After a rigorous morning of mountain climbing in the nearby Pisgha National Forest, the Dobie and I headed over to Oskar Blues to "wet our weasels" at their Tasty Weasel Tap Room, located upstairs in their brewing facility. Walking in to the main brew floor, we were hit with the most amazing smell possible - that rich, sweet, sticky, malty, savory aroma of beer in its youth. It was like brew day at our house but magnified a thousandfold. Ahh, beer nirvana.
The Tasty Weasel, named after its twin at the Longmont, CO location, is a cozy haven for fans who love cans but have been dying for a fresh from the brewhouse taste. Here's the thing, cans are great - they're recyclable, they can be upcycled into all manner of really cool folk art - but you just can't beat the taste of a fresh beer straight from the tap. If you're looking to experience a whole new side to Oskar Blues, you've got to visit one of their two brewery locations!
The Tasty Weasel offers not only a regular selection of Oskar Blues' year-round beers, but also a rotating selection of brewery-only drafts and special cask beers that you'll never get anywhere else. Get your tasting apps out kids, because you'll get a full round of seven beers in a flight, and Tuesdays and Fridays the Weasel also offers a special keg made just for the day and different every week! I'm hard pressed to choose a favorite out of our flight, but if I absolutely had to I think it would come down to Mama's Little Yella Pils or the Old Chub Nitro. I realize that those are two distinctly different beers, but as any familiar reader will know, I'm not one for sticking to a particular style or taste category.
I'm back and forth in the world of the pilsner. Sometimes I'm all for it and other times I look at my glass in disbelief wondering where the beer is and who gave me this ridiculous glass full of water and yellow food coloring. Mama's Little Yella Pils absolutely kills it. She's crisp and clean with that mineral sulfur lager-type attitude that really hits the spot on a hot day. Fresh from the tap it was exactly what I was looking for after a good heavy mountain hike.
Old Chub is probably my favorite of Oskar Blues' brews. Creamy, rich, malty, it's everything I crave in a beer, and so bursting with flavor that I am never left wanting after a can. I was a little nervous to try it on nitro - I know everyone loves the nitro taps, but I feel like a lot of beers lose something when put on nitro. They get watery, or the flavor decreases, or they just loose "something" that normally gives them their signature flavors. Old Chub, it would appear, is not one of those beers. The skilled artisans down at Oskar Blues have created a masterpiece that in my eyes is brilliant on and off a nitro tap. Good one guys!
If you're visiting Asheville, NC, do yourself a favor and go take a nice long hike around Pisgah, then get yourself over to Oskar Blues in Brevard. Take a scheduled brewery tour, or stop in for one of their special kegs on Tuesday and Friday evenings, or catch a food truck in their outdoor seating area. If you haven't yet checked out a larger microbrewery, check out Oskar Blues!
If you're interested in Oskar Blues or learning more about their beers, head to their website to learn more! - oskarblues.com/
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