mattress factory and is a must stop in the developing East Park Area. The tasting room is attached to the brew works and the night I visited a group was setting up to play some music. THey have a small food menu with sandwiches, salads, soup and snacks. I recommend the Hummus Plate. The beer selection is very nice , I enjoyed the Knockout IPA, Black Betty and Bertha Oatmeal Stout.
- Czann's Brewing Co.- moving back to the south side this brewery is one of Nashville's newest additions to the beer revolution and it is a must stop. The tasting room is small, however, the friendly atmosphere cannot be beat. Ken the owner/Brewer/ Marketer.....yes Ken is a one man show and he is doing an excellent job. Ken rolled out the red carpet for us ( my brother-in-law joined the quest) and the hospitality was fantastic. Ken was pouring his Old School IPA, Pale and the Oatmeal Stout. Very good brews, my favorite was the Oatmeal Stout. If you only have time for one Brewery in Nashville, this is the one. Keep up the great work, Ken.
- Tennessee Brew Works- staying on the South side you will find this brewery by the railroad tracks. Open for over one year, this two floor tap room has plenty of space to enjoy their nice selection of brews. They also have a nice upstairs patio to enjoy your brew outdoors in the warmer weather. They have a nice selection of brews, my favorites were Cutaway IPA Country Roots Stout and be careful with this one Country Roots aged in Corsair Quinoa Whiskey Barrels.
It was time to head north and on the way home we stopped at two breweries in the Bluegrass state. The first brewery, Lexington Brewing & Distilling, was more of a tourist stop. Do not get me wrong, this is a nice place with a very nice Visitor Center ( based on old Dublin, Ireland ). You must take the tour to get 4 samples of beer and you cannot buy beer onsite. Now our second stop was a brewpub.
- West Sixth Brewing- the brew works and tasting room were located in a large warehouse type building in a lexington Neighborhood. The taproom was very large and open with a n L-shaped bar. There is a small restaurant attached, you can walk over order and they bring your food. One of the most unique aspects of this location is they share space in their warehouse with Women's Roller Derby. So be careful on Roller Derby night, especially if you see women on roller skates. The Snake Eyes Imperial Stout, Heller Heaven dbl IPA and the Christmas Ale were worth the stop.