[upbeat music]
- [Ann] The natural surroundings are spectacular.
- We're right on the Rocky Broad River.
We are looking up at Chimney Rock Mountain behind us.
And we just think it's a great spot,
very relaxing on the river.
And we just love it.
[upbeat music]
- [Clay] Hickory Nut Gorge Brewery and Chimney Rock
is named for the Gorge, the Rocky Broad River runs through.
- [Ann] I think that the river itself makes it special.
- [Peter] Such a serene and beautiful place.
- [Clay] Mark Fretwell was born in England.
His father was a home brewer,
but in the 20 years since moving to the US
he's had trouble quenching his thirst for English beer.
- I mean, there's plenty of great breweries around it,
but I wanted an English style be it.
I wanted it for myself,
because I liked that, and I enjoyed that.
And I wanted to be able
to share that passion with other people.
- [Clay] So he and his wife, Mary,
bought this old barbecue restaurant in 2015,
renovated it and opened it as a brewery the next year.
- I would work my daytime job all day long,
and then I would come home and then I'd work in the brewery
at nighttime till silly o'clock brewing.
- [Clay] Along with English beer,
the brewery serves English food,
traditional dishes like Fish and Chips and Shepherd's pie.
- We've got an English brewery.
We've got awesome English beer.
We've got English brewers and English owners,
let's have an English menu,
and we'll try it, and it works,
and it works really well.
- [Clay] As pretty as the Chimney Rock location is
there isn't much room to brew beer.
- We couldn't keep brewing in the closet.
- [Clay] After searching for a couple of years,
they found this old 1947 theater in Mars Hill,
just north of Asheville.
- [Merri] I just fell in love with it.
You could see its potential.
- [Mark] We've kept the history of the building
as much as we can, but made it modern.
- I think the biggest challenge was probably
because we're on a sled floor,
and figuring out how we were gonna get the equipment in.
But we made it.
- [Clay] The front well's built
decking for level seating and serving spaces
and for their brewing tanks.
It gives brewer, Dean Atkinson,
a great spot to practice his craft.
He has one goal in mind.
- To try and brew the best beer I can,
whether it's something I brewed 20 times before,
or whether it's a new recipe.
- [Clay] Seven of the 10 beers he brews are English.
- [Dean] Whether it be an IPA or a stout or a light beer.
- [Clay] Among the most popular are an English IPA
called the River Otter.
- So it's more of a more backbone to it.
And it's hot, but not as aggressively as an American IPA.
- [Clay] Also popular as the extra special bitter
called Brexit 1776.
- [Dean] That's a bit more aggressively hot,
but it still has a smooth finish to it.
- [Clay] On the darker side
there's the barking yourself mild.
- It's dark in color, but light in body.
Looks like a Guinness, but doesn't drink like a Guinness.
- [Clay] Atkinson says there's a little something
for everyone on the beer menu.
- One of the most enjoyable things is to be sat at the bar
and you don't announce that you are a brewer
and someone comes in, orders a pint,
and they say, "Oh my God, this is a fantastic beer."
- [Clay] The Morris Hill location
has the same menu as the chimney Rock location.
[calm uplifting music] [indistinct chattering]
And the front walls left several rows of seats in the middle
to sometimes show movies on the big screen.
- Our philosophy for both of our locations
is that we want to have a place where people can gather.
We want children to be able to come, families.
We want to be that spot where-
- People want to go.
- People wanna go and just celebrate their friendships
and their family.
[calm uplifting music] [water whooshing]
- Where are you gonna be able to have a beer
and see this incredible scene?
Watch over the Rocky Broad River,
look up on Chimney Rock Mountain is the best.
There's breweries all over,
but the environment here and the people coming from all over
make this brewery very special.
[calm uplifting music]
- Hickory Nut Gorge Brewery has two locations.
Their Chimney Rock site is at 461 Main Street,
and their location in Mars hill is at 70 Main Street.
For more information visit their website
at hickorynutbrewery.com.