Originally published in The Sylva Herald by Gavin Stewart.
Jackson County residents were abuzz on Facebook after finding out the brewery that makes some of their favorite beers, such as Dirty Girl Blonde and Bryson City Brown, plans to open a taproom and brewery in downtown Sylva this year.
Sylva location for Nantahala Brewing Company’s taproom and brewery. Photo by Dave Russell/Sylva Herald
Joe Rowland, owner of Nantahala Brewing Company, will purchase the 5,000-square-foot building that formerly housed Palaestra Combat Sports Club on the corner of Railroad Avenue and Grindstaff Cove Road. The building looks like an old storage warehouse from outside, but it’s really a wide-open canvas for Rowland.
Rowland described the Sylva location as a hybrid of Nantahala’s main taproom and the Brewpub facility, featuring a taproom, a pilot brewery for seasonal and small-batch brews, outdoor games and a music venue like the one in Bryson City. All of Nantahala’s flagships will still be served.
The pilot brewery will utilize the one-barrel system currently used at the Bryson City facility.
“It doesn’t get used as often as we would like, so we’re going to move it to Sylva and we’ll brew some one-offs there,” Rowland said.
By opening in Sylva, Rowland said Nantahala can be more involved in the community.
“There will definitely be more of that, because we will have more of a presence in the community,” he said. “It’ll make it a little easier for us to support some of those events by having (our) people in Sylva.”
A new taproom should help the business during the winter months, he said. “It gets really slow here. It’s tough to run a business’’ in a town with a small population, Rowland said.
Expansion of retail is Rowland’s high-priority goal for the future of the brewery.
“We thought that we would focus on the local markets that we are seeing growth in. We know that this will be a way for us to get some deep roots in those communities that support us,” he said. “We don’t have as many touches as we would like in some of those communities, and this is a way for us to accomplish all of our goals.”
Rowland views his venture in Sylva more collegial than competitive.
“Coming to Sylva is really just a way for us to be a bigger part of the community that has been supporting us since we opened,” he said. “By no means do we intend to hurt what’s going on here. Our goal is to not only grow our own business but to advocate for craft beer and that community.”
Although aged, the building, which was the location of Highlands Cleaners for years, is in great shape for a brewery. “Most of the work is cosmetic and functionality. There’s not a whole lot that has to be done to the building, overall.” Rowland said there has been talk of installing radiant floor heating, an efficient and more comfortable system to heat the building like the one featured at Nantahala’s Brewpub.
More details are expected to be released next month.
