Beer honors: Western NC city, town, breweries voted among best in the US
Western North Carolina has no shortage of award-winning breweries and beers, and four more countrywide favorites were just revealed.
USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice lists are made up of reader-voted winners, chosen from a list nominated by a panel of experts. On March 5, 2025, WNC was recognized in a roundup of beer-related awards, with five wins spanning four categories.
The lists, including best beer cities and towns, best beer labels and best brewery tours, are made up of locations from across the United States. Here's which WNC locations made the respective top 10s, praise from experts and fans and the full lists.
Locations in the "Best Beer Cities" category were chosen as hosts for the "most outstanding beer scenes in the nation." Experts and voters alike were looking for "stellar collections of established and up-and-coming breweries, beer bars, brewpubs, beer festivals, and even thriving homebrewing communities where a novice brewer can get their foot in the door."
They found one of these cities in Asheville, which ranked No. 7 on the list of 10, praising its "impressive number of breweries, friendly beer bars, and bottle shops that provide enthusiasts with easy access to more than 100 local beers."
The entry noted some of the city's most recognizable names, Highland Brewing Company and Wicked Weed, but added that plenty of the area's countless smaller breweries are well worth a visit.
The full list of Best Beer Cities in the U.S.:
Grand Rapids, Michigan
St. Louis, Missouri
San Diego, California
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Columbus, Ohio
Portland, Oregon
Asheville, North Carolina
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Charlotte, North Carolina
Denver, Colorado
More: Asheville brewery crew push to reopen taproom after flooding in Helene
While Asheville was praised as a Best Beer City, another location in WNC was recognized specifically for its Small Town Beer Scene. Experts nominated only towns with populations of under 30,000, and readers voted for the best beer scenes that promise "small-town hospitality."
Writers called Bryson City, which ranked at No. 7 in this category, "the perfect destination for any outdoor-loving beer fan." With hiking, rafting, tubing and exploring in the nearby Great Smoky Mountains National Park and other outdoor areas, plus popular craft beer locations such as Mountain Layers Brewing Company and Bryson City Outdoors, it's no wonder this WNC small town made the cut.
The full list of best small town beer scenes:
Cody, Wyoming
Avondale Estates, Georgia
Traverse City, Michigan
Biddeford, Maine
Hammonton, New Jersey
Decorah, Iowa
Bryson City, North Carolina
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
Geneva, Illinois
Staunton, Virginia
More: Forbes names Asheville a top 12 world destination for 2025: See why, full list
Another category in which WNC shone was a collection of the Best Beer Labels in the country. This time, two different locations made the cut for their unique branding. Experts and fans voted for attention-grabbing labels that stood out from the crowd.
To any Asheville resident, it may come as no surprise that one of Burial Beer Co.'s funky labels - and poetic beer names - made it onto this list. At No. 5, Burial's "When We Swung From The Rafters and Danced Upon Bars" was praised not only for its "wild" label depicting a giant tarantula, Venus flytrap, giant eyeball, Dali-esque elephants and more, but for its flavor. Experts and voters loved the 8.5% alcohol by volume Double IPA's unique notes of blueberry smoothie, red starburst and cantaloupe.
Slightly further down on the list at No. 7, Sierra Nevada's "Bigfoot" was also recognized for its fun art and tasty flavor. The label shows an explorer and his reluctant steed investigating huge tracks into the forest, unaware of Bigfoot lurking just out of sight. Writers praised the 9.6% ABV barleywine ale's "hefty malt body" and intense hoppiness, calling it "worthy of its namesake."
The full list of best beer labels:
Don't Answer The Phone - Xul Beer Company (Knoxville, Tennessee)
Homeslice - City Built Brewing Company (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
Dan The Wiser - Kinkaider Brewing Co. (multiple locations, Nebraska)
Ever Haze - Tripping Animals (Doral and Oakland Park, Florida)
When We Swung From The Rafters and Danced Upon Bars - Burial Beer Co. (Asheville)
Stout at the Devil - Straight to Ale (Huntsville, Alabama)
Bigfoot - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. (Chico, California and Mills River, North Carolina)
Winter Grind - Mother's Brewing Company (Springfield, MO)
Cran Orange Wheat Ale - Great Lakes Brewing (Cleveland, OH)
Age of Otters IPA - 3 Floyds Brewing (Munster, IN)
More: Off the beaten path: 7 WNC towns are worth a detour, according to WorldAtlas
Last but not least, two locations in WNC - both of which were also honored on other 10Best lists - were praised for their behind-the-scenes brewery tour experiences.
Burial Beer Co.'s Forestry Camp location ranked No. 5 for its one-hour tour of the "introspective realm" Burial employees call home. The tour comes complete with tastings, commemorative glassware and an expert company historian as a guide. Tours cost $35 - or free for designated drivers - and are available by reservation on Saturdays at 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. You can book one at burialbeer.com/pages/tour-the-brewery.
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.'s tours, at No. 7 on the list, are actually held at two different locations - Mills River and Chico, California. Writers appreciated the interactive nature of tours in both locations, in which visitors can "trace the process from grain to bottle," from smelling whole-cone hops and sampling sugary wort to a guided tasting of Sierra Nevada beers. A number of tours are available, from the 45-minute "Innovation Tour" for $9 to the in-depth, 3-hour "Beer Geek" tour for $82.50. Book an NC tour at sierranevada.com/visit/mills-river/tours.
The full list of best brewery tours:
Tröegs Independent Brewing (Hershey, Pennsylvania)
Spoetzl Brewery (Shiner, Texas)
SweetWater Brewing Company (Atlanta, Georgia)
Anheuser-Busch Brewery Experiences (St. Louis, Missouri)
Burial Beer Co. Forestry Camp (Asheville, North Carolina)
Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. (Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin)
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. (Chico, California and Mills River, North Carolina)
Deschutes Brewery (Bend, Oregon)
Bell's Brewery (Comstock, Michigan)
Allagash Brewing Company (Portland, Maine)
More: These 2 Western NC museums voted among 10 best in the US: See the lists
Iris Seaton is the trending news reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at iseaton@citizentimes.com.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville, Bryson City voted among 10 best beer scenes in US
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