Pisgah Brewing Co.

Dave1855

North Carolina

3.9/5  rDev -12.8%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 3.5 | $$

The night I was there Lowdown was the food truck on site. The food and menu were very good. Nice selection for vegetarians and omnivores alike. Pisgah brews some wonderful beers and also has a nice selection of non-Pisgah beers. I would recommend checking out the entertainment that they have and visiting the brewery.

05-17-2013 20:05:05 | More by Dave1855

Cmain

New Hampshire

4.8/5  rDev +7.4%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $

As with many other reviewers, we were not sure if we at the right place when we pulled down the drive. You park across from the building and follow the Pisgah signs. Once inside you head down a flight of stairs into the expansive tasting room. Pretty dark on a cool winter day, but still had a cool vibe.

The beer at this place is what really shines. All four of us got flights of four 5 oz. beers and then some pints. The selection was awesome and we tried all the big beers including the Baptista, Vortex II, Valdez, etc. We all thought they were great, with the Valdez and Baptista standing out. We also tried the Bacon Stout which was interesting and definitely worth a try.

I could not recommend this place enough. Very glad we went out of our way to find this place.

03-18-2013 02:36:13 | More by Cmain

akorsak

Pennsylvania

3.86/5  rDev -13.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Located 15 miles or so outside of Asheville. Our hotel on the east side of town was only 5 miles away - our closest stop!

Atmosphere: Arriving at noon, Pisgah is located in an industrial park on the outskirts of Black Mountain. Entering from the main entrance, down a short flight of stairs and into the large, open tasting room. The garage doors of the warehouse are up, bringing in light and heat. A stage inside, picnic tables outside and an L-shaped bar. A water tap (self serve with a doggie bowl below). We sat at the bar and got started.

Quality/Service: Far removed from the hustle and bustle, Pisgah was nonetheless busy with kegs, tours and other activities. Our bartender never left that bar and didn't forget about us when things got busy.

Selection: 9 Pisgah beers on tap and another 6 or so guest taps. We worked our way through the Pisgah line-up and had a few samples of the guests. Highlights were Steep Canyon and the Blueberry Wheat. From the guests, the Hoppyum and Buchi Fire (a kombucha with cayenne) were good.

Food: They sell local-made chips but were out. I believe that food trucks periodically come through.

05-29-2012 20:31:25 | More by akorsak

cacarrigan

Georgia

4.59/5  rDev +2.7%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I absolutely love this place. Placed in between Swannanoa and Black Mountain NC, this brewery tasting room is absolutely incredible. When the weather is good, there is a massive lawn out back with spaces for horseshoes and just hanging out with friends and families, and if the weather turns, the reasonably sized warehouse in which the bar is situated, where if you are lucky you will find a open game of cornhole to play in between sips of the beers.
OH the beers! This place is a hidden gem in terms of beer. The Pisgah Pale and Porter are my absolute favorites of the 2 respective styles, although to be fair, I had not tried some of the best stuff from the midwest until recently. Also, they are always rotating their taps with new, seasonal/one-off brews which are always at the least, well thought-out, and at best, are simply delicious(Their Vortex I, an imperial IPA, was the biggest eye opening beer I have ever had).
When I lived in North Carolina, I would try and visit this place once a week, but now that I live in Atlanta, I try and find excuses to visit the Asheville/Black Mountain area not only to see old friends, but also to make the visit to the first brewery I fell in love with.

08-27-2011 18:20:32 | More by cacarrigan

tclapper

North Carolina

4.72/5  rDev +5.6%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Ever since I stopped here for the first time I've been wanting to go back again and again. There is a great atmosphere once you get in. Driving up to the place your hopes might be dashed a bit because it seems like a run down industrial complex with old wire fencing and barbed wire around the area. But once inside there's a nice bar with a small stage for musical acts and the garage doors are open to the outside where you can sit and chill with great beer on a nice day. They also have a big outdoor venue for shows they put on in the summer that looks like a good time, but I haven't been down for one of those yet. And of course the beer is good. Haven't had one yet that I didn't like. Overall it's a must stop if you're anywhere close.

05-13-2011 17:02:10 | More by tclapper

Reagan1984

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +0.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $

Pisgah Brewing…Find us if you can!!! The perfect slogan for this place. I love it and I love that you have to work to find it. First off, Black Mountain, NC is about 15 minutes outside of Asheville, THEN you have to find it in the bowels of a light industrial park where it’s located tucked way in the back. I literally had to stop some guy and ask if I was in the right place…. Clearly I wasn’t the first person to ask. When you find it, it’s a little like a Shangri-la. Before I got out of my car, I loved the vibe. There is NO way a person ever stumbled upon this place. If you are here you deserve a good beer.

Outside there are 4-5 picnic tables and it’s basically an open air entrance. I am assuming they can close the big garage doors in inclement weather. The bar is basically tucked within a factory setting and you get the sense that you are having a beer as they make more beer in the background. And that’s essentially what you are doing. As casual as any place has ever been. The staff is extremely friendly and I was sharing tales (or he was sharing with me) with the bartender within 5 minutes of arriving. They had a guest tap or two available, with about 7 of their own beers on tap. Growler fills available and one type of bomber “to-go” as well.

Have no idea if they have food, didn’t ask and wasn’t interested. They do have a stage and music is part of the scene here.

Bottom line for me is that if you are enough of a beer geek to be reading this review (or any other) you MUST go here. It’s work to get here, you obviously have to be in the area to begin with and the vibe is unreal.

Make the pilgrimage and you will be rewarded.

Oh wait, did I mention? The BEER ROCKS!!

04-22-2011 12:00:33 | More by Reagan1984

thagr81us

South Carolina

4.14/5  rDev -7.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

As stated before, this is very easy to drive by even if you have a ballpark idea on where it should be. Luckily there is a sign at the entrance with their logo and an arrow. I would likely still be driving around looking for it if there wasn't... Also as stated, there is no indication on where the actual taproom is when you do find the entrance. Parking is along the side of the warehouses. You will walk to the back (toward a small park) and go around the corner and the taproom will be on your right. I got really lucky to spot this with people being outside at the picnic tables. Upon walking in there was quite a crowd there on this nice Saturday afternoon. I walked up and found a seat at the bar (which was pretty full). I missed the last tour session as I got there right at 3 as they were going on the last one of the day. The beer selection... HOLY CRAP! Do you like Pisgah brews!? If so, get your ass here! All but 4 taps were from Pisgah (1 was root beer). I sat down to 2 samplers of things I hadn't tried before and then hung out with JackTheBear the remainder of my time here. Awesome location and I will definitely be going back. I will also be bringing nice kettle chips with me as it seemed like ALL the regulars did and it was definitely a good idea. Gotta blend in with the regulars...

04-12-2011 11:59:21 | More by thagr81us

babaracas

Florida

4.21/5  rDev -5.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 5 | $$

First off, it's incredibly easy to drive by this place, even when using GPS and even though there IS a sign. In a small industrial complex with no indication where the taproom is. Luckily there are basically only 2 buildings and all the cars will be around the building where Pisgah is located.

Inside the unit, it's a cavernous dark box with long bar along one wall and a small stage in the opposite corner. Despite at most 10 seats at the bar and no other observable furniture, there was a decent crowd over the couple of hours we spent there (5-7ish). Bartender was attentive and fairly busy. Nice guy.

Tons of beers on tap, over 20. Something like 18 of their own and a couple Victory beers. And a root beer. Pint prices ranged from $3 for the pale to $8 for the big beers, but "half-pint" pours, which were about 10 oz, were available for $4 for the bigger beers.

Bring a designated driver because you can easily kill a few or more hours in the relaxed atmosphere drinking tasty Pisgah brews. I'm sure the atmosphere is different on concert days, so check that before making the trek out to Black Mountain.

03-21-2011 05:01:22 | More by babaracas

slowbie

North Carolina

4.18/5  rDev -6.5%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

I feel compelled as others did to mention that this place is tough to find. But it's there.

Walk in the door with the tiny 'Pisgah Brewing Co' sign and down a short set of steps and the taproom door is open ahead and slightly to the left. We went on a Thursday around 3 pm so it was pretty empty when we got there. Just a giant room with a small stage and a concrete floor and a bar surrounded by stools. I would guess there were about 20 seats at the bar, but I didn't even see all of it because it was L shaped. Only one other guy at the bar, but the guy behind the bar was willing to talk about the beers.

They offer 5 ounce sample pours of all their beers, so we sampled Apple Jaxx, Vortex II (2009), Vortex I, Chocolate Stout, American Pilsner, and IPA. All were good, but the Chocolate Stout was the one that most exceeded my expectations. They had the best beer of the five breweries I stopped at in the Asheville area, and they are easily in my top 3 breweries in the state.

They had at least 10 of their own beers on tap as well as a few guest taps, but the bartender mentioned that they have a lot fewer of their own beers (and I assume more guest taps) in the summer because of increased demand. The prices were the most expensive of the tasting rooms I went to in the area, but still very reasonable as I found most of the beer in Asheville to be cheaper than I'm used to. For reference, most of their beers were $4/pint with stuff like the Vortexes and Apple Jaxx being $7 or $8/pint. Chocolate stout was a steal at $4 though.

It sounds like they have live music most nights, and with the acoustics that room probably has, I'll probably try to go in the early afternoon whenever I get down there. This is a stop I won't miss if I can help it whenever I'm in the area.

03-14-2011 18:23:33 | More by slowbie

lpb1970

North Carolina

3.83/5  rDev -14.3%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $$

Hit Pisgah on my from Charlotte to Asheville. As previous posters have mentioned, I was questioningif I was in the right place. Old brick warehouse buildings and a small winding path are what lead you to a nondescript office door. Once you walk in you step down some apparently hand made steps to the tasting room. As for this room, imagine if your buddy had a really big garage with a large bar. There was punk music playing on the stereo with some sort of concert footage on a video screen where the band sets up. This isn't really a tasting area. More like a dive bar in a brewery. Not a big deal for me though. I've been in worse. There was however one very bad episode in my visit, and it was pretty major. There is no A/C in the bar and a large fan blowing in the rear corner of the bar. As I walk in I smell a VERY distinct odor I recognize from the gym. Thats right fellas, its B.O. and a very aggressive case. The fan is blowing it all over the bar. It was retched. I began moving around the bar area conducting my investigation as to who was the culprit. After clearing the other patrons I realized it was the young lady behind the bar. Her unshaved armpits were emanating an odor that can only be described as rotten onions meet 3 day old road kill. Now I know Pisgah and Black Mountain for that matter are very liberal "granola" type places and I'm a big tent kind of guy but hygiene and deoderant are not evil tools of the man. If you are representing the brewery behind the bar you should keep yourself clean and odor free. My family and I had to brave the Mars like sun and heat at the outdoor picnic tables rather than breathe the noxious air in the bar. Beer was great but everyone already knows that. Anyway maybe this was just a one off experience (I hope). As I said I am a big fan of Pisgah beers. Just not a fan of body stench.

08-04-2010 13:12:49 | More by lpb1970