Tour De Charlotte! NoDa Brewing Co.

The Basics

Location: NoDa Brewing Co., 150 W 32nd St, Charlotte, NC 28206

Website: nodabrewing.com

Facebook: facebook.com/nodabrewingtaproom
Instagram: @nodabrewing

Vibe/Atmosphere: urban, industrial, large-scale, rambling, campus-like

Beers We Tried: Lil Slurp, Radio Haze, Pitchside Pils, Gordgeous, That’s Lovely, Blood Orange Gose, Slurp Surfin, Olde Voyager, Pivocative

Parking: ample lot

Important NC Beer Explorer Tip: When consuming alcohol, always have a designated driver. Be safe out there, friends!

Charlotte, NC has a brewing history going back to the 1860’s when Martin Munzler began brewing beer and eventually opened a brewery and beer garden near the edge of town. The modern Charlotte brewery boom came on the heels of the 2005 passage of the "Pop the Cap" law, which allowed brewers to raise the ABV above 6%. NoDa Brewing Co. was one of the earliest on the scene after the law was passed, and since then, NoDa has grown to be a large-scale brewery producing an excess of 35K BBL a year, making them the 2nd largest Charlotte brewer and 4th largest in the state!

Chad is an NC native. He graduated from Appalachian State in 2007 with a medical degree specializing in Physical Therapy, but he quickly fell down the beer rabbit hole. He had a sense then that “this (craft brewing) is THE thing.” Turns out he was right, and he and the coowners came along with synergistic timing, good intentions, and a budding community in Charlotte.

Ben let Chad know that, with his education background in chemical engineering, he was willing to “nerd out” on the technical details. With this small encouragement, Chad took us on an in-depth tour and talked about the custom designing he has done at the facility, both of the beers and their production process. One of his innovations has been the creation of a pilot system that feeds into production. This shared origin ensures a more reliable transition to production because it uses the same water sources, etc. The chemistry and milling are also the same – makes total sense to us, at least!

If you’ve been paying attention, then you know that Pilsner is just about our favorite beer style (in-depth post pending). We have enjoyed NoDa’s Pitchside Pilsner (a lot), and our tastes for it certainly led us to their door, along with their history and reputation.

By the time we reached NoDa mid-Thursday afternoon, we had seen a wide range of breweries and tasted more than our fair share of delicious pours. Still, pulling up to their big campus that includes a production facility, taproom, patio, and event space, we were duly impressed. It’s hard to get a feel for NoDa’s scale and presence from photos alone, so we hope we can capture it with words (or maybe this short video will help you visualize it a little).

One sidenote: Currently, NoDa doesn’t have its own onsite food other than a daily rotation of foodtrucks, but they are putting in a pizza oven to serve their own pub food. As we made our way around the Charlotte breweries, we noted that they all understand that food has to be part of the equation. It’s not a good thing to have people sitting around soaking beer without food.

We were a little dazzled by the star power of Co-Founder and Head Brewer Chad Henderson as he strode across the taproom wearing his snazzy NoDa-branded shirt and warmly greeted us. Chad immediately put us at ease by demonstrating openness and hospitality as he took us along on a private behind-the-scenes tour of their impressive facility. We were blown away!

As we walked and talked, Chad mentioned that the early days were “wild west.” He and the small production team were working on the line 16 hours a day and doing social media in marketing whenever they could squeeze it in. He came on board as the original brewer with owners Todd and Susie Ford. He worked so hard and contributed so much that they formally made him a co-owner. When Chad got into the business, he always wanted to be higher-volume and get into distribution. His vision was always to scale up – and he and the rest of the team have succeeded!

Chad is right to be proud of this state-of-the-art facility, gleaming stainless steel, and clean concrete floors – everything has a sense of precision, order, sanitation, and attention to detail. The commitment to excellence really comes across.

But it’s not all just shiny tanks and mountains of beer cans. For everyone at NoDa Brewing, it’s a family affair and a calling. As you walk through the plant, the names of owners’ dogs are on the fermenters. The Fords’ sons are growing up and taking over as the parents ramp down and prepare for retirement.

Of course, the whole thing was a dream experience for us beer nerds. It was like a mini master course in the brewery business, and we learned so much. Chad claims to be more about the brewing and less about the business strategy, but it was clear he really understands the whole direction of the market and the need to flex. As he put it, “You can’t get too attached to your offspring. If the market is going towards hard seltzers, zero alcohol, and TCH beverages, you follow it. You can honor your legacy, but you have to change with the times.”

Spending quality time with Chad at NoDa Brewing, we felt like we had been taken into their “family,” with one foot in the original culture, one foot in today’s business. It’s not just a business. It’s a calling.

(Sorry about the occasional light flicker. This is when we learned about frame speeds and fluorescent lights.)

NCBE's Beer Notes - NoDa Brewing Co.

• Lil Slurp

  • Style: Juicy IPA

  • ABV: 5%

  • Color: lightly hazy yellow

  • Aroma: citrusy

  • Taste: bright grapefruit thiols, spicy undertones of clove, bergamot

  • Mouthfeel: big bubbles, creamy

  • Aftertaste: long bitter-but-balanced finish; highly "crushable"

• Radio Haze

  • Style: NEIPA

  • ABV: 6%

  • Color: hazy light yellow, lacy head

  • Aroma: hoppy citrus

  • Taste: grilled pineapple, clean sweat (like a sleeping child - you either get it or you don't)

  • Mouthfeel: slight alcohol tinge

  • Aftertaste: grapefruit peel

• Pitchside Pils

  • Style: German Pilsner

  • ABV: 4.1%

  • Color: gold

  • Aroma: toasted rice, malt

  • Taste: light bitterness balanced with malt and mineral notes

  • Mouthfeel: light

  • Aftertaste: lightly bitter with a dank note

• Gordgeous (Very Popular)

  • Style: Pumpkin Ale

  • ABV: 6.1%

  • Color: golden brown, light haze, beige foamy head

  • Aroma: carrot cake

  • Taste: unobstructed pumpkin-ness, pumpkin bread, vanilla, maple, cardamon

  • Mouthfeel: medium

  • Aftertaste: light, pleasant, medicinal finish

• That's Lovely

  • Style: West Coast DDH IPA

  • ABV: 6.5%

  • Color: clear yellow

  • Aroma: freshly baked breadstick

  • Taste: citrus, grapefruit, candied ginger, pine

  • Mouthfeel: lightly creamy, like a lemon sorbet

  • Aftertaste: surprisingly balanced and mellow

• Blood Orange Gose (fascinating stuff!)

  • Style: Gose

  • ABV: 4%

  • Color: yellow/golden

  • Aroma: slightly oily, like roasted turkey, hints of plastic bandaid (we spent some time pondering it)

  • Taste: bitter orange notes dominate with Thanksgiving herbs in the background

  • Mouthfeel: lightly salty

  • Aftertaste: very astringent, lingering finish

• Slurp Surfin

  • Style: West Coast IPA

  • ABV: 6.5%

  • Color: clear yellow, fine lacy lasting head

  • Aroma: tropical fruit

  • Taste: lots of guava, hint of tangerine, pine notes

  • Aftertaste: bittery
    

• Olde Voyager

  • Style: Barley Wine

  • ABV: 9.6%

  • Color: dark reddish brown

  • Aroma: brandy, sherry

  • Taste: bit like cognac or brandy, flakey cereal notes, caramel

  • Aftertaste: malty, fruity, sublte bitterness
    

• Pivocative (low ABV)

  • Style: Czech Pilsner

  • ABV: 3.2%

  • Color: straw

  • Aroma: cracker

  • Taste: crisp, balanced; big flavor for a lighter beer

  • Aftertaste: short

Tell us what you think about NoDa Brewing.