Fullsteam Brewery

fehrminator

North Carolina

4.05/5  rDev -3.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.75 | service: 4 | selection: 4.25 | $$

First review. This place is right around the corner from me and it is one of my favorite hangouts in Durham. Great vibe. Diverse crowd. Food trucks just about every day. Family friendly. Sean Wilson has been nominated for a Beard award the last two years and his "plow to pint" philosophy is the theme for all of his beer. I really like the summer basil, first frost, and cakalacky and the rest of their lineup ranges from good to interesting. I like that they always have several NC guest taps on in addition to their own beers. I love that they sell half pints. Sean was the driving force behind the "Pop the Cap" initiative which raised the abv cap on beer so we all owe him a debt of gratitude. If you're in or around Durham, this place is a must stop. Check it out.

05-15-2013 01:22:30 | More by fehrminator

d0ggnate

California

4.43/5  rDev +5.7%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Had a short visit here last night. First off, very cool setup going on here. The brewery/tasting area is very bar-like. Bar-like hours, too. Open 4pm to 2am the night we were there. You walk into a large open area with ping pong table, arcade games. Beyond that there was tons of seating. To your left you'll find a bar area where you can order half-pints, pints and pitchers of their current offerings. We started with the seasonal Summer Basil farmhouse ale (very basil forward, would be great on a hot summer day) and the One Hop Rye (single hop rye-PA hopped with Apollo), which was solid.

We found a place to sit in the great room. Lots of details. Tons of different types of people. Young, old, families, groups of friends. Appeared to be a pretty popular local gathering spot. Even had a food cart (??) setting up out front as we arrived.

Moved on to their Sweet Potato Lager and Southern Lager. Southern Lager was dark in color, but still crisp on the palate. The SP Lager was delicious. A bit chewy, mealy but still very palatable and crisp in finish. Last we tried the Hogwash (hickory smoked porter) and El Toro cream ale (100% North Carolina grains). El Toro was great. Refreshing and smooth. Hogwash was an adventure. Heavily smoky, but still rich in flavor. Buyer beware, if you don't like smoked things, this won't be for you. However, that's not to say the beer wasn't good. A half pint shared was about all I personally needed.

Had a great time here. Would love to have this place in my backyard. I'll be back by again should I return to the area for another visit.

11-24-2012 13:52:55 | More by d0ggnate

Cylinsier

Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +9.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

It's kind of a warehouse with a tap room. There's games and such in there, ping pong, some arcade cabinets, darts. You can see the vessels in the back. The tap room is dark and cool.

The beers were pretty good, can't lie. A couple unique entries here.

Good service which is basically the bar tender being attentive.

The selection is half FS's beers (6 taps) and half other NC micros. They pick good micros from outside their roster.

They don't serve food here really. There was a buffet but they bring that in from elsewhere as a special thing; it's not FS's food.

05-28-2012 23:08:07 | More by Cylinsier

VncentLIFE

North Carolina

4.26/5  rDev +1.7%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

First off, I will say its a pretty nice place, and the owner was very nice and helpful.

If you go when Igor is on tap, get it, and order a second. From a small brewery and its first attempt at a BA stout, holy crap its good (see my review). They have their fleet of beers, which wont blow your mind, but their solid in their own right. I like the Working Man's Lunch out of them all. They had 2 "experimental beers" on tap. They had 6 Fullsteam beers and 4 guest taps from Triangle, Mother Earth, and others. They had a few ciders and Abita rootbeer as well. Darts, poing pong, and regular live music make this a nice place to be. The lack of any TV was a bit of a let down, but thats my only knock on the atmopshere.

The bartenders were knowledgable, and always helpful. It gets rather busy late at night, so go earlier in the day if you wanna talk to the staff or owner.

4 dollar pints of the fleet, and 4-5 dollar half pints of experimental beers.

11-06-2011 23:08:56 | More by VncentLIFE

tdm168

North Carolina

3.7/5  rDev -11.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Right in the heart of Durham, this place is a fun little hangout. They have a nice selection of their own beers on tap as well as “guest” taps from around the state. They also have a few ciders and wines to offer which means my wife will go with me. Their beers are pretty good and there’s a wide range for your palate. They have a Rocket Science IPA, Hogwash which is a hickory smoked porter that tastes like bacon, Carver which is a beer made with sweet potato, El Toro which is a cream ale, and a few others. They have a small bar area and a large sitting area indoors which has picnic tables. Their tanks are visible through large panes of glass that separate the sitting areas from the brewery. There are often food trucks outside and they are cool with you ordering food to the brewery. They also have live music on some weekends. It often gets busy, but it’s a cool little up-and-coming place that’s worth checking out.

09-21-2011 21:50:47 | More by tdm168

hmph

Virginia

4.14/5  rDev -1.2%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

Stopped by with my fiancee about a month or so ago on our way home from a beer release. Its definitely in a not so high scale area, but not in a bad way. Awesome little outdoor patio area with a game room and a nice entertainment area when you first walk in. The tap room is pretty cool too, taps right through a brick wall and the standard chalk board listing the beers.

Sampled a few beers and eventually bought 2 growlers. My fiancee thought the beers were hit or miss, I enjoyed most of them but could understand her thoughts as they are a bit more 'grainy' than she likes her beer. Love that they buy local and keep it a very local feel to their process. I also really admire that they are working to craft or develop a true 'Southern' style.

Sean is a real cool guy and works hard to promote craft beer and was a pretty big proponent in the resurgence (emergence?) of craft brew in North Carolina, so much respect to him for that!

Will definitely revisit and recommend anyone in the area does as well.

08-22-2011 01:57:24 | More by hmph

danoeltico

North Carolina

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

Went here to check it out as I hadn't been to check out this local brewery nor taproom. I'd bmed the owner Sean who was willing to give my wife and I a private tasting which I took him up on. It was a busy Thursday night but Sean was there talking to me about their beers and explaining their philosophy and their passion for beer. But at the same time he was making sure that other guests that were in the tap room were being taken care of. He pulled out a couple of bottles from the back to let me try, First Frost their persimmon beer and their cherry infused imperial stout. Both of which was absolutely amazing. Sean was awesome and really took his time with my wife and I.

They have a good selection of various beers which I tried all of, plus a selection of other NC beers. The vibe to the tap room was really chill. There is a small bar area that has AC, perfect for a hot summer day, but then there is also a large open area with tables and old school arcade games and ping pong. There was a food truck out front with sliders, and they have some bar food that they get in from outside sources. The staff were really great and kept up with customers at the bar.

Fullsteam is doing some really interesting things with beer, definitely worth a try if you are in the area. Their lager is my new favorite lager, well balanced and a little on the hoppier side then most other lagers. Prices were really pretty reasonable and are the only place I've seen that offer half pints.

08-06-2011 18:01:39 | More by danoeltico

SpeedwayJim

New York

3.79/5  rDev -9.5%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3 | $

Traveled here with capra12, mday, and Azurelimits on our way to a beer release.

Fullsteam is actually an old warehouse turned into a brewery. The bar is tucked away in a little corner which is a bit odd and out of place but the rest of the floor is dedicated to fooseball tables, ping pong tables, old video games, darts, and all sorts of other fun stuff. There's also a performance stage at the back. Really trendy and an awesome place to just hang out for a couple of hours.

The place itself looks a bit rundown but I think that's part of the charm of the brewery. Everything's very old including the games, tables, chairs, pretty much the whole setup. The quality of the beer itself was above average though. Really well crafted. Their sweet potato lager is highly sessionable and their ipa was very solid.

I was here on a saturday night and despite the large crowds, there was very little wait time at the bar and the bartenders were all very attentive. Highly appreciated. However, there's no real "service" per say beyond that.

Selection is pretty typical for a brewpub. About 5 of their beers on tap plus they had three local guest taps.

Fullsteam doesn't serve food. The food here is actually highly variable because it is provided by a variety of food trucks that are parked right in front. A novelty that I've never seen in New York though, so it was nice in that manner.

The beers here were $4 a pint and $2 per half pint. I don't think I've ever seen cheaper.

Definitely worth visiting if not for the above average quality of the beer, just for the hip, relaxed atmosphere and old, warehouse-y novelty look.

07-18-2011 01:50:08 | More by SpeedwayJim

AngusOg

Maryland

4.13/5  rDev -1.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3 | $$

This place is awesome! Pretty much your typical small brewery and tasting room, but what sets it a part from most of the places i have been to was how family friendly this place was. This was one of the big reasons i picked this beer destination on a recent trip visiting the in-laws, but i was still a little skeptical. I dragged my wife and two small kids, plus my mother and father in-laws, about an hour from their home. But the place was totally chill and relaxed, had a game room and large "beer garden" area to hang out. It has a stage for live music (although no one was playing while we were there) and judging by their website has tons of special events. The guy working the bar was friendly and knowledgable. We all had a great time. The beers are decent enough, the one that stood out to me most was the Hogwash Hickory Porter. Plus they had about 5 guests beers, all local NC, which of the ones i tried were very good. The only 2 complaints i had, (1) was no sampler, however they did have half pints for $2 which was a reasonable price to try the brews, and (2) no AC in the beer garden area. However, the bar is air-conditioned, and that's where we stayed most of the time, as we visited on a hot July Sunday afternoon. However, my 4 year old didn't seem to mind the heat in the game area, and it didn't bother me too much either as i got to enjoy some quality beer while still spending time with the family.

07-09-2011 03:23:28 | More by AngusOg

devilben02

North Carolina

4.3/5  rDev +2.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $

The commercial front-end to this up-and-coming Durham brewery seems to (rightfully) be the hub of a rapidly developing section of the downtown area. The overall atmosphere is certainly relaxed and features a little something for a variety of interests. The taproom provides a somewhat energetic and social bar environment, whereas the rest of the converted warehouse provides a more casual and open space for groups to gather. With a game room that attracts kids of all ages and plenty of room for little ones to run, this outer section is certainly kid-friendly during common family hours. Although they don't serve food per se, there are a few snacks available at the bar, and arrangements with local food truck vendors ensure that there is always something edible around.

As for the beer, the brewery's lineup is available, including seasonals and occasional one-offs, but there are also a few rotating guest taps from other local brewers. One nice offering is the option of half-pours of many of the beers on tap, which allows for easy sampling of new beers. Overall, much like the beers they brew, Fullsteam's R&D Tavern is understated and welcoming yet interesting and enjoyable, making it a great place to wind down after work or enjoy a relaxed afternoon with friends.

06-28-2011 14:14:41 | More by devilben02