NC brewery hopes to set itself apart

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - The ingredients used at Fullsteam Brewery sound strange, almost exotic in the context of beers. Kudzu, scuppernong grapes and sweet potatoes can be found in backyards and farmers' markets, sure -- but a brewery?

The strangeness of the ingredients to the average drinker's mindset is exactly what Fullsteam, which is just getting off the ground, is counting on to differentiate itself from other breweries.

"We're going to develop into being known for being Southern agricultural beers, ingredients that people hadn't thought of in beer," said Chris Davis, the disciplined scientist and tattooed artist of beers whose nickname, for no apparent reason, is "32."

The Herald-Sun of Durham reported that Fullsteam is the partnership of Davis with Sean Wilson, a Triangle marketing and business veteran who has become a sort of flag-waving champion of craft brews over the years.

The two met years ago at an event for Pop the Cap, the organization that successfully lobbied to raise the alcohol limit for beer in North Carolina from 6 to 15 percent.

Fullsteam will be only the second brewery to open in Durham. It gets its name from its brewing technique for a Steam beer, which uses lager yeast to ferment at ale temperatures.

"I think people have this impression that beer is made in industrial batches, that it somehow magically happens in machines," Wilson said. "For us, the Southern ingredients add the agricultural conversation that's missing from the discussion of craft beers."

Beer had always been sidelined as the alcohol drink of choice in the South, Wilson said, a fact they wish to correct.

"Because of demographics and temperature, you had Germans and Czech immigrants in the North, where they produced pilsners," he said. "The South was a laggard."

"What we want to ask is, 'What if in a parallel universe, the South was the center of beer production?' What kind of beers would we have?" Wilson said.

With the Workers' Compensation Series, the brewery will have easy drinking beers like India Pale Ale and their flagship brew, "Carolina Common," to be sold in cans.

The more specialized Plow-to-Pint series will be the real attraction, using heirloom grains and Southern botanicals and with experimental, odd ingredients. That series will be sold in cans and wine bottles, for draft in select locations and on tap only at Fullsteam.

The brewery will begin by doing self-distribution to local restaurants and stores. And to diversify revenues in its business model, Wilson said they plan on having a bar with some food like savory meat pies.

"We want to have a community gathering. We want to have a place where people can enjoy themselves and have fun. Those are the things that really excite us," he said.

After years of brainstorming and raising funds, Fullsteam signed a lease for a concrete shell of a building on Foster Street and has slowly worked to upfit the structure and continue to raise money.

The business raised $400,000 in equity through small investors, and Wilson has kicked in about the same amount, making him the majority owner of the business. Fullsteam hopes to open in February.

The brewery is the latest sign of a growing trend in Durham, where the interest of a workforce with technology and science backgrounds has turned to home brewing.

At the Brewmaster store in northern Durham, where $80 starter kits are sold, co-owner Nate Dizo said many people take up the hobby because it expands their palettes.

Concurrently with the World Beer Festival, Fullsteam hosted the Backyard Beer Festival in October, during which 200 beer connoisseurs crowded into its concrete shell, sipping and savoring brews from a dozen home brewers who brought their own crafts.

"I would pay $10 for a six pack for some of these guys," said Ed Anderson as he gulped down an IPA.

------

Information from: The Herald-Sun