Alexandria, Business and Money, People, The Features, We Love Drinks

We Love Drinks: The Birth of a Brewery

Photo courtesy of
‘Port City Pale Ale’
courtesy of ‘rabid_c’

I obviously think the world of DC, but there’s one thing I’ve always thought the metro area lacked: a brewery.  There are a myriad of beer nerd restaurants, places like ChurchKey, Brasserie Beck and Birreria Paradiso, that quench the appetites of a pretty decent sized population of aficionados. Small, well respected breweries make it a point to export to the DC area because the market is so ripe for well crafted beers.  It seems like the perfect place to open a brewery.  More over, it seems like the sort of place a local would start brewing on his own, generate a following and eventually establish a successful brewery.  Thankfully, Port City Brewing Co. is making this a reality.

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People, The Features, We Love Drinks

We Love Drinks: Thor Cheston

Photo courtesy of
‘Thor, Over Processed’
courtesy of ‘Samer Farha’

We Love Drinks continues our series where we look behind the bar, profiling the many people – from mixologists to bartenders, sommeliers to publicans – who make your drinks experience happen.

When I sat down with Thor Cheston, the beer director at Brasserie Beck, our conversation centered on the future.  Not that I necessarily meant for this to happen, it just did.  Frankly, the future’s an exciting place.  The future is place where beer is wine’s equal (almost).  The future is a place where beer de cuisine is an art form.  The future is a place in which DC has a local brewery (!!!). Thor wants to be at the center of this future, making sure that everything happens according to plan.

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Food and Drink, The Features, We Love Food

We Love Food: Franklin’s Restaurant, Brewery and General Store

Outside

Franklin’s is Cracker Barrel. Minus the flagrant discrimination, and with house-brewed beers, and a general store that sells toys instead of wooden peg games, and craft booze instead of lollipops.

Located on Baltimore Avenue in Hyattsville, the restaurant, brewery and general store are steps away from the up-and-coming little-engine-that-could Hyattsville Arts District. The store and restaurant are in a landmark building built in the 1880’s as a blacksmith and carriage shop. As such, Franklin’s remains a lovable, family-friendly community staple. Continue reading