Craft Beer Week Celebrates Local Breweries

Grab a cold one at your favorite local brewery in celebration of American Craft Beer Week.

The Brewers Association invites beer-lovers to support local businesses this week who work hard to provide their communities with delicious craft beer. Red Silo Brewing Company CEO Mark Van der Bleek said he thinks the Upper Cumberland has grown into a hot spot for craft beer.

“Over the last five years–we’ve been here for five years–we were the first as far as in Cookeville, in Putnam County Calfkiller was here, it’s certainly becoming that,” Van der Bleek said. “I think it has a promise to be a destination now, we have three breweries in Cookeville, of course we have Sparta, and there are a few other breweries that have been popping up as well so I would say it could become that–it’s on its way.”

Van der Bleek said the difference between your average beer and a craft beer, is that domestic beers typically stick to a single recipe while craft brewers are able to use a wider variety of ingredients with greater value. Van der Bleek said that he believes there is a beer for everyone including those who say they don’t like beer at all.

“I know for sure we’ve brought a lot of people over to the craft beer scene because we have a lot of beer here that don’t taste like a typical beer,” Van der Bleek said. “We have a thing called the Peanut Butter Porter, a lot of different styles of beer, a lot of natural fruits that we do, and so there’s generally something for everyone here.”

Calfkiller Brewing Company Owner and Brewer Dave Sergio said he compares his process of building a craft beer to the way you build a meal.

“You think about the idea of all the stuff that goes in and you kind of give people an experience by giving a nice flavor component that they can really latch on to and something that maybe feels familiar but still is nothing over-powering and at the end of the day still tastes like beer,” Sergio said.

Sergio said he hopes that in celebrating Craft Beer Week, people can find their new favorite and have a couple of pints.