Welcome to Growlers: your weekly roundup of news, events and specials from Little Rock’s breweries and taprooms. Little Rock’s beer scene is growing and improving at a rapid pace, and we’re dedicated to keeping you up to speed on all of it. Here’s what’s happening this week:
This week’s major event is the Legends of Arkansas 2016 festival in Argenta this coming Saturday. Nine Central Arkansas brewers will be featured at the festival in addition to nearly a dozen food trucks and plenty of live music and family activities. Admission to the event is free, though VIP passes are for sale for $40.
Rebel Kettle Brewing Company has some interesting stuff on tap this week, starting with Bohemian Rasp-sody for Growler Tuesday. This one is a raspberry cheesecake-inspired ale with a vibrant red color. If you like darker beers, check out 4:30 Thursday, which will feature a Nitro Coffee Stout beer with house-roasted Oaxacan coffee beans. That will be paired with a nitro-tapped cold brew coffee. And starting next week, Rebel Kettle will be open seven days a week. The brewery had been closed on Mondays since it first open, but that will change beginning Sept. 12.
Josiah Moody of Moody Brews has a special beer out this week. On Thursday, Moody Brews will hold a tap takeover event at Skinny J’s in Argenta. Moody is bringing is well known Cuban Pull coffee ale and his Pulaski Pilsner, but he also has a new Watermelon Ginger IPA that will debut at the event. Moody used 200 pounds of watermelon and seven pounds of ginger from Hardin farms to make the IPA (read about the process here). The tap takeover event starts at 6 p.m., so make plans to drop in and enjoy a pint of a truly unique ale.
Bubba Brews in Hot Springs has a big week ahead, starting with the release of its own portion of the Hoppy Lager for Ales for ALS. Also, the brewery has had to make a few more batches of its Southern Rok Oktoberfest beer due to increased demand. Bubba Brews now has enough Southern Rok to last through October. And soon, you could be seeing Bubba Brews coming to Oaklawn. The two companies are ironing out an agreement to serve the beer first in the gaming side and eventually at the live horse track next year.
Core Brewing is releasing one of its rare beers this week at its Argenta Public House location. The beer is an imperial brown IPA called Invincible 9. In addition, look for some specials out of the kitchen this week from chef Jeff Wetzel. Wetzel recently released a new blackened shrimp with bacon cheddar grits entrée that has been popular over the past few days.
Tonight, Stone’s Throw Brewing welcomes newcomers Viva Vegan to the brewery. The Mexican-inspired vegan business will be serving up dishes like jackfruit carnitas and chorizo-potato tacos (bring cash to pay for your food tonight). On Thursday, Stone’s Throw will be at The Rep for a pre-show tasting of its Spamalot-themed “Excalibeer,” an elderberry-infused ale made just for the show. You can also catch the Stone’s Throw guys at Legacy Wine and Spirits on Friday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. for a tasting event.
Buffalo Brewing Company at The Water Buffalo has all of its necessary permits to begin brewing beer. The tiny half-barrel brewery will be getting to work soon and will feature four of its own beers on tap as well as more than half a dozen beers from brewers around Central Arkansas. It should be open at the end of the month. Take a look at our early preview of Buffalo Brewing here.
Do you have some beer news you would like to share with us? Email me at steve@rockcityeats.com.
RIP Damgoode Pies
November 20, 2023
