Two brewery taproom grand openings highlight weekend

If you like a party featuring locally brewed beer, you are in luck this weekend. Two new West Virginia brewery taprooms hold their grand opening events this Saturday.

Weathered Ground Brewery of Cool Ridge and Short Story Brewing of Rivesville will both be festive locations on August 5.

Weathered Ground Brewery open house

This grand opening party will give folks their first chance to see this beautiful showcase farmhouse brewery in southern WV. It’s a major new brewery investment that has the state’s craft beer community buzzing.

Sure, they will have good music and food, but the real star will  be the beer. We’re very impressed with everything owner/operators Aryn and Sam Fonda are doing on their hilltop farm. Here is what they promise for their opening tap list.

BEER LIST FOR OPENING DAY

• Haggard India Pale Ale, a well-rounded IPA featuring the El Dorado hop. Very fruity and tropical, a hazy golden appearance. 6.5% ABV
• Cool Ridge Lager is a new American-style pale lager. Hoppier than your usual lager, it contains mix of noble and American hops. 5% ABV.
• Enniskillen Dry Irish Stout is dark and roasty, yet really light and crisp. On a hot summer day you can still enjoy it. 4.5% ABV
• Barn Kritter Farmhouse Ale, brewed with barley and rye from Riverbend Malt House near Asheville, NC. Also some corn included, and Brettanomyces added in small batch fermentation. 5.7% ABV.
• Scrappy Pale is a rye pale ale, featuring Carolina Rye from Riverbend Malt House, and mosaic and azacca hops. 5.5% ABV
• R.K. Double IPA, this citrus-forward Double IPA is named after Aryn’s brother Ryan, who has effortlessly helped us maintain the grounds. 8.5% ABV

The party runs from 12 noon until 9:00 P.M. See Brilliant Stream’s preview article on Weathered Ground for more information about how this brewery got to West Virginia.

Short Story invites you to see their home

When Brilliant Stream visited Short Story Brewing Company recently, we loved the moxie of the trio of owners who put their heart and soul into this new northern WV venture. When we  tasted their line-up of beer, we knew these guys were onto something good.

Their grand opening party is a great opportunity for you to meet this creative team and enjoy their gorgeous remodeled taproom. Don’t miss their shuffleboard table and hopyard. In addition to six beers on tap, they will provide a full day of live music, lawn games, giveaways and food trucks.

Our congratulations go out to owners Aaron Rote and Abby and Mike Kopischke for bringing this story to life.

GRAND OPENING BEERS OF SHORT STORY

• Forward IPA is a modern American IPA with low bitterness and big citrusy hop flavor. 6.6% ABV
• My Friends Call Me Red is an accessible amber ale that has a solid malt backbone. It clocks in at 5.3% ABV
• Broad Shoulders Dry Stout is a classic style Irish stout full of roast flavors and chocolate. 5.5% ABV
• Ready, Steady, Go Citra Pale Ale is a lightly bitter, strong pale ale with plenty of citrus aroma and flavor from the Citra hop. It has golden, slightly cloudy appearance. 6.2% ABV
• Working Title Imperial IPA is richly flavored with hops and malt.  7.1% ABV
• Terra Firma IPA 6.2% ABV

The grand opening runs from 12 noon to 9:00 P.M. See BrilliantStream’s preview article for the real story behind Short Story.

Two Brewery Links

Short Story website

Weathered Ground website