Brewed in Arkansas by Fox Printing and Digital Publishing

AROUND ARKANSAS FALL 2019

REBEL KETTLElee BREWING CO.

822 E 6TH STREET LITTLE ROCK ARKANSAS

CONTENTS| FALL 2019

FALL SIX-PACK

Six-Pack: 06 | Arkansas Tasty beers for the outdoors HOMEBREWING SPOTLIGHT

the JAB: 08 | Meet Jonesboro Area Homebrewers CRAFT BEER EVENTS

Beer Scene: 10 | Craft Find out what’s happening INSIDE THE TAPROOM

Duck Taproom: 12 | Flying SE Arkansas’s first craft taproom COVER STORY

to the land: 14 | Rooted Arkansas’s breweries thrive BREWERY GUIDE

Map: 20 | Brewery Find a brewery near you AROUND ARKANSAS

County: 22 | Baxter Hidden gems in the state 26 | HotSpaSprings: City’s beer scene BEER LEGISLATION UPDATE

counties jump on board 30 | Dryin Arkansas

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| EDITOR’S LETTER | IN LIEU OF BECOMING THE CLICHÉ EDITOR waxing poetic about the changing of the seasons, I ask you this. Have you ever tried to visualize the ingredients that led to your local craft beer of choice? Arkansas brewers have. And some of them have taken the moniker of the Natural State to heart. When my editorial team and I set out to put our “Around Arkansas” issue together we began to notice a trend. The breweries in this guide don’t necessarily look alike and they aren’t all linked geographically. What they do have in common, however, are their ties to the land. There’s a choreography that goes into bringing a beer to fruition – from farm-to-table. Unlike a well-plated dish put together by an experienced Photo by Josh Davis executive chef, beer can’t necessarily be picked apart into its various ingredients. This is a shame because oftentimes noteworthy local ingredients go into that sudsy nectar we love so much. Start at an Arkansas rice field. From there you might imagine the dappled light filtering down through local hop bines. Listen closely and you might hear the hum of industrious bees, protecting their queen. It all comes to a head at harvest time – and thus, we inevitably turn back to discussing the seasons. As summer slips into fall, beer festivals modeled after Germany’s Oktoberfest begin to take place. Munich’s original 1810 event was actually a royal wedding, and while I’m not suggesting that we only drink true Märzen beer, I think we should celebrate the hard work of our Arkansas brewers and farmers by drinking local.

PUBLISHER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Becca Bona ART DIRECTOR Bobby Burton ASSISTANT EDITOR Cait Smith

A curated glimpse into Arkansas’s scene for beer lovers and learners alike, join us as we explore the delectable nectar #BrewedinArkansas. Brewed in Arkansas is a quarterly magazine, created as a special project of one of Little Rock’s longest-standing publications – The Daily Record. The goal of this magazine is to create a quality project that captures the dynamic craft beer movement across the Natural State. Peruse these pages to meet the movers and shakers in Arkansas’s craft beer industry, learn about different styles and find a brewery near you.

So raise a glass with me and let’s get started. Prost!

Becca Bona

Publisher/Editor-in-chief Instagram @wheresbeccajane

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facebook.com/BrewedinArkansas @BrewedinArkansas

| CONTRIBUTORS |

DWAIN HEBDA Dwain Hebda, president of Ya!Mule Wordsmiths, is an award-winning writer, editor and journalist. Read him regularly on his Facebook page or website (www.yamule.com). Nebraskan by birth, Southern by the grace of God, he makes his home in Little Rock with his wife, three dogs, tall tales and cold pints.

GREG HENDERSON Arkansas native Greg Henderson is the owner and publisher of Rock City Eats – Little Rock’s leading digital food publication. He has a background in marketing and sees economic development as driven by not only the local food community but also the beer scene across the state.

LEVI AGEE Levi Agee is a creative director and artist who lives in North Little Rock with his wife, daughter, and border collie mix. He went to film school but finds it’s easier to just draw and write from the comfort of his home in his spare time from his advertising career.

SCOTT PARTON Scott Parton is an avid beer drinker and co-host of Little Rock’s 103.7’s “Tap Time” radio show, who lives in North Little Rock. When he’s not traveling and visiting breweries with his wife, you can catch him trying to run off some of the calories in half-marathons and other races. Follow him on Twitter at @WooPigBrewey.

STEPHEN KOCH Stephen Koch has long been a lover of beer and beer ephemera. Author of Louis Jordan: Son of Arkansas, Father of R&B, Koch’s an award-winning journalist in broadcasting and print. He’s also a musician, cartoonist and writer/host of “Arkansongs,” heard on radio stations in Texas, Louisiana and all across Arkansas.

STEVE SHULER Steve Shuler is the senior writer at Rock City Eats and the chair of HarvestFest in Little Rock’s Hillcrest. He has covered Little Rock’s food and beer scene for more than five years. When he’s not writing about food and drink in Arkansas, he enjoys photography, travel and volunteering in the community.

TRACY O’NEILL Tracy is a Texan-bred writer and social media manager who currently resides in the heart of Arkansas’s Buffalo River Country. When she’s not working, she enjoys spending time with her husband and son on their off-grid homestead and traipsing about, in search of good beer.

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Fall colors abound from left to right – The Hunter Oktoberfest, Oskymarzen, Free Range Brown Ale, Au NaturAle Amber, RedRumPum, and Big Dam Horn-O-Plenty. (Photo by Becca Bona)

ARKANSAS’S FALL SIX-PACK By Scott Parton

or many people in the south, Autumn means it’s the time of year when the leaves begin to fall and the footballs take flight. For beer lovers, Autumn means beer festivals and the return of seasonal beers like pumpkin styles, brown ales, reds and Märzen lagers. But what makes these beer “fall beers” exactly? Those crisp nights are tailor-made for more malt-forward styles which are light-to-medium bodied and tend to be a little more rich. Capitalizing on the season’s flavors can make for a great beer as you head to your campfire, football game, or sit on your porch watching the leaves fall. Arkansas brewers know this – and thus – putting together this six-pack was not easy, as there are many great options to celebrate the cooler days ahead. Plus, there is a wide variety of styles to choose from. Märzen, commonly referred to as Oktoberfest beer, is a German style that was historically brewed in March to be enjoyed during the fall harvest and they tend to be malt-driven with toasty flavor, light bitterness, and balanced

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hops. Brown, amber and red ales have similar characteristics with toasty malts and easy-on-the palate profiles. And while pumpkin seems to have divided beer lovers as some feel the gourd doesn’t belong in a beer, there are some creative local versions out there. There are a lot of beers in Arkansas that fall into these categories, some even available year-round, but here is a six-pack to seek and enjoy.

Flyway Brewing Co. Free Range Brown Ale Many of us enjoyed tasting the evolution of this beer through the early years as Flyway in North Little Rock was getting off the ground and trying to perfect the recipe. The work they put into it paid off – the Free Range Brown Ale is a great example of the style. It’s super easy to drink, great for food pairing, and very consistent. “Free Range Brown is the first beer that I ever brewed,” says co-owner Jess McMullen. “It has an earthy hop profile

with aromas of cocoa and coffee and has a toasty character that pairs well with roasted meats and a crackling campfire.” Find it in 12 oz. cans all over the state as well as on tap in select locations.

Lost Forty Brewing The Hunter Oktoberfest The Hunter by Lost Forty of Little Rock is set apart from a lot of Oktoberfests by being just slightly hoppier than the common Märzen. It has some pleasant lemony hops on the front end, yet it still maintains the characteristics of exactly what you’d expect from the style – rich and toasty. As it warms up a bit some mild, spicy notes come through. Pour at least one of these beauties into a glass to admire the coppery gold color. Find it in 12 oz. cans or on draft throughout the state.

Rebel Kettle Brewing Co. RedRumPum RedRumPum isn’t your Dad’s standard pumpkin beer, it’s an imperial pumpkin amber ale aged in Caribbean rum barrels. It was first introduced in 2014 at the Arkansas Times Craft Beer Festival by then-homebrewer and now co-owner/head brewer, John Lee. The beer was so well received that it piqued the interests of his (now) business partners, Kim and Jason Polk, and they ultimately combined forces to create Little Rock’s Rebel Kettle Brewing Co. “I never cared much for pumpkin beers so I set out to make one that I might enjoy,” John says. “The end result is an 11% ABV monster of an amber ale with complex aromas and flavors of rich toffee, chocolate, vanilla oakiness, a hint of pumpkin spice, and, of course, rum.” RedRumPum is available around Halloween on draft in the Little Rock taproom. Don’t forget to grab a growler to-go.

Stone’s Throw Brewing Big Dam Horn-O-Plenty

you’d expect from a Märzen was created in honor of popular Arkansas party band, The Big Dam Horns. Big Dam Horn-O-Plenty is actually an imperial Oktoberfest and clocks in around 8.5% – high for the style. It’s a rich, malty beer that hides the ABV and tends to sneak up on you. Stone’s Throw’s co-owner, headbrewer, and Big Dam Horns band member Theron Cash says, “A Big Dam band deserves a Big Dam beer.” Find this one on draft at the taproom, where you can fill growlers and crowlers.

Gravity BrewWorks Au NaturAle Amber North Central Arkansas’s Gravity BrewWorks is consistently putting out a stream of solid beers. One such beer well worth the drive to the Big Flat taproom is the Au NaturAle Amber. The original version of this beer was called Our Mostly Organic Amber, as one of its malts wasn’t organic. They’ve since changed it up, and hence, Au NaturAle Amber was born. It’s a smooth, malt-forward, all-organic amber. Find it on draft at the brewery.

Hawk Moth Brewery & Beer Parlor Oskymarzen If you’re wanting something a bit more complex for your fall drinking, this 8.4% ABV imperial wheat beer from Hawk Moth Brewing in Rogers is brewed with cinnamon and nutmeg to capture the colors and flavors of fall. Hawk Moth Oskymarzen is a warming and unique beer which is going to be a yearly seasonal release. “It’s fall in a glass!” Owner/brewer Bradley Riggs says. “This year we’re also doing a J Rieger & Co. whiskey barrel-aged version which should be ready around Thanksgiving.” Find it at the taproom on draft and get growlers and crowlers to go.

Another Little Rock beer that breaks the mold for what

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Photo By Steve Shuler

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HOMEBREWING 103 Jonesboro Area Brewers

By Steve Shuler

oybeans and corn, broken buildings and rusted machinery. That’s about all you see for miles on end on the drive to Bono, a town of just over 2,000 people in dry Craighead County in Arkansas. The main road is decently paved; every offshoot path is laid with dirt and gravel. The very path seems to resist progress, with narrow streets and the occasional tractor forcing a slower pace than you might think appropriate. But even here, in the driest corner of Arkansas, there’s good beer being made. That is, if you know where to find it. But you might drive right past it at first, and have to double back before finally pulling up at the home of Marc and Amber Bunnell. The Bunnells joined a few of their friends five years ago to create Jonesboro Area Brewers (JAB), the only active homebrew club in Northeast Arkansas according to the American Homebrewers Association. It’s the only Arkansas homebrew club located in a dry county. In an activity that’s usually heavily rooted in

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a strong community, JAB stands out for how isolated the group is. “We’re in a freaking beer desert over here,” says founder and president Marc. “It’s really kind of tough. There are a lot of people in the area that don’t even realize that homebrewing is legal. It blows their mind that you can do that.” Several of JAB’s 30 or so members gathered during a recent brew day at the Bunnell’s house. Marc worked on a recipe that would eventually get some hot peppers added to the brew, while vice president David Shade began brewing a hazy IPA. Amber stood off to the side and carved out watermelon flesh to make wine, while Gary and Leila Loven waited to help in any way they could. JAB got its start in 2014. Marc had already been homebrewing on his own for several years and started teaching classes at the nearby homebrew shop. After one class, an attendee from Florida asked for information about the local homebrew club, which didn’t exist at the time. The

Bunnells subsequently ran with the idea, recruiting class participants and friends to start monthly meetings and regular brewing get-togethers. The club is strong for its size and the fact it has very little community support. In five years, JAB has only canceled two monthly meetings. Marc and Amber Bunnell are now certified through the national Beer Judge Certification Program, and the club reaches out to homebrew organizations in Missouri and Tennessee to collaborate on events and competitions. Still, it’s the support of its own area that the club wants the most. “I think the people of Craighead County are ready to go wet,” says Amber. “I think our churches hinder that. In this area, they push against it hard. And you have the liquor stores in Greene County and Poinsett County that lobby against it, which is almost harder than the churches. It hasn’t been enough yet, but I think the people are ready.” As part of its work, JAB reaches out to restaurants and works with Brick and Forge Brew Works of Paragould in neighboring wet Greene County to help drum up community support. Because in Craighead County only those with an invitation can drink, the club holds private events. These, and club charity fundraisers, help reduce the stigma of beer and homebrewing in the county. JAB

is always looking for new members, no matter how much experience they have. “We are very welcoming,” says treasurer Leila Loven. “There are no dumb questions when it comes to brewing. That’s just the beer community. When I go to a brewery, I love watching how everyone is off their phones, talking to one another and engaging. That’s what our brew club is.” “We’re not uppity beer snobs,” adds Amber. “We might talk over some people’s heads a little bit, but we always try to go back and explain everything. We were teachers first, for beer and wine making, so that’s always been the goal of the club, for everyone to come up and improve and learn together.” There’s no doubting JAB’s spirit and enthusiasm. And after trying a few of their creations, there’s also no doubting the group’s talent, either. Shade’s American wheat beer, Marc’s blueberry milkshake IPA, and Gary Loven’s honey mead, are all impressive. But a small pour of Marc’s threeyear double barleywine, probably coming in a 20% ABV or higher, was the kicker – complex and gorgeously developed, with a remarkable balance for such a monster. That all of this is coming from a plucky band of can-do beer lovers who are true pioneers in their community makes it even more special.

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This time of year is so full of beer festivals, that sometimes it’s hard to choose. Check out a few of our favorites and you can’t go wrong. (Photo by Becca Bona)

AN INSIDER’S GUIDE TO ROCKTOBERFEST, BREWTOBER CHILIFEST

By Tracy O’Neill and Becca Bona Little Rock’s Rocktoberfest

If your idea of celebrating the changing seasons includes a foamy glass of something tasty, brewed to perfection, you’re not alone. Don’t miss the 17th Annual Little Rocktoberfest on Sept. 21, put on by the Central Arkansas Fermenters (CAF), at Dickey Stephens Park in North Little Rock. We got an inside look at what to expect this year from Leigh Discenza, CAF member and organizer of the event. The CAF is a club of homebrewers and enthusiasts who have a long-running tradition of supporting local beer and the community. It was in this spirit that CAF first began Little Rocktoberfest as a club get-together which soon grew into the impressive public fundraising event it is today. Attendees will find a wide selection of beer -

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from Arkansas-based and nationwide breweries to delicious homebrews lovingly crafted by club members. CAF expects between 15 and 20 breweries to be represented at this year’s fest, almost all of them run by Arkansas natives. “(This year), we are becoming more and more focused on Arkansas businesses. We have more local breweries, wineries, and even a cidery making this year’s Little Rocktoberfest more Arkansas-focused then it ever was before,” says Dicenza. “It is such an honor to be able to celebrate that as much as our own homebrew village.” Attendees can expect a bratwurst and potato salad dinner as well as a few more similarities to the original Oktoberfest. CAF will be providing games for attendees, and Sam Adams will be hosting a Stein Hoist competition. The CAF is encouraging event-goers to dress in traditional

dirndls and lederhosen to truly echo the German spirit of the festival. The priceless part of attending, she says, will be getting to speak to the people who brew beer regularly. “Talk to the homebrewers,” Discenza says. “Sometimes you’ll find out where the name of the beer came from, sometimes there was an experiment going on in the brewing process, sometimes there’s a mystery ingredient that makes all of the difference to the flavor. The more informed you are, the more you’ll enjoy the drink you’re about to try.”

Springdale’s Brewtober Chilifest

Now in its sixth year, Brewtober Chilifest in Springdale is just getting started. On Saturday, Oct. 26, the 6th Annual Craft Beer & Homemade Chili Festival will take place at St. Raphael Catholic Church from 5 to 9:30 p.m. Attendees can expect over 30 homebrewers with more than 40 different beers to sample. Along with the beer, there will be over 60 chili pots for sampling, as well as bratwurst, live music, and a silent auction. Tom Maddock, current president of the Fayetteville/ Springdale homebrew club known as Fayetteville Lovers of Pure Suds (FLOPS), is involved with Brewtober. “At it’s core Brewtober is all about the brewers,” says Maddock. “The homebrewers are set up at the center of the event at beer dispensing stations – each participating homebrew comes in about 4 to 5 gallons.” Brewtober is the perfect place to learn more about homebrewing, get your feet wet in the homebrew scene in Northwest Arkansas and meet fellow beer aficionados in a community setting. “There were over 400 patrons at last years event,” Maddock continues. “The festival is very lively and interactive, with brewers answering questions and educating the public on the art of homebrewing as well as the proper way to sample and taste.”

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BEER EVENTS AROUND THE STATE Bentonville Oktoberfest Saturday, Sept. 21, 6 – 9:30 p.m. First National Bank of NWA 402 Southwest A Street Bentonville, AR 72712

AMP Fest Thursday, Oct. 3, 6 – 10 p.m. Walmart AMP 5079 W Northgate Road Rogers, AR 72758

Oktoberfest on the Square! Sunday, Oct. 13, 1 – 7 p.m. Arkansas Brewers Guild Fayetteville Historic Square Fayetteville, AR 72701

Arkansas Times Craft Beer Festival

Friday, Oct. 25, 6 – 9 p.m. Diamond Bear Brewing Co. Grounds 600 N Broadway St North Little Rock, AR 72114

The Festival of Darkness Saturday, Oct. 26, 5 – 9 p.m. Lost Forty Brewing 501 Byrd Street Little Rock, AR 72202

Brewtober Chilifest Saturday, Oct. 26, 5 – 9:30 p.m. St. Raphael Grounds 1386 S West End Street Springdale, AR 72764 WWW.BREWEDINARKANSAS.COM

Taproom Profile: The Flying Duck

The Flying Duck Taproom in Stuttgart’s RNT headquarters. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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INSIDE SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS’S FIRST CRAFT TAPROOM By Becca Bona Known internationally for duck hunting and rice, Stuttgart, Arkansas, has a new item to add to that list – a unique, craft beer-focused taproom. In the face of a big loss, local company Rich-N-Tone (RNT) Calls was able to seize an opportunity to provide Southeast Arkansas with its first craft beer-focused taproom. Before beer became a part of the conversation, however, RNT was long-known as a Stuttgart staple. Founding owner Butch Richenback first began hand-turning duck calls in the late 1970s. Current owner – call maker, call champion, and hunting enthusiast, John Stephens – served as an apprentice to Richenback, and developed a love for the craft. “I’m from Stuttgart and I grew up working at his shop,” says Stephens. Even though he left Arkansas for college, Stephens always had a dream of opening his own duck call shop. In 1999 when Richenback began to have health problems Stephens was able to buy the company. In February of 2016 RNT experienced a destructive fire. While no one was injured, the building sustained serious damage. The team took the opportunity to turn the space into something more. 12

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“We were trying to make it a better customer experience and a destination, because so many hunters come here in the fall and winter to duck hunt,” Stephens explains. At first the goal was to make a duck call history museum – with the idea of sparking interest in the younger generation about the rich history of duck call making and the sport itself. “John is a collector of things,” says RNT creative director Blake Fisher. “He’s always trying to figure out what can we do to get a little something about the history of duck calls and duck hunting into our products.” As they brainstormed, beer entered the picture. “Craft beer was one of our ideas because it goes along with the craft of making calls,” Stephens says. They let their imagination run wild, but in the end had to stay within a slim budget for rebuilding RNT’s headquarters. However, throughout that process, they never let the idea fade away. The new building design incorporated elements of a duck call history museum – such as specialty glass cases which – thanks to Stephens’s network within the duck call community – are currently filled with rare calls; some

more than 100 years old. “You get to see some of the best calls and decoys, some of the best collections in the country, when you stop by here,” Stephens notes. These cases flank a hip, yet rustic, laid-back bar stocked with Arkansas craft beer. The Flying Duck Taproom officially opened this past spring at 2315 HWY 63 N, Stuttgart, Arkansas. “We didn’t know anything about a bar, we just knew how to drink beer,” Stephens says, laughing. When it came time to research Arkansas’s craft offerings, they traveled to Little Rock and tried to narrow down their favorites. Around that time, the RNT team had a happenstance meeting with the team at Flyway Brewing Co. “When you meet somebody the first time and you click – it’s a good fit,” Stephens remembers. Jess McMullen, co-owner of Flyway, remembers how exciting the thought of working together was. “[Getting] RNT on our beer label was awesome,” says McMullen. “I can’t talk highly enough about the RNT team.” After initial talks, RNT and Flyway decided they would collaborate on a beer. This beer would be offered in the Stuttgart taproom which RNT was working to open, as well as Flyway’s Argenta location. It would also be canned – so duck hunting enthusiasts could take it with them on their adventures. “We all as a whole thought it needed to be a gateway craft beer,” Stephens explains. The resulting beer – an amber lager known as the Flying Duck – checked all the boxes. “It’s a Vienna Lager at heart,” says McMullen, “but it’s very much on the lighter side. It does have a biscuit taste and a little nuttiness as well, but it finishes dry, and the key was to have it finish clean.” None of those involved were prepared for the overwhelming response the beer got from not only the craft beer community, but also the duck hunting community. “Duck hunters are extremely passionate, and there are a lot of collectors within the hobby,” explains McMullen. “We had just as many people calling to get their hands on an empty can as we did people calling to buy two cases to take to their duck club.” Fisher was responsible for designing the can, which like the rest of Flyway’s offerings, pictures a familiar Arkansas scene – in this instance a duck taking flight over a body of water. “I can’t stress enough how much of a joy it has been to work with the whole Flyway crew. They gave me total creative freedom during the can designing process,” says Fisher.

As far as the name for the collaborative beer goes, the Flying Duck is a nod to RNT’s history. When Richenback first started making duck calls, he equipped the products with a quirky duck logo. “Everybody referred to it as ‘the Flying Duck logo,’” says Stephens. “That was our idea, that the Flying Duck Company would make products to help promote the history of call making.” And from there it seemed natural to name the collaborative beer as well as the Stuttgart-centric taproom – the Flying Duck. Although a seasonal offering, Flyway’s Flying Duck beer will coincide with duck season and is already being produced on a larger scale than the inaugural batch. Thanks to an Arkansas Native Beer license, the Stuttgart taproom offers plenty of Arkansas craft beer available in cans, along with Flyway exclusively on draft. “They’re starting to gain momentum just locally with folks who didn’t drink craft beer until now,” McMullen notes. He is ecstatic that the taproom is already branching out by offering a few of Flyway’s specialty small-batch beers. “We focus on our beers being approachable,” he says, “and the partnership between Flyway and RNT has been a good marriage in that way.” “Some people might question how duck calls and craft beer can go together, but we say why not? Two Arkansas companies with the same interest, working together to make each other better. The world needs more of that,” Fisher adds. The Flying Duck Taproom offers more than an experience to duck enthusiasts and those traveling through Stuttgart – it shows how beer can tell a story and ultimately bridge industries.

The Flying Duck, a collaborative beer between RNT Calls and Flyway Brewing is a seasonal fall release celebrating the two crafts. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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Rooted to the land: Arkansas’s breweries thrive

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Photo by Becca Bona

Arkansas is known as the Natural State for a reason. Our connection with the land is intertwined with our history, it drives our economy, and ultimately shapes our culture as a state. Craft beer is no exception. In this cover story we hone in on various relationships between our breweries and the earth. From Prestonrose’s stance as a farm brewery operation, to Little Rock’s Dunbar Garden and hop production; from Rebel Kettle’s relationship with Heifer International Urban Farm to Lost Forty’s use of local Arkansas rice and beyond, we examine the various ways Arkansas brewers are connected to their own backyards.

Prestonrose – Arkansas’s farm brewery – whips up a varied line-up of ever-changing beers in a quaint, rustic taproom. While sampling suds, patrons can order food which is often prepared with ingredients grown on the farm. (Photo by Becca Bona)

By Greg Henderson and Becca Bona Prestonrose: Arkansas’s Craft Beer Farm

When we look at the food of the state it is easy to see where local crops influence what we serve. The Bradley County Pink Tomato Festival, the Hope Watermelon Festival and the Gillett Coon supper are all places where local food is celebrated. This is what makes a brewery like Prestonrose, located outside of Paris, Arkansas, so unique. Prestonrose was envisioned to be equal parts brewery and farm. As a result most of the ingredients that go into the beer comes from the surrounding land. Owners Liz and Mike Preston opened the brewery in 2016 on the farmland they purchased after moving to Arkansas. The idea to pair a farm and a brewery was the concept from the beginning. “The farm and brewing concept is all intertwined. The beer is just as important as the food. It is all the same to us,” Liz explains. “We are a farm first, and what is grown here drives the beer we produce.” The Prestons grow a number of things that go into their

beers, including fruit, hibiscus, peppers, and even hops. The few things they cannot grow they source from craft farmers instead of large providers. The process creates a beer that is unique to this region of Arkansas and could not be replicated anywhere else. “It gives me the opportunity to create a beer specific to the area as much as it gives someone the opportunity to make a true champagne only in Champagne, France,” Liz says. “There are a lot of things that go into what we do that are not typical.” The hop strands grown on the property are unique. Hops grow between 36° and 42° latitude. Prestonrose sits at 35°, and is aided by the surrounding microclimate. This creates a unique variety unlike hops grown in ideal conditions. Prestonrose sees this as a unique advantage rather than a barrier, brewing beer that is a reflection of the land. “What grows here is so new to brewers in the state that we are just going to have to adapt the rules,” Liz says. “You will never have a crazy West Coast IPA from Arkansas, WWW.BREWEDINARKANSAS.COM

Prestonrose is, at its heart, a farm. Above owners Liz and Mike take us through their own corn maze, detailing plans for future beers. (Photo by Becca Bona)

but the point in developing an agricultural market that is tied to an industrial one is developing a niche.” They also see a huge need for a malt house in the state, something that doesn’t exist at the moment. Malt houses convert grain into malt by soaking grain in water, allowing it to sprout and then drying it to stop further growth. Another thing Prestonrose wants to add is a lab to begin developing and isolating their own yeast strands. It would further add to the unique flavor of their beer. Liz’s background in molecular biology would come into play heavily in this expansion. Being hyperlocal with its ingredients not only allows Prestonrose to craft a unique beer, but it also has meant strong local support for the brewery. “I feel like we have all the support we can handle,” Liz expresses. “You can find someone who doesn’t like craft beer and tell them that what they are drinking was grown in their state or neighborhood and they will instantly support it.”

located along Little Rock’s Chester Street. “There was a natural relationship and overlap between people involved in the garden and people working in the brewery,” says Josiah Moody, former brewer at Vino’s and current owner of Moody Brews. And while the beers made there – a plum heffeweizen, a peppery IPA and so on – were fresh and creative, there was something more at play.

Little garden, big impact: Dunbar’s affect on the beer scene

In the early 2000s, a relationship between Little Rock’s Vino’s and Dunbar Garden took hold. Both born in the early nineties, the two became intertwined via beer. To this day, the Dunbar Community Garden Project serves as a nonprofit, urban educational community garden, while Vino’s continues to whip up local brews, both 16

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Dunbar Garden (pictured above) was perhaps one of the first operations to try its hand at growing hops. These days others are trying, including River Valley Hops in Booneville. Owner Ronnie Ledford is working with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to test hops to make sure they are up to standard. (Photo by Becca Bona)

“That’s the cool thing that I love about that partnership,” says Moody, “was that it was a chance to highlight a place that needs highlighting. Dunbar Garden offers a beautiful program that’s needed in that specific area of town.” The garden’s relationship with brewing goes beyond enhancing a beer via fresh produce and to the heart of the matter. Namely, Dunbar Garden was on the forefront of growing hops in Central Arkansas. Damian Thompson, former garden manager – who also worked at Vino’s – remembers first planting hops around 2005. “I planted four different breeds and only two of them worked out,” he says. “I had an arbor to fill and wanted to see if they could even grow here.” Around that time, Matt Foster, now co-owner of Flyway Brewing Co. was an avid homebrewer with a serious interest in local hops. The first version of Free Range Brown – a now staple in the Flyway line-up was brewed with Dunbar Garden hops. Beyond providing fresh produce and local hops, Dunbar Garden is also connected to local beer through yeast cultivation. “The Dunbar Garden was a crucial part of my brewing education,” Grant Chandler of Lost Forty Brewing recalls. Chandler’s science background led him to study wild yeast strains. A ‘wild’ yeast is one that is not farmed or produced commercially. When Chandler was ready to isolate one back in 2014, he headed to his roots at Dunbar Garden. “I harvested and isolated the yeast from a ripe plum that had split and was fermenting in the open. I have banked it ever since,” he explains. “Using wild yeast from our habitat to express ‘our’ culture, through beer or otherwise, works in the same way anything ‘local’ expresses our culture; it is one of us, it comes from where we come from.”

The Urban Farm Project and Rebel Kettle Brewing began working together almost as soon as the brewery opened its doors in 2016. Tom Spinnato, director of Facilities Management and Global Properties with Heifer has been involved with the Urban Farm since it was created, a little over three years ago. “When we started the Urban Farm,” he says, “the biggest point was to give back to the community.” Rebel Kettle was already utilizing local produce from the Urban Farm in its restaurant, but began looking for a new solution for its spent grain when the farmer they were working with couldn’t keep up with the demand, the Urban Farm was the perfect neighboring candidate. Beyond the waste, breweries don’t typically have room for spent grain in their already maxed-out floor plans. “You have to form a partnership with somebody that’s committed, because we just don’t have the space for it,” explains head brewer John Lee. “It has to have somewhere to go.” Spinnato and his team – who were by that time taproom regulars – were happy to help. “We said, yeah we can definitely use it for some of the animals, and then we’ll compost the rest of it,” Spinnato recalls. The brewery and farm took their relationship to the next level when Rebel Kettle began to brew a beer for the Urban

Spent grain turned sustainable

Spent grain – the leftover malt and grains produced post mashing – tallies up quickly as a by-product in brewing. One innovative way breweries are able to put it to good use is to offer it as livestock feed. “Spent grain is really good for composting,” says Josh Davis, assistant brewer at Rebel Kettle Brewing Co. “The grains that we use for beermaking is higher quality than if you were just buying cow feed.” Heifer International’s Urban Farm Project is a three-acre, multi-purpose garden located behind Heifer’s headquarters in the East Village, not far from Rebel Kettle’s taproom.

Heifer’s Urban Farm grows ingredients for Rebel Kettle to utilize in a specialty collaborative beer, as well as utilizes Rebel Kettle’s spent grain for livestock and compost. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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Farm’s fundraising efforts each year. “We just started figuring out what we could do to grow ingredients that would be added to the beers and make it a farm-to-beer type of thing,” Spinnato remembers. Davis works with the team of farmers at Heifer to come up with a solid recipe. “We want to showcase the herbs and balance the flavor,” says Davis. The team has used everything from lemon balm to cucumbers in the past. “They’ll bring over samples of what they’re growing,” says Davis. “It’s just fun to play with more than anything because it promotes both places and lets us make fresh beer with their garden.”

Local ingredients shine in Arkansas craft beer

Breweries across the state utilize local ingredients when they can. Unfortunately it’s not always an easy road to travel. For instance, an issue of scale may hinder breweries and farms from teaming up. Although a local brewery might operate on a relatively small scale, the amount of produce needed could still be too demanding for a small farming operation. “Locally not all ingredients for beer, mainly hops and barley, are obtainable on a large scale within the borders of Arkansas for a brewery our size,” Lost Forty brewer Dylan Yelenich says. Nevertheless, Yelenich

This past year’s Urban Farmer was a tart, farmhouse ale infused with lemon balm and ginger grown at Heifer’s Urban Farm and brewed by Rebel Kettle. (Photo by Becca Bona)

Arkansas craft beer often has a symbiotic relationship with agriculture, as Rebel Kettle’s relationship with Heifer International (pictured above) signifies. All over the state breweries harbor relationships with various farms, gardens, and livestock handlers. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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believes in supporting local when possible – “Local ingredients are great because they support our local economies and businesses. We get to grow relationships with vendors that live right down the road and we can go and see the products and put a name to a face that we are doing business with.” There are many decisions that go into releasing a beer utilizing local ingredients for Lost Forty. Second Rodeo – the brewery’s light bodied, made-with-rice beer introduced this past summer was the result of one such calculated decision to go local. “As soon as we decided to use rice, we never thought about using [it] from anywhere other than Arkansas,” says Yelenich. “Rice covers 1.3 million acres of Arkansas farmland. It was a natural choice for highlighting our state and our incredible farming community.” And while Lost Forty was the first to utilize Arkansas Rice on a large scale, breweries across the state support local on various scales everyday. Ivory Bill Brewing Co. in Siloam Springs, for instance, partners with several local farmers including A & A Orchards, Taylor Orchard, and Sta-N-Step. “One of the super cool things about local sourcing with fruit

is that we can put all grower’s blemished fruit to good use – works just fine for us and is a plus for growers,” owners Casey and Dorothy Letellier explain. Along similar a similar vein, Fayetteville’s Fossil Cove Brewing utilizes local – most notably for their T-Rex On Peaches. The beer – a barrel-aged, Belgian-style Tripel with fruit added – highlights local producers. Fossil Cove’s manager Andrew Blann says, “We always use Arkansas Ozark-grown peaches. For the 2019 batch we worked with Peach Pickin’ Paradise […] for 2020 we’re sourcing from a farmer in Madison County.” Rogers-based Ozark Brewing Co. works with a variety of local producers, but perhaps most important is their relationship with a dairy farmer. “We literally couldn’t do it without him,” says Marty Shutter, marketing director. “He takes around 10,000 lbs. of spent grain each week to feed his dairy cows.” And the list goes on. Next time you sit down at your local brewery, check out the tap list. Chances are there might be a local ingredient hiding in those suds you didn’t know about.

Map by Levi Agee 20

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Around ArkansAs Map key Arkansas boasts of over 40 breweries across the state. In this issue, we highlight breweries that are a bit further from the central and northwest areas of the state – but are definitely worth visiting. Below you’ll find a list of breweries corresponding with the map – complete with estimated drive times. Cheers!

1. Eureka Springs Brewery 96 Ridgeview Rd, Eureka Springs, AR 72632 Little Rock ≈ 192.8 mi (3 h 29 min) Fayetteville ≈ 45.9 mi (1 h 5 min)

8. Country Monks Brewing 405 N Subiaco Ave, Subiaco, AR 72865 Little Rock ≈ 108.3 mi (1 h 45 min) Fayetteville ≈ 96.2 mi (1 h 40 min)

2. Brick & Forge Brew Works 814 US-62, Harrison, AR 72601 Little Rock ≈ 140.8 mi (2 h 39 min) Fayetteville ≈ 71.1 mi (1 h 27 min)

9. Prestonrose Farm and Brewing Co. 201 St Louis Valley Rd, Paris, AR 72855 Little Rock ≈ 103.9 mi (1 h 40 min) Fayetteville ≈ 105.4 mi (1 h 41 min)

3. Rapp’s Barren Brewing Co. 1343 AR-5, Mountain Home, AR 72653 Little Rock ≈ 153.5 mi (2 h 56 min) Fayetteville ≈ 123.9 mi (2 h 29 min)

10. Slate Rock Brewing 113 S Main St, Amity, AR 71921 Little Rock ≈ 93.4 mi (1 h 30 min) Fayetteville ≈ 178.2 mi (3 h 18 min)

4. Norfork Brewing Co. 13980 AR-5, Norfork, AR 72658 Little Rock ≈ 138.6 mi (2 h 46 min) Fayetteville ≈ 130.4 mi (2 h 40 min)

11. Bubba Brew’s Brewing Company 8091 Airport Rd, Bonnerdale, AR 71933 Little Rock ≈ 60.3 mi (58 min) Fayetteville ≈ 182.5 mi (3 h 19 min)

5. Gravity BrewWorks 11512 AR-14, Big Flat, AR 72617 Little Rock ≈ 119.0 mi (2 h 14 min) Fayetteville ≈ 136.4 mi (2 h 49 min)

12. SQZBX Brewery & Pizza Joint 236 Ouachita Ave, Hot Springs, AR 71901 Little Rock ≈ 54.7 mi (55 min) Fayetteville ≈ 188.6 mi (3 h 26 min)

6. Fort Smith Brewing Co. 7500 Fort Chaffee Blvd, Fort Smith, AR 72916 Little Rock ≈ 163.7 mi (2 h 26 min) Fayetteville ≈ 68.4 mi (1 h 5 min)

13. Superior Bathhouse Brewery 329 Central Ave, Hot Springs, AR 71901 Little Rock ≈ 54.6 mi (54 min) Fayetteville ≈ 188.0 mi (3 h 23 min)

7. Ox Bend Brewing Co. (Formerly Six Mile Brewery) 1404 W Commercial St, Ozark, AR 72949 Little Rock ≈ 123.7 mi (1 h 50 min) Fayetteville ≈ 72.6 mi (1 h 8 min) WWW.BREWEDINARKANSAS.COM

BREWERY SPOTLIGHT

Baxter County’s Beer Boom By Steve Shuler

Three remote breweries find a place in their community and the Arkansas beer scene.

or the most part, Arkansas breweries are found where you might expect them: There’s a high concentration in Northwest Arkansas and in Pulaski County; you can find a few in Garland County, in and around Hot Springs. And, you can find small breweries scattered here and there around the state, where rural brewers are usually the only game in their respective towns. Then there’s remote Baxter County in North Arkansas, which somehow features three active, thriving breweries. All three breweries are small, only making enough beer to stock their taprooms and maybe a restaurant or two here or there. More importantly, all three are doing very good work and have robust support from their communities.

Gravity BrewWorks – Big Flat

There’s no doubt that Gravity BrewWorks has played a big role in making Baxter County more beer-friendly. Bill Riffle and Tony Guinn opened

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the brewery in 2013. The two were homebrewers for decades before Bill began his work as the head brewer at Vino’s Brewpub in Little Rock in the early 2000s, where it flourished and gained national recognition, culminating in the 2006 bronze medal and 2008 gold medal from the Great American Beer Festival for its Rock Hopera Imperial Red Ale. Success is great, but his time in Little Rock was taking a toll. Riffle commuted from his home in Stone County to Vino’s every week for ten years. Guinn was also a great brewer, but her regular job at Blanchard Springs Caverns meant the two weren’t spending as much time together. Riffle’s talent meant he could likely go brew anywhere he wanted, but what he wanted was to go home. “We love where we live. We’re in the Ozark Mountains, we have about 70 acres of woods, we built our own place,” says Riffle. “We really didn’t want to move. I like Little Rock, and I’m sure I’d be fine living there and could be successful if I opened a business there. But we just loved where

Originally opened in 2018, Norfork Brewing Company plans to add a 15-barrel brewing system to their line-up â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and the beer keeps flowing in Baxter County. (Photo by Steve Shuler)

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Perched in the Ozark Mountains, Gravity BrewWerks was the craft beer pioneer in Baxter County. (Photo by Steve Shuler)

we lived, so we decided to open a brewery as close as we could to home.” The closest wet county real estate turned out to be Big Flat, a strip in the southernmost end of Baxter County. Surrounded by a national forest and family farms, Riffle and Guinn had to do a lot of work just convincing the locals to try them out. “We knew when we started this, we would have a lot of education to do,” says Guinn. “So many folks here were just used to something that was fizzy and yellow. They had no experience with craft beer. So, we spent a lot of time talking with people about our beers, helping them find what they liked.” It worked. Guinn and Riffle’s patience helped lay the groundwork for building a Baxter County beer community. When the next breweries were under construction, their owners spent time at Gravity BrewWorks, learning from two pioneers in the Arkansas beer scene.

Rapp’s Barren Brewing Company – Mountain Home

Rapp’s Barren Brewing Company is a classic tale of two guys dreaming about starting a brewery, only in this case it succeeds beyond their wildest dreams. Russell Tucker and Chris Gordon started as homebrewers who began talking about starting their own place after winning some small competitions. However, neither wanted to leave their 24

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full-time job right away, so they decided to make a five-year plan to open a brewery. “From the moment we wrote down that plan to opening this place, it was 12 months,” laughs Gordon. “It moved so fast. Neither one of us saw it coming.” In 2016, the two planned to meet at a local coffee shop to discuss their plan, but they arrived to find a “For Lease” sign on the door. Situated on top of a hill overlooking the rolling Ozarks, and with plenty of brewing space, the shop was ideal. So, they jumped on it, moving in a one-barrel system and opening in September 2017. Any worries that the people of Mountain Home might not take to the new Rapp’s Barren Brewing Company disappeared on opening weekend. “We’ve been behind since we opened our doors,” says Tucker. “It’s been crazy. The first six months was nuts, because we were working full-time and brewing at night, and then running a taproom on the weekend. And they were drinking us dry.”

Two homebrewers turned business owners opened Rapp’s Barren in 2017. (Photo by Steve Shuler)

Tucker and Gordon brought in a full-time brewer to run daily operations so they could keep their original jobs while still working to satisfy demand. Guests to Rapp’s Barren enjoy a number of unique touches, like hand-made wrought-iron tap handles and beer names that harken to Mountain Home’s history.

Norfork Brewing Company – Norfork If there’s any brewery that makes the argument

for Baxter County being abnormally beer friendly, it’s Norfork Brewing Company. Not because the beer isn’t good (it is quite good), but because owner Jason Aamodt isn’t really a native of the area. The Tulsa attorney fell in love with Norfork on a fishing trip and decided he had found his home. Aamodt, a former chemistry major, had been homebrewing for a long time. But he had no plans to open a brewery until a real estate auction in 2017. “I was there for a boat,” says Aamodt. “But the first item was this three-acre plot with an old junktique shop. The bidding started at $300[,000] and there was nothing. Eventually I raised my hand when it got under a hundred, thinking it had to be worth at least that much.” Aamodt spent a year stripping the building down to the studs and rebuilding it into a brewery and taproom. Like Rapp’s Barren, Norfork was extraordinarily busy in its first year, brewing 160 batches and selling out of all of them in short order. Expansion was the next logical step, but for Norfork Brewing Company, that step turned out to be a giant one.

“We purchased a 15-barrel system from Catskills Brewing Company in New York,” says Aamodt. “We weren’t really in the market for one that size, but it came available at a good price. They are also bringing us out to train on the system, so why not just jump in?” Aamodt and his nephew Ben will be working on getting the new system running with a few recipes. There are plenty to draw from; Norfork is already showing creativity with brews like a barrel-aged Märzen-style lager and ales made from wild yeast harvested from paw paws, a fruit native to the Baxter County area. And all of these beers have been eagerly received by a Norfork community that has staunchly supported its own brewery. “We didn’t do this alone,” says Aamodt. “This was very much a team effort with the community. One of the things I did early on was sit down with each of the members of the city council and presented my plans and told them I probably wouldn’t do it if they didn’t like it. And I got a whole-hearted ‘Go for it’.”

BREWERY SPOTLIGHT

‘Bubbles’: Spa City Suds By Stephen Koch With these four area breweries, Al Capone’s bubbly nickname for Hot Springs has new meaning.

ot Springs has been known for centuries for its healing waters. Now, some of those healing liquids are being turned into another – local craft beer. Tourism is the state’s second-biggest industry, and Hot Springs is the state’s top tourist destination. So it’s no surprise that the Spa City’s beer scene is also fermenting – although curiously, there’s currently only one brewery that’s actually in Hot Springs proper. But there’s a refreshing diversity of beers being produced, as well as brewing philosophies being espoused, around this area of the Natural State.

Superior Bathhouse Brewery – Hot Springs National Park

It’s all about the water at Hot Springs National Park, so it makes sense there’s a brewery using the thermal waters that are the namesake of both the town that surrounds the national park and the park itself. To have Superior Bath26

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house Brewery located in a historic former bathhouse is adaptive building reuse of the highest architectural order. “The National Park Service actually has a great historic leasing program, where they encourage private businesses to take over the care of historic buildings inside National Parks through commercial use so it was a great fit,” says Superior founder Rose Schweikhart. Like the brewery, the circa 1916 bathhouse was also named Superior. Superior is said to be the only brewery in the world to utilize thermal spring water, and is the only brewery located within a national park in the United States. “The chemical makeup of the Hot Springs thermal waters is pretty unique, especially for thermal spring water,” says Schweikhart. “It’s like a blank slate, ideal for brewing. The most important and unique component is that it’s hot, which saves us a lot of time in heating.” Schweikhart’s inventive beer names often invoke the city or the state. Superior’s Foul Play Stout is a shout-out to

It’s no surprise that the Spa City’s beer scene is on the rise – although curiously, there’s currently only one brewery that’s actually in Hot Springs proper. Pictured above, Bubba Brew’s in Bonnerdale. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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beloved local burlesque troupe Foul Play Cabaret, while DeSoto’s Folly Golden Stout alludes to the Spanish explorer whose alleged explorations into this part of Arkansas have long been embraced. “Hot Springs has a little bit of that offbeat spirit,” she says. “I wanted our brewery and our brand to have the same ethos. Like our historic buildings and natural resources, we take our craft seriously, but ultimately we want them to be enjoyed by as many people as possible.”

SQZBX – Hot Springs

SQZBX on Ouachita Avenue is so beautiful, the building won a historic preservation award for its renovation. The revitalization from its days as a long-shuttered, dusty piano repair shop to a bustling and bright pizza pub is most evident in the gleaming bar, fashioned out of upcycled piano parts. There, patrons sample beer (and a cider option that’s always on the dry side) crafted by SQZBX brewer Zac Smith. His partner, Cheryl Roorda, handles the restaurant side. And – much like their symbiotic partnership – Smith says his beers are designed to complement, not compete, with SQZBX’s pizza and sandwiches. “If you like a simple, German-inspired type of beer,” Smith says, “this is your place.” Drinkability is key at SQZBX, which is technically the only brewery in Hot Springs city limits. Smith, who got his start as a backyard homebrewer, changes his beer names and recipes around slightly, but generally keeps certain styles on hand: “I’ll always have a dark beer on, a porter or a stout, and a wheat beer on. And something more for the hop-heads,” he says.

“And usually a light lager, and an American pale ale with more body and a malt-forward character.” SQZBX “has a few ‘destination drinkers,’ but it’s mostly a restaurant,” Smith explains. “It’s a great complement to have Superior, and the more complex beers they turn out, on one end of Central [Avenue], and us on the other,” he says.

Slate Rock Brewing – Amity

Clark County’s first microbrewery in Amity, population 723, is the appropriately charming and modest venture called Slate Rock Brewing. Outside is a large covered area with a walk-up window where Baggo is encouraged amidst the picnic tables; inside, the bar is like a modern cabin – lots of natural wood and, yes, slate tile, with taps of deer antler and turned wood. Located on Amity’s Main Street off the town square, Slate Rock is the brainchild of Shawn and Orianne Burgess. The pair used to brew out of their house, in nearby Montgomery County, and their friends would give them tips to make sure the beer kept flowing. “I put the recipes together, and he does the brewing,” Orianne says of Shawn, laughing: “I do all the paperwork, and he does the heavy lifting.” This complementary relationship saw Slate Rock celebrating its first anniversary this past April, and the tale is told in the taps: Two crisp pale ales, an IPA with an ABV of 8% that still tastes airy and light, two stouts, an Irish Red, and an agreeably mild and delicate saison were among the offerings at a recent visit. The Burgesses also brew a nutty and aromatic nonalcoholic root beer. Orianne notes most of Slate Rock’s beer names have ties to Arkansas history – she explained the backstories behind Gold Rush IPA, Lost Louisiana Pale Ale, and Fire Tower Stout with a historian’s gleam in her eyes, as their toddler scampered about the brewery to make the scene of Americana complete. And while Orianne said the area gets its share of overflow tourists and curious Hot Springs-area residents taking the country drive to cross the county line, “the locals kept us going through winter.” Popular local demand, in fact, brought Lost Louisiana Pale Ale back to Slate Rock’s taps to become a regular offering. Even Slate Rock’s unassuming slogan, “Fresh beer here!” is as elegantly basic as its location, building, and beers.

Bubba Brew’s Brewing Company – Bonnerdale, Lake Hamilton Low-key but even-keel, SQZBZ offers beers that complement their pizza. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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To drive Highway 70 from the quaint rural placidity of Slate Rock to Bubba Brew’s Brewing Company near Bonnerdale is to marvel at the studies in contrast of a

maturing Arkansas craft beer scene. The canaverous wood frame building contains a long bar, a brewery, a restaurant with an expansive menu of bar food, pool tables, TVs, and sports memorabilia with room enough left to have line dancing classes on Sundays. The toothy faux head of a shark jutting from the center of Bubba Brew’s sets the raucous mood, as well as the name of some of Bubba Brew’s brews, crafted by Jonathan Martin: Great White, Sandbar Pilsner – and, with the wrong shark, even Skullcrusher IPA could count, although Martin advises Skullcrusher is named for the nickname of the Cossatot River. Martin, whose brewing tastes developed from exposure to the 1990s craft brewing surge, has a balanced brewing philosophy: “The main thing is making sure you have approachable styles that someone who is not a typical craft beer drinker will enjoy, while also brewing more adventurous and assertive beers,” he says. “The current head brewer, Sloan Milligan, came into craft beer more recently – he’s 26 – so he’s had an early exposure to a much wider variety of styles from the get-go, and he usually gravitates towards beers on the less hoppy side. I’ve always had a preference for hop-forward beers that still held a lot of malt character, so my favorite BBBC beer is, and has always been, Hop Wolf.” Further down the highway, towards Hot Springs, Bubba’s also has a location at the urban foot of the Highway 70 bridge on Lake Hamilton. It’s yet another 180 from Bonnerdale Bubba’s dark, country roadhouse vibe into a bright pastel “Miami Vice” episode, with Hamilton subbing in for the Atlantic. All these brews of Bubba’s are made in Bonnerdale, and delivered twice a week to the other location. (A

Serving a town of 723, Slate Rock is able to make it through winter’s slower months with local love. (Photo by Becca)

posh-looking BBBC location in downtown Hot Springs closed.) “Our most popular seasonal is Winter Hammer, a spiced Belgian strong ale we usually release in late fall,” Martin says. “People also tend to love our fruited variants of our pilsner and blonde.” The vibe of neither BBBC spot is quiet contemplation, but kicking back with a few Bubba’s Supa Lites at sunset as the boats bob by on Hamilton. But, just like the greater Spa City beer scene as a whole, it runs the gamut.

Superior is said to be the only brewery in the world to utilize thermal spring water. (Photo by Becca Bona)

Bubba’s Bonnerdale location is the perfect place to party. (Photo by Becca Bona)

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Little Rock’s Rebel Kettle Brewing Co. is making the move into dry Faulkner County. The brewery has purchased a building at 1090 Spencer Street in Downtown Conway and plans to make the resulting taproom reflective of the area. (Photo by Becca Bona)

LEGISLATION IN ARKANSAS: ACT 681 CRACKS OPEN DRY COUNTIES By Dwain Hebda

n Prohibition-era Kansas City, political boss Tom Pendergast was famous for openly thumbing his nose at the federal statute against alcohol. When asked how he justified the city’s free-flowing liquor, the notoriously corrupt Pendergast uttered a tailor-made headline: “The people are thirsty.” Arkansas’s brewers don’t face such dramatic circumstances, but the state’s cross-hatch of dry areas does mean a percentage of the population is, in effect, thirsty. And given the potential economic impact breweries represent, many communities in these jurisdictions may be feeling a mite parched for revenue as well. But that may change thanks to Act 681, passed last session by the Arkansas legislature. The new law spells out parameters by which microbreweries may operate in dry counties in the state, dampening the ground right under 30

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modern-day prohibitionists’ feet. Rep. Stephen Magie (D-Conway) who co-sponsored the bill, said the issue boiled down to economics. “I’m a representative in Conway and there was interest in Conway that sparked the idea. That’s really how it came about,” he says. “It’s all a part of our downtown economic development package, really. We started having some informal discussions and saw what microbreweries were doing in other communities in wet counties. I think it’s going to be a good thing for Conway and other communities like ours.” The new law doesn’t completely throw open the doors for breweries in dry counties, which must operate as private clubs. Restrictions stipulate that the business must include an onsite restaurant, must be limited to brewing 45,000 barrels of beer or less each year and cannot directly

sell beer for off-premise consumption. Breweries can distribute to retailers, but must go through a licensed distributor to do it. “We really didn’t have a tremendous amount of opposition,” Magie says. “I think [lawmakers] felt pretty overwhelmingly that it was an economic tool for cities to use.” Little Rock’s Rebel Kettle Brewing Co. is the first to begin the process of heading to Conway. The brewery has purchased a facility at 1090 Spencer Street, and although it’s early in the game, the space will be equipped to brew exclusive Conway beers as well as a few names that Rebel Kettle fans will recognize. The city initially reached out to the brewery about coming to downtown, seeing the economical potential of having a brewery in their backyard. Over the years, Arkansas communities have made comparable arguments on a macroeconomic scale. Out-of-state companies, they argued, weren’t interested in relocating someplace where employees couldn’t have a glass of wine at dinner or grab a six-pack to watch the big game, to say nothing of tax revenue lost by barring alcohol producers and distributors themselves. But as statewide measures have repeatedly failed at the ballot box – the most recent in 2014 – the issue has remained a county-by-county (and sometimes city-by-city) skirmish. The zeal for temperance varies accordingly. Searcy Mayor Kyle Osborne picked his words judiciously in discussing the potential for Act 681 in dry White County, given the city’s alcohol ordinances are still embryonic compared to many communities its size. Osborn acknowledged the city is “still somewhat digesting” allowing club permits last year, even as the new statute became law. “Searcy is an extremely conservative community. In fact, it hasn’t been that long ago when we allowed the private clubs to open up within city limits to start selling alcohol by the glass,” he says. “When new businesses apply, there’s still a group that will show up to, I’m not going to say protest, but express their opposition to what the council is doing when they approve them to apply through the ABC.” While no prospective brewery has yet entered the

permitting process in Searcy, Osborne said he believed city leaders would not kowtow to such opposition at the expense of the city’s growth and development. “[The city council is] extremely progressive. There is no doubt about that. They’re conservative, but yet extremely progressive. In their opinions, if it’s the right thing for this community, they’re all in and for it, 100 percent,” he says. “We have a core group [of citizens] against the sale of alcohol in restaurants in Searcy. We haven’t had to deal with it yet, so I’m a little bit curious to see what’s going to happen.” Meanwhile, Hope Mayor Steve Montgomery takes a comparatively enthusiastic view of the new law. He sees the new guidelines as a well-timed opportunity. “Right now, we’re in the process of revitalizing our downtown and one of the struggles as far as getting downtown restaurants is us being a dry county,” he says. “A microbrewery talks more to young professionals and that’s something that we’re currently doing a five-year plan on, is trying to reach out to those young professionals.” Montgomery said many in this part of the world aren’t as vehement as they once were about remaining dry, either. In the failed 2014 state referendum, Hempstead County only voted no by a margin of about 200 votes; and neighboring counties going wet have further softened long-held attitudes. He predicted Hope’s first beer entrepreneur is in for a warm welcome. “I was down in Shreveport for a meeting and they had three microbreweries within three blocks of each other. I was amazed at that,” he says. “It’s something that’s popular, something that can work and something that could attract people to Hope,” a town known for its long-running annual watermelon fest. “The microbreweries, I feel good about it and I’m hoping somebody will step up and maybe make a famous watermelon beer-type thing. I mean, it could happen.” Only time will tell as the possibility for breweries to call Arkansas home just got that much easier.

Best craft beer selection North of the river. From growlers to sours to barrel-aged stouts, we stay on the cutting edge of craft beer in central Arkansas. 250 W Kiehl Avenue, Sherwood, AR, 72120 WWW.BREWEDINARKANSAS.COM

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