THE ANSWER

United States Brewpubs,

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

Maybe my favorite brewpub along the Virginia Beach-Fayatetteville-Savannah-Hilton Head-Richmond post-Christmas Southern state journey, THE ANSWER opened 2014 in Richmond’s Scott’s Addition area on West Broad. Featuring an astounding 56 tap lines, the interactive community pub is the brainchild of Vietnamese restaurant entrepreneur An Bui, whose love for Belgian brews and IPA’s got the ball rolling.

Inside a long-windowed, overhead-doored professional Industrial building with extra seating at the enclosed cement-floored Adirondack-chaired covered deck, The Answer also has a game room for family entertainment. A block wood top bar matches the plank wood floor and the right side lounge (with three TV’s) counters the community tabled spot across the bar.

Topnotch outside brews by Oxbow, Perennial, Side Project and more join the 30-plus Answer fare. Highlighted this cold January ’26 eve were a series of superb stouts.

Spritzy lemon fizz tickled lo-alcohol table beer, Little One, placing roasted corn husk across skunky hop musk and light grassy astringency.

Mild straw clear Japanese lager, Kurisupiboi, retained dry lemony herbal hop musk for its sweet rice adjunct and crusty barley roast.

Brisk India Pale Lager, Hushed Casket, let crisp citrus spicing and sticky pine graze sweet vanilla-daubed oated wheat, leaving Simcoe/Riwaka-hopped grapefruit rind, orange pith and lemon pit bittering on its dry finish.

Mellow beige-yellowed Citra-hopped Imperial IPA, Unfamiliar Sheep, stayed bright ‘n lively as lemony yellow grapefruit bittering softly settled alongside milder mandarin orange, clementine and tangelo tanginess.

Thickly creamed Smoothie-like fruited sour, Quadrupel Mother Of Berries, embraced yogurt-milked boysenberry, loganberry, blackberry and raspberry tartness as slight orange concentrate bittering anchored this melted popsicle alternative.

As for the sturdy stouts, bold Answer variant, King Kahuna with Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee, spread sweet coffee alongside toasted coconut, glazed hazelnut, toasted almond and macadamia atop black chocolate malting.

Treacly Christmastime Imperial Stout, Tis The Season, draped Vermont maple syrup upon Saigon cinnamon and Tahitian vanilla atop dark chocolate as black peppered Chai tea pungency and ancho chili heat ascended.

“Decadent” Imperial Stout, Colonel Angus, an Oreo cookie knockoff, soaked milk chocolate sweetness into whipped cake battered vanilla creaming, picking up creme brulee, caramel pudding and floured dough illusions.

Bourbon-aged stout, Swiss Chocolate Macaroon, swept bourbon chocolate sweetness inside biscotti, almondine, creme brulee, shredded coconut and cocoa butter tenacity.

BINGO BEER COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

After some late afternoon big brews up the road a few miles at The Answer, stopped by BINGO BEER COMPANY for a little easygoing dinnertime fare during early January ’26. Opening for business in Richmond’s Scott’s Addition neighborhood during November 2018, Bingo’s family friendly games make it one of the city’s best entertainment options.

An epoxy cement-floored sportsbar/ arcade/ brewpub, the pale blue-walled interior features multiple tap handles on two draught boards. A lager-focused brewery specializing in Detroit-style pizza, Bingo spreads metal-stooled yellow wood tables across the spacious expanse. A dining space and game area fill out the space and an open kitchen exists.

Dry-hopped Italian-styled pilsner, Old Maps, seeped mild Noble-hopped floral spicing into honeyed cereal graining.

Off-dry Mexican amber lager, Costa Chica, a Vienna-malted retained a maize-dried corn tortilla crust for its tingly lemon spurt.

Equally crisp hazy golden German-styled moderation, Bingo Lager, stayed dry, bringing mild floral citrus spicing to ricey toasted oats, picking up latent cherry kirsch and tangerine snips.

Soft-toned Hefeweizen lacked creamy vanilla backing for its banana-clove sweetness, lemon custard tartness and mandarin orange snips, but its powder sugared wheat base held up.

On the dark side, “smooth” cocoa-dried fruticake nuttiness and cold-brewed coffee tones serenaded Black Lager, leaving Brazil nut, hazelnut and walnut upon the dewy carafa malt bottom.

LOCAL LEGEND BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

HILTON HEAD, SOUTH CAROLINA

At the south end of beach resort-lined Hilton Head Island, LOCAL LEGEND BREWING COMPANY promises High Times at Lowcountry. Opened at a vacant Industrial hardware warehouse March ’25 by Asheville-based restauranteur Alan Wolf, whose conceptual plan, culinary intrigue and ‘dynamic beer culture’ stem from his North Carolina days, the spacious sporstbar includes an Adirondack-chaired biergarten.

Designed for interactive family-friendly activities as well as midrange beer consumption, Local Legend’s right side games keep kids busy while parents gobble and quaff.

Inside a grey warehouse, the cement-floored, wood-tabled interior features a unique 40 bucket-seated bar with twelve draughts, multi-TV’s, exposed pipes, sporty back wall mural and glassy overhead doors.

Flagship off-dry blonde lager, Bombshell, let spritzy lemon and fizzy mandarin orange tickle mild floral spicing over delicate pale malt sugaring.

Nearly as easygoing, well-balanced witbier, Great White Ale, put slim orange-peeled coriander sweetness alongside golden wheat graining.

Brisk orange-peeled grapefruit bittering reached the mild pine tones of King Tide, a moderate-bodied New England IPA in need of stylish oated creaming (instead of commonplace dry pale malting).

Black-peppered chai spicing spotted cinnamon, cardamom and ginger sugaring for Chai Brown Ale, leaving menthol peppermint zesting on its vanilla-daubed mocha midst.

Eagle Rare bourbon-barreled Honey Horn Maibock soaked orange blossom honey into oaken whiskey, peaty Scotch and dry rum spirits.

Wintry Belgian golden strong ale, Holiday Ale ’25, a spicy herbal Christmastime celebrator, allowed rummy brown-sugared cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice to penetrate candied orange, glazed hazelnut, fig, date and dried cherry subtleties.

LINCOLN & SOUTH BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

HILTON HEAD, SOUTH CAROLINA

Going up the road from Hilton Head’s Midland Beach in a secluded Industrial area, LINCOLN & SOUTH BREWING COMPANY came to fruition in August 2021. A family-friendly joint in an aluminum warehouse with beautifully designed sunny day mural and white silo, the overhead-doored pub also boasts a wide open biergarten. The six-seat wood and metal bar services a few small block wood tables in a rustic wood paneled environment.

Brightening Lincoln & South’s interior is a colorful lake-meadow wall painting. A staging area in the rear contains the large aluminum brew tanks. There were charcuterie board cheeses, burgers and sandwiches for munching. Guest taps joined nine homemade L & S draughts my wife and I downed New Year’s Day 2026.

Musically sharp bartender, Christian, played cool tunes, putting on an obscure album by Curtis Knight & the Squires featuring Jimi Hendrix while I imbibed the last few India Pale Ales.

Corn-dried oats sugaring speckled the peaty Scotch licks of German-styled light body, Beach City Pilsner, an easygoing opener.

Spritzy citrus sunshine lathered Golden Hair Summer Ale, an off-dry moderation with light herbal spicing peppering sweet cara-pils malting.

A fine collaboration with Palmetto Brewing, sweet pilsner malt breading grazed lightly spiced lemony herbage of Palmetto Kolsch, a soft-toned moderation.

Crisp tobacco-roasted peat moss surfaced for sweet amber grained The Bog Red Ale, gaining honeyed brown tea spot (and spiced herbal respite).

Soft-toned New England IPA, Afterglow, placed sunny orange-peeled grapefruit tanginess across mild pine lacquer atop vanilla-daubed oated wheat creaming.

Flagship NEIPA, Hearts & Arrows, retained a dry Citra-hopped tropicalia as yellow grapefruit and orange rind bittering joined salty pineapple-mango tanginess before leaving a piney tingle.

Yet another NEIPA, 8% ABV Ales For A.L.S. brought juicy floral-spiced tropicalia to the fore as tangy orange-peeled yellow grapefruit, peach, pineapple and peach pleasantries caressed sugary wheated oats.

On the dark side, mossy nuttiness consumed dark chocolate bitterness for Ace Of Spades Black Lager, forwarding hop-charred cola, macadamia and Brazil nut illusions in a brisk clean water setting.

Dry debittered black malts contrasted maple molasses syruping sweetening up Ditch Gator Oatmeal Stout, tossing in black grape, dry burgundy and fruitcake notions above the dark chocolate base.

TWO TIDES BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

SAVANNAH, GEORGIA

Occupying a historic Victorian edifice on a residential side street, TWO TIDES BREWING COMPANY opened its doors March 2018 in Savannah’s Starland District. Owner-operators Liz and James Massey produce small-batch beers, focusing on, but not limited to, fruited sours and IPA’s, at the pubs first floor brewroom.

A snazzily homey cottage-like retreat, Two Tide’s pale green-walled second floor includes a cozy community-tabled main cafe (with white tile-fronted wood top bar), olden wood floors, an antique hearth plus three furnished parlor rooms and the back balcony where my wife and I quaffed five homemade draughts (and took home five more reviewed in Beer Index) during our post-Xmas Southern jaunt. Homebrewed coffee also available.

Fizzy light lager, Drift, merged crisp cereal graining with underlying whiskey souring, dried maize astringency, mild hop herbage and cabbaged skunking.

Sessionable ‘house pale ale, Rhyming Numbers Vol. 16, tucked lemony grapefruit Citra hop dryness and resinous Chinook hop pining into grassy herbal astringency above caramelized pale malts.

Toasty Octoberfest, Charm Marzen, flanked Vienna malt dewiness with leafy hop oiling.

Tart Smoothie-like Mystic Sour caressed sweet carrot juicing with orange concentrate and salty mango adjuncts, picking up sweet vanilla creaming to counter the ongoing citric alkalinity.

Dark-roast coffee nuttiness inundated rich coffee stout, Forever Never, gaining dark chocolate, espresso and soymilk illusions.