Local libations: A round of Richmond-centric craft beers
Richmond’s known worldwide for its local beer. | Photo by RICtoday
Richmond makes great craft beer — in fact, USA TODAY’s 10Best ranked the River City the No. 5 best beer city in the US in 2024. Local brewers are constantly tapping their creative juices to drum up crafty collaborations, standout recipes, and fun names for their frothy masterpieces.
In honor of Drink Up Week, we’d like to raise a glass to five Richmond-centric brews with names that draw inspiration from our city’s history, communities, and culture.
Richmond Lager, Hardywood
The name of this award-winning brew gets straight to the point — and we respect that.
Style + flavor: This clean, crisp 5% ABV lager is brewed with Virginia-grown + Virginia-malted two-row barley. It features Centennial, Saaz, and a touch of citrusy Cascade hops, plus a subtle, graham-like aroma.
Style + flavor: This 6.8% ABV hazy IPA features Citra hops. It has notes of citrus, tangerine, and pineapple and low bitterness.
Three Notch’d has five venues throughout Virginia, but only opened their Richmond location in 2022.
|
Photo provided by Three Notch’d Brewing Co
Cannonball Season Cold IPA, Three Notch’d
This beer’s splashy name and cool can art makes us want to chill by the James. This is a collaboration with Michigan-based Bell’s Brewery, brewed with Virginia barley and Michigan hops.
Style + flavor: This hoppy, dry, 7% ABV ale is said to capture “the essence of pristine waters and crisp breezes” and pairs well with salty snacks.
Wahoowa Pale Ale, Starr Hill Brewery We can just hear the Hoos chanting now. Starr Hill Brewery partnered with UVA to create this beer “with UVA specifically in mind” — navy and orange colors on the packaging and all.
Style + flavor: This 5.1% ABV, hop-forward pale ale features fruity aromas and flavors, plus a smooth finish from Pale and Vienna malts.
Style + flavor: This rich, 9% ABV stout uses locally roasted coffee in its brewing process and features flavors of dark chocolate, ganache, and strawberry.
Cheers to you, River City.
Events
Wednesday, July 24
Farmacy RVA Farmers Market | Wednesday, July 24 | 11 a.m.-4 p.m. | Bon Secours St. Mary’s Hospital, 5801 Bremo Rd., Richmond | Free entry | This week, shop local veggies and learn about the health benefits of Virginia’s bee pollen and honey from Farmer Greg.
Thursday, July 25
Hot Tomato Summer Cycle Classes | Thursday, July 25 | 6:30 a.m. | BOHO Cycle Studio, 711 N. Sheppard St., Richmond | $28 | Get a workout in at this drop-in class and enter to win gift cards and Duke’s swag.
The Art of Iconography with Sagi Haviv | Thursday, July 25 | 6-8 p.m. | The Branch Museum of Architecture and Design, 2501 Monument Ave., Richmond | $40 | Get your tickets to hear from the graphic designer whose branding firm is behind some of the world’s most iconic logos, from NBC to National Geographic.
The Heavy Heavy | Thursday, July 25 | 7 p.m. | The Broadberry, 2729 W. Broad St., Richmond | $22 | The retro-inspired rock band will play with The Thing.
Friday, July 26
Burlesque Bingo | Friday, July 26 | 7-9 p.m. | Basic City Beer Co., 212 W. 6th St., Richmond | $15-$20 | Check off bingo tiles by picking up on details in the burlesque performance — or just enjoy the show.
Saturday, July 27
“Shark Tale” | Saturday, July 27 | 10 a.m. | The Byrd Theatre, 2908 W. Cary St., Richmond | $5 | Celebrate shark week with a screening of this DreamWorks film featuring the voice talents of Will Smith, Robert De Niro, Angelina Jolie, and Martin Scorsese.
Sunday, July 28
Flying Squirrels vs. Binghamton Rumble Ponies | Sunday, July 28 | 1:35 p.m. | The Diamond, 3001 N. Arthur Ashe Blvd., Richmond | $10-$25 | The first 1,000 kids ages 14 and under will receive a Nutzy ear cap to rock during the game.
Foxtail Coffee Company, a chain from Florida, is planning to open a location in Short Pump. The coffee shop in West Broad Village will be the company’s first outpost in Virginia. (Richmond BizSense)
Civic
The city is seeking public feedback on four planned projects for its Vision Zero Initiative. Until Thursday, Aug. 15, you can provide input on proposed changes to Franklin Street, Hopkins Road, Leigh Street, and Hull Street.
Richmond Region Tourism Foundation has announced the finalists for the BLK RVA Community Awards. The awards honor individuals and businesses that support Black tourism to the city. Public voting is open until Sunday, Aug. 4.
Edu
Lawmakers, educators, and advocates are considering new restrictions on student phone use at school. While some experts believe phone use is hindering learning, others think bans would be too difficult to enforce. (Virginia Mercury)
Weather
It’s been a wild week of summer storms — check out this shot of lightning outside the Science Museum of Virginia.
The Kickers have announced the date for this year’s Kick Off Festival, which celebrates the beginning of youth soccer season with on and off-field activities. The festival will return to City Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 3 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The concourse will feature food trucks, balloon animals, games, and obstacle courses. There will be live performances by Jonathan the Juggler, stilt walkers, and several live bands, as well as games, obstacle courses, face painting a photo booth, and a gear donation table.
On the field, attendees ages 5-15 can participate in the City Stadium Skill Check Challenge. Participants who complete all eight parts of the challenge will be entered into a raffle for one of five prizes.
At 1 p.m., selected youth players will scrimmage the Kickers’ coaches and technical staff.
The perfect shoe for the rest of summer: Birkenstock’s waterproof slide sandal, which comes in bright and cute colors like purple fog, coral peach, and popcorn.
I’ve been on-the-record that my favorite local beer is the Center of the Universe Rally Cap. There’s nothing like a grapefruit shandy and three to five hot dogs to bring a stadium experience from good to great.
Content marked with an * is paid advertising. Content marked with an ^ is created by our content studio. The company may also generate commission from affiliate links in the newsletter.