Cruisin’ for Some Brews

COWETA COUNTY IS THE PLACE TO BE THIS SUMMER TO TRY SOME REFRESHING, INNOVATIVE BEERS

Written by JON COOPER

Almost 40 breweries operate within a 40-mile radius of Newnan, giving Cowetans ample choices when it comes to brews.

Throwing back a “cold one” has long been a popular way to ease the heat of a Georgia summer. But these days, your options are much more interesting.

A little research shows that 37 breweries are making their own unique libations within a 40-mile radius of Newnan. We’ve narrowed the list down to Coweta locations where you can enjoy a good brew.

Just remember: Ride-sharing, like Lyft and Uber, or having a designated driver is always the best option on these types of quests.

Happy Cruisin’!

Abide Brewing Company

130 Werz Industrial Blvd., Newnan

Newnan natives Matthew Kapusta, Evan Scanlan and Philip Leonard founded Abide Brewing Company in 2013 to live out their dream to brew beer.

Abide is a nanobrewery, meaning they produce only three barrels or fewer per batch. (Macrobrewery? Think Anheuser-Busch or Coors; each produces more than six million barrels a year, while microbreweries produce a maximum of 15,000 barrels a year.)

Kapusta, Scanlan and Leonard think of their nanobrewery as a laboratory of sorts, an opportunity to get creative. They serve around 30 different drafts ranging from Local Pale Ale, Black IPA, Porter and Oktoberfest to Blackberry Strawberry Sour, Hollow Peno (infused with jalapenos) and Man Bun, a wheat beer.

“We have 12 taps, rotating beers, anything from light, dark, to IPA, hoppy, non-hoppy – so there’s a variety for even the non-beer consumer to find something they will enjoy,” says Scanlan. “And we’re about to launch a new sour variety where we have blueberry, cucumber, papaya and strawberry.”

A family- and pet-friendly venue, Abide has featured releases from 6 to 9 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month and one Sunday a month. Updates are posted on their Facebook page.

Senoia Beer Company

1 Main St., Senoia

Senoia Beer Company is one of the new kids on the block when it comes to local breweries; they have been open for about half a year, although the friends who started the company have been brewing for about four years.

The new brewery offers four craft brews: Wheat IPA (its citrusy flavor makes it their most popular beer), a lighter Blonde Ale, Brown Ale (with notes of chocolate), and Red Rye IPA, the strongest (6.6% APV) and fullest-bodied beer they serve.

They sell their beer in cups and growlers and offer live music on the weekends.

Jason Kanner offers almost three dozen different craft beers at Ace Beer Growlers in downtown Newnan.

Ace Beer Growlers

22B West Court Square, Newnan

Ace Beer Growlers isn’t a brewery, but it is a portal to beer exploration.

Helmed by Jason Kanner, the shop in downtown Newnan sells 30 different craft beers in 32- and 64-ounce growlers. Their brands include Round Trip Smoked Doppelbock, Schoolhouse Cold IPA, Bold Monk Brother Ivan Stout, St Bernardus Abt 12 Trappist Ale, and Contrast Hot Pants Sour.

The local beer shop is open seven days a week and also offers wine and meats, in partnership with Cow Eata Meat Company.

Line Creek Brewing Company

18 Savannah St., Newnan

Friends and co-founders Brian Messer, Matt Ramsey, Paul Costick and Paul Schwinne opened Line Creek Brewing Company in Peachtree City in 2018 as “a few local guys’ love of quality craft beer and the desire to see it brewed, served and distributed right here in our community,” says Manager Chris Lane.

That desire to serve community extends to Newnan this summer when Line Creek opens its third location, to be called The Reserve, on Savannah Street. As the name suggests, the Coweta County location will be dedicated to barrel-aging.

“We’re planning on doing all of our barrel-aging in Newnan,” says Lane. “Our plan is to typically have six barrel-age beers on tap along with all of our core beers, and we’ll also do some experimental stuff in Newnan. We do a lot of different experimental collaborations in Fayetteville, our second location, but I can foresee Newnan doing a lot of that type of stuff, too, along with the barrel-aging. We definitely have a vibrant brewing community here.”

Line Creek offers 24 beers that range from the traditional (First Crush IPA and The Cooliest) to off-beat (the fruity Pathrunner, a light lager with coconut; #ConserveGeorgia, with peach and ginger; and Pomiscuous, with pomegranate and mint) to the even more off-beat: Berry B-A-N-A-N-A-S, a strawberry milkshake IPA, and Spicy Pickle Sour, with habanero and serrano peppers. NCM