Articles: Great American Beer Festival

Weeping Radish Brewery founder: Uli Bennewitz Founded: 1986 Location: The Outer Banks on the North Carolina coast Featured Brew: Famous Brews: Corolla Gold, Festbier, and the Black Radish

It all started on a quiet island on the North Carolina coast. This area has long been a destination for vacationers from across the United States and other points on the globe. The Outer Banks is home to Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout National Seashore with their abundance of wildlife and picturesque lighthouses and seascapes. Nags Head Beach is popular among sun worshipers and Kill Devil Hills, the site of man's first recorded flight, is just up the road. Roanoke Island also happens to be the location of Sir Walter Raleigh's ill-fated Lost Colony, now a National Historic Site, as is the Wright Brothers Memorial at Kitty Hawk. It was 1980 when Uli Bennewitz first came from Germany to the Carolina coast. He was no tourist, however; he came to manage a 20,000 acre corn and bean farm near Manteo. He was a recent graduate of the Seale Hayne Agricultural College in Devonshire, England. The son of a Bavarian import-export agent, Bennewitz recognized the potential of a German style brewery and restaurant on Roanoke Island. By 1986, Bennewitz and his wife, Eileen, opened the Weeping Radish Restaurant and Brewery, one of the first brewpubs in the eastern United States. This past 4th of July, the Weeping Radish celebrated its 14th anniversary. The Weeping Radish takes its name from the large white German radish that is typically served as an accompaniment to beer at Bavarian bierkellers and inns. It resembles an American turnip in appearance, and has a sharp flavor reminiscent of horseradish. The root is thinly sliced, lightly salted and put back together. The salt draws out the moisture and gives the appearance that the radish is weeping. Eating this makes one thirsty, which is the whole idea of serving it with beer.

The early years at the brewpub were lean due to lack of advertising but with each year that passed, the Weeping Radish gained a reputation for good food and great beer. The key was in creating a family atmosphere. Being a tourist area, it was necessary to accommodate not just adults, but adults who are also parents; children have always been welcome here. In the last five years, the Weeping Radish has added a Springfest to its calendar along with the traditional Oktoberfest in the fall. For these special occasions, they bring in a German oompah band, plenty of family entertainment and plenty of beer. Depending on the weather, all events are held outside in the beer garden with plenty of room for the kids to play and the adults to dance. More recently, a playground, a mini-boat pond and a Gingerbread House have been added to the grounds.

Because of the brewpub's increased popularity, Bennewitz has had to expand the brewery to meet the demand for his beer. The old 5-barrel system has been replaced with a new 15-barrel system and a second brewery was opened in Durham, North Carolina, just to keep up the pace. Current production between the two locations is about 3,000 barrels a year, much of which is consumed at the restaurant. There is also on-site sale of 1-liter refillable bottles and 5-liter mini-kegs. Additional package sales allow for distribution throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

There are three basic lager styles produced by the Weeping Radish. The Corolla Gold is a pale lager beer, the Festbier is an amber lager and the Black Radish is in the dunkel (Bavarian dark) style. There are also four to five seasonal brews: a Maibock in the spring, a Weiss (wheat beer) in the summer, an Oktoberfest in the fall and a dark and rich doppelbock-style beer which is their Christmas Brew. This month's featured brew from Weeping Radish is their flagship beer, Weeping Radish Festbier. This German Oktoberfest-style beer was brewed for the first annual celebration and was so popular it was made a year-round beer. The Festbier is made from Vienna, Munich and Crystal malts and hopped with Northern Brewer and Hallertau hops. This malty brew is nicely balanced by a crisp hop finish.

Weeping Radish has also introduced a gift catalogue of German beer steins, Weeping Radish memorabilia and even membership in the Weeping Radish Beer Club. You can visit anytime, the restaurant and brewery are open seven days a week. Where they used to close around the holidays, Bennewitz says they are going to "bite the bullet" and stay open all year. The brewery offers daily tours that conclude with free product sampling.

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