8 minute read
Baseball & Beer
Carolina MicroBrews
Story by Samuel Evers Photos by Sarah Louya
The sports world was officially introduced to the Carolina Micro Brews a few months ago, on Feb. 22, at an event at Oak City Brewery in Knightdale hosted by the Mudcats. ESPN’s SportsCenter gave the idea large-scale exposure on April 13, with a 45-second Saturday morning clip showing off the special jerseys and hats, which show a resemblance to the Milwaukee Brewers’ jerseys of a few decades ago. But way back, before the 2018 season had even started during a brainstorming session for promotional ideas at the Carolina Mudcats’ offices in Zebulon, is when the idea first surfaced. “It was a team effort,” said Patrick Ennis, the team’s director of promotions and fan experience. “We were just talking around — what if we did this and that? Mini Brewers? Micro Brewers? Micro Brews? That’s it — let’s submit and see what happens.” And so, after approval from the Milwaukee Brewers and Minor and Major League Baseball, the Micro Brews — the name the Mudcats will sport on their jerseys for four games this season, the first of which was on April 13 — were born. The other Micro Brew games will be May 9, June 6 and Aug. 1. On April 13, the first 1,200 fans admitted to Five County Stadium received a replica Micro Brews jersey; on May 9, the first 1,200 fans will get a free
beer stein with the MB logo on the cup; and on Aug. 1, the first 1,200 will get a Micro Brews bottle opener. The name, which was introduced to much excitement from the Twitter-verse to the baseball blogosphere to The Sports Network in Canada, is supposed to pay homage to the Mudcats’ major league club and to the rich recent boom in craft beer across North Carolina. “It’s perfect both ways,” Ennis said. “It gives us a chance to gain traction in Milwaukee and with our fans here.” So, why did this idea, from inception to execution, take so long? Simple: Great minor league promotions aren’t built in a day, a month — or even a season. “Patience was a virtue,” Ennis said. “Instead of rushing something out, we took our time and did it right.” Once the idea was set and approved, the marketing department put it on the back shelf for the 2018 season, and, once last September rolled around, kicked the planning into overdrive, sending off design ideas, making tweaks, communicating with vendors and tying other loose ends before the reveal in February which, for a satisfying moment, broke Minor League Baseball Twitter. For a Single-A marketing department, there’s no better accomplishment. “It was an awesome feeling,” Ennis said. “With all the hard work that everyone on the staff put in, it’s been tremendous to see all the feedback.”
SO, WHY DID THIS IDEA, FROM INCEPTION TO EXECUTION, TAKE SO LONG? SIMPLE: GREAT MINOR LEAGUE PROMOTIONS AREN’T BUILT IN A DAY, A MONTH — OR EVEN A SEASON.
44 | Carolina Brew Scene | Summer 2019
By Samuel Evers
Woodpeckers
Looking for a nice day out while savoring some good beer?
The Fayetteville Woodpeckers have you covered.
There’ll be some baseball going on, too.
Formerly the Buies Creek Astros, playing its home games in a nondescript college baseball stadium, the Class-A affiliate of the Houston Astros has fully transitioned into its new city, new name and new stadium for the 2019 Carolina League season.
The Woodpeckers played their first-ever game on April 4, on the road against the Potomac Nationals, an eventual 15-0 win, but they officially opened their brand new Segra Stadium in downtown Fayetteville on April 18 against the Carolina Mudcats. And, from the offseason to the home opener, it’s been all able hands on deck. “To give some context,” said Ben Hughes, the Woodpeckers’ marketing and communications manager, “our entire front office staff was moving gym equipment into the stadium the other day. In minor league baseball, you have to be everything — it’s been very much like a start up around here.”
A lot of that man power has gone toward making sure stadium goers will have plenty of local craft beer options in the inaugural season.
“We thought a lot about the military population and young families,” Hughes said. “Those fans and those people are the demographic we’re looking for in terms of craft beer; people who are looking for more than watered down beer to get drunk on.”
The main attraction beer-wise will be a bar in right field, which will be named Healy’s after the main beer distributor the team partnered with, and will feature 30 taps pouring local craft beer options like Foothills, Fayetteville’s Bright Lights, Mash House, New Belgium and others, along with other domestic light beer options.
The Woodpeckers have visions of Healy’s becoming its own entity — but right now, the team is planning on keeping the bar open even when the team is off or out of town, though the dates and times have yet to be determined.
Elsewhere in the stadium, there will be a bar behind home plate exclusively selling Foothills Brewing beer, along with three mobile carts — one will sell beers by Southern Pines Brewing, one will sell beers by Highland Brewing and the other will sell rotating beers under the Healy’s umbrella.
And, local craft beer sticklers be advised: In the process of scouting out the beer scene, the Woodpeckers made sure they went as North Carolina-centric as possible: Every craft beer available in Segra Stadium either originated in the state or has a physical brewery in North Carolina
Summer 2019 | Carolina Brew Scene | 45
BY SAMUEL EVERS
Craft beer and minor league sports in North Carolina go together like college basketball and The Triangle. From the pioneering Durham Bulls, who, of course, have a beer named after them, to the newest minor league addition, the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, artisan alcohol and live sporting events can be paired in all different parts of the state. Here are some of the many teams, from Wake County to Asheville, who have capitalized on the craze.
THE CAROLINA THUNDERBIRDS
It’s one thing to partner with a local brewery. It’s another thing to partner with a brewery to create a team-inspired beer. That’s what the Carolina Thunderbirds, the minor league hockey team in downtown Winston-Salem, did with Fiddlin' Fish Brewing, which also has its headquarters in downtown Winston-Salem, about a 10-minute walk to the Fairgrounds Annex, where the team plays. The team was founded in 2016, and the nearby brewery was the only one willing to partner with them, said Zak DeBeaussaert, the Thunderbirds’ president of media relations, and since, a symbiotic relationship has formed, which manifested into a brew called the Thunderbirds Brown Ale.
THE ASHEVILLE TOURISTS
THE CAROLINA MUDCATS
The Mudcats, who play at Five County Stadium in Zebulon, are serious enough about craft beer that they’ll play four games this season rebranded as the Carolina Micro Brews. In-stadium craft beer options include brews by Red Oak Brewery and Foothills Brewing.
THE DOWN EAST WOOD DUCKS
The Wood Ducks, the DEWDS for short, are in their second season back in Kinston after a seven-year absence of minor league baseball. The team plays at historic Grainger Stadium and partners with Kinston’s Mother Earth Brewing, providing nearly a dozen of the brewery’s beers on tap during games. With the recent return of Carolina League baseball to the stadium came several upgrades, including Mother Earth Pavilion in right field, a double-decker bar with a view of the action.
THE WINSTON-SALEM DASH
The Carolina League’s Winston-Salem Dash play their home games at BB&T Ballpark in downtown Winston-Salem and employ Foothills Brewing as their craft beer supplier. In all, eight of the brewery’s beers are available for pour this summer.
Unsurprisingly, the baseball team in the city dotted with breweries seemingly on every block has a long list of craft beer available at McCormick Field, home of the Asheville Tourists, who have been playing under that moniker since the late 1800s. In all, there are 26 craft beer and ciders available at the park by nearly a dozen different brands, including Catawba Brewing, Highland Brewing, Hi-Wire Brewing and many others.
THE CHARLOTTE KNIGHTS
The Charlotte Knights, the Class-AAA affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, who play their home games at BB&T Ballpark overlooking downtown Charlotte, are heavy in the craft beer game. Fans who attend a Knights game this season will have their choice between local and statewide favorites like NoDA Brewing, Birdsong Brewing, The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, Sycamore Brewing, Red Oak Brewery, Foothills Brewing and Wicked Weed Brewing.
Summer 2019 | Carolina Brew Scene | 47
