Atlanta-based Hippin Hops Brewery is coming to NoDa in the summer of 2022.
Why it matters: It’s Georgia’s first Black-owned brewery and it’s expanding to Charlotte, which hasn’t had a Black-owned business making and selling beer since Three Spirits closed in 2019.
Context: Owner Clarence Boston is a born and bred North Carolinian, and has ties to the cities dating back decades.
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He once owned Boston’s Mortuary on Statesville Road, and he lived in NoDa for about five years before moving to Atlanta.
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“We just really missed Charlotte,” he told me when I asked him about the expansion.
Flashback: Boston says he got his drink-making skills from his great-grandmother, who used to make fruity wine out of muscadine, peaches and green apples. “But we didn’t really like wine so they bought me and my brother a home brewing kit and we started making beer,” Boston said.
Now it’s 22 years later, and Boston has a successful brewery, a distillery, and an oyster bar — and he’s bringing those skills to Charlotte.
Details: Hippin Hops will open at Bainbridge NoDa on North Davidson Street. It’s at 2509 North Davidson, across from the original Amelie’s location.
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It’ll have indoor and outdoor space, totaling 3,900 square feet.
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They’ll also serve gourmet burgers.
As for their beers, Boston tells me they specialize in sours, IPAs, wheat beers and stouts. Their “So Peachy” is their best seller.
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“We’re trying to open it up to people who don’t really drink beer,” Boston said.
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