A Brief Intermission: Carolina Blonde

The spring beer tournament is taking such a toll on me that I've been forced to recuse myself to the Outer Banks to recover. Luckily, while I'm here, there are a bevy of new beer options open to me. There are two breweries that were started right here on the banks, Weeping Radish, and Outer Banks Brewing. Weeping Radish has moved just over the bridge to the mainland, so they could have more room for their numerous undertakings http://www.weepingradish.com/. Outer Banks Brewing Station is a wind powered, i.e. f-ing cool http://www.obbrewing.com/, brewery in Kill Devil Hills. I'll be taking a look at their products as well as other North Carolina Breweries. One other brewery I will examine is the New Belgium Brewery, makers of the renowned Fat Tire Ale, out of Fort Collins, Colorado. Why you ask? Because oddly, this is the only place, currently, on the East Coast where this beer is available. Another good reason to head to the Outer Banks. But before we get in to all this North Carolina goodness, let's get this out of the way. Picture taken on the deck railing of the families beach house in Kitty Hawk.

The "beer" in question here is Carolina Blonde, made by the Carolina Beer ( note: beer, not brewing ) Company, of Wilkes-Barre Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania? Last time I checked, not in North Carolina. Well let's pour some out and see what we have. Color: well there is a little bit of pale gold that slightly distinguishes it from water. Nose: Nope. Alright, you can smell a little bit of hop has been waved over this liquid. Taste: absolutely not. Again, I exaggerate, but let me tell you what it does taste like. It taste like Bud or any other Macrobrew, which of course, it is. Look, this beer isn't that bad, it's smooth and easy to drink, just like water. It would be nice on a hot day served very cold, to disguise the flavor, or lack thereof. But, I would be very disappointed if I came here on vacation and had one of these thinking I was having some quaint local microbrew. And instead, what I got was stuff drained from some huge vat into a bunch of bottles, with different labels, and sent all over the country as "local" beers. Don't waste your precious beer dollar on this when you can buy , Insert any canned macrobrew, much cheaper. I hope things take a drastic turn for the better when I try some actual local beers. Peace, Out.