TECHNICAL LIBRARY

From small grain production to final products – and everything in between.

Riverbend Malt House is developing alongside the craft malt community, which means that education about everything from small grain production to final products – and everything in between— is critical. We’re committed to providing resources that help our craft brewing and artisanal distilling partners craft the highest quality beers and spirits. 

This is your hub for grain research and sensory information, with best practices for marketing your ingredients to boot.

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Farm To Table Meets Grain to Growler

This weekend we are headed to the Raleigh/Durham area for the 2011 Sustainable Agriculture Conference that is hosted by our friends at Carolina Farm Stewardship Association.  They have compiled an amazing line-up of foodies, farmers, and permaculture professionals for several days of workshops and presentations.

But you know what we are really stoked about?…..the first batches of brew from Weeping Radish using Riverbend malts will be featured this weekend!!

Uli (owner of Weeping Radish) will be bringing along a sneak peak of their seasonal Doppelbock.  Keep an eye out for this one in December, they are planning to release a limited number of bottles and kegs throughout the state.

Riverbend will also be part of a roundtable discussion on small grains with Sean Wilson from Fullsteam, Ben Haynes from Looking Back Farms (our wheat grower), and Jennifer Lapidus of Carolina Ground, L3C.  We’ll be covering the full spectrum of the process from the seed to the fermenter….should be fun…not as much fun as drinking beer, but fun.

Stayed tuned for more new beer release information in the weeks ahead…word is getting out!

Eastbound and Down……

I spent most of last Wednesday in our Sprinter van…running the gauntlet of I-40 for close to 500 miles.

I met with our buddy Uli Bennowitz, from the Weeping Radish Brewery, by the side of the road and dropped off our first shipment of malt!  Weeping Radish is located near Manteo and focuses primarily on German styles.  Although their beer is not currently available in WNC, they are expanding their distribution channels and offer shipping services on their website, if you are interested.  Some people around Asheville may not realize it, but Uli was responsible for “legalizing” the first microbrewery in North Carolina almost 25 years ago.  He has since branched off into an array of new business ventures focusing on locally grown, sustainable meat and produce.  If you are planning a trip to the Outer Banks…check ’em out.

weepingradish.com

After our brief meeting, I headed for Fullsteam in Durham.  These guys are pioneers in their own right….anyone who can make beer out of red beans and rice or kudzu deserves some attention.   They have been a big supporter of our project since its infancy, and we really appreciate the support.  They are planning to run some test batches using our Heritage Malt and Carolina Rye next week.  Maybe a nice spicy rye IPA release before Thanksgiving???  I’ll also take this opportunity to make a shameless plea for the bottling or re-release of the Cheerwine Saison…

Learn more about their “plow to pint” approach to brewing at http://www.fullsteam.ag/.

My final stop was the riverside “happening hamlet” of Saxapahaw.  I met with Ben, the proprietor of Haw River Farmhouse Ales, to discuss their new brewery slated to open sometime next year.  We kicked around a lot of different ideas on how to build the beer economy in our state…agritourism, local sourcing of ingredients, and building relationships with farmers in every region.

Follow their progress at http://hawriverales.blogspot.com/.

I arrived home sublimely exhausted…knowing that NC’s beer scene will continue to develop into a vibrant and durable part of our economy.  Who knows?  Maybe a southern style ale, saison, or hefeweizen is closer than we think.