The Weeping Radish

The story of the Weeping Radish starts with Uli Bennewitz, a young, progressive farmer who moved from Germany to the Outer Banks in 1980 to farm on converted swampland.

In 1985 his brother convinced Uli to start a brewery and shipped him all the equipment from Munich. The only problem was it was illegal in North Carolina for a brewery to sell directly to customers.

So, Uli worked with state politicians and got the Brewpub Bill passed – in only 6 months. And he opened his brewpub in the Outer Banks town of Manteo on the 4th of July, 1986

This set off an explosion of North Carolina Breweries in the 90’s with Red Oak, Highland, Olde Hickory and many others to follow.

Watch this video for a deeper dive into the subject.