North Carolina brews good beer

Posted from the Greensboro News & Record:

North Carolina brews reputation for good beer

Welcome to the revolution. North Carolina is the craft beer state of the South.

.......Hang on any bar stool and you’ll hear a dozen reasons: the changing laws, the increasing interest, the supportive retailers, the growing number of festivals, and the natural tie-in to the homegrown food movement.

And of course, the brewers themselves. They’re making good beer here.

You’ll also hear barroom proclamations about North Carolina becoming more hip and hear how Beer Advocate magazine picked Asheville over Portland, Ore., earlier this year as the No. 1 beer destination in the country.

Imagine that. Asheville — a city once called backward by one of its own favorite sons, Thomas Wolfe — now has nine breweries.

........A change in the law helped. Four years ago, legislators overturned a law that dated back to 1935, the era of Prohibition, and allowed brewers to make beers that could exceed 6 percent alcohol content.

That change happened because thousands of people never involved or even interested in politics jumped aboard to help push what became known as “Pop the Cap.’’

And last August, brewmasters formed the N.C. Brewers Guild to help craft brew pubs go the way of the N.C. wineries: lobby, collaborate and get the word out about North Carolina’s homegrown brew.

Click the top link for the full story, I've just pasted some excerpts here.