CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA
Three streets away from Top Of The Hill, the more diverse CAROLINA BREWERY, with its casual wood-furnished dining area and second floor plasma-screened VIP lounge, had better fare, July ‘04. More conducive to attracting University of North Carolina students than its brewpub competitor, it blends sportsbar atmosphere and blue-collar ruggedness with family-styled friendliness.
Brewer Jon Connolly bid lemony mild-hopped Kolsch-styled Sky Blue Golden Ale; sharp-fruited mash tun-baked Copperline Amber Ale; imposingly bitter Chinook-hopped grapefruit-peeled lemon-limed Firecracker Pale Ale; resinous salami-smoked banana-fruited clove-spiced West End Wheat; loud stone-fruited spice-hopped Flagship IPA; and coffee-dried mocha-sweet chocolate-powdered Old North State Stout.