USA, NC: Fourth Creek Brewing Co delays opening by a couple more months

Statesville will have to wait at least a couple more months before tapping its first new brewery since the 1930s, the Statesville Record & Landmark reported on March 25.

Jonathan Nobinger planned to open Fourth Creek Brewing Co. in downtown Statesville by the end of 2017 before pushing the target date to April. Nobinger said last week that he had just submitted an application to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Trade Bureau, which will take about 45 days to review.

“We can’t even make beer until we have that (permit) done,” he said. “We couldn’t start that (process) until we at least knew where the equipment was going and the layout. … Every little bump back has pushed it behind.”

About half of the 3,100-square-foot shotgun-style building at 226 W. Broad St. will accommodate the taproom, new restrooms and a walk-in cooler, he said. The rest will serve as office space, storage, and fermentation and brewing areas.

“Essentially the front-half of the building will be seating and a bar area,” he said.

Total occupancy will be 80, with seating for at least 65 in the taproom.

Additional outdoor seating, in front and behind the building, also is planned.

Going for a “classic pub” style, the taproom will have an industrial look, with exposed fixtures, a reclaimed wood wall, copper bar-top and goose-neck lights over the bar area.

There will be a space for live music at the front of the taproom, while food trucks will be able to use the parking area behind the 138-foot-long building.

Nobinger began as a home brewer five years ago. His business partner, Ryan Houston, has been making wine for the past decade and added beer to his repertoire about a year ago.

The pair met in July and began home brewing together, and eventually decided to team up on the brewery.

On opening day, Nobinger hopes to have six beers on draft in various styles, from light to dark, including a flagship Mango Imperial Pale Ale. A muscadine beer, aged with grape skins already used to make wine, will be another offering.

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