In a town that prides itself on buying local and all things Lowcountry, it's no surprise that artisanal "craft" beer has taken the Holy City by storm. With four established breweries, dedicated retail stores and bars, a home brewing club and the annual Brewvival festival, craft beer culture is booming. But behind the modern ales, lagers and stouts that connoisseurs know and love is a barrelful of Charleston beer history that has been brewing for centuries. From the first brewery that opened its doors in 1732 through Prohibition and the recent "Pop the Cap" legislation that allowed high gravity beer to once again flood the streets, Charlestonians have embraced beer wholeheartedly. Join local writer and beer bard Timmons Pettigrew as he recounts the incredible and mouthwatering history of Charleston beer, pint by frosty pint.
Timmons Pettigrew resides in West Ashley with his wife and pets (in that order). His full-time gig is in industrial distribution pricing strategy, but he's also the beer writer for TheDigitel Charleston, a local media aggregator. If you're reading this, that means he also wrote a book. His status as a beer geek is ironic, considering he's a direct lineal descendant of “Pitchfork” Ben Tillman. The Lowcountry got a hold of him while he lived here attending College of Charleston. Graduate work in economics at the University of South Carolina pulled him away for a spell, but he came back directly, and there's no place he'd rather live. While visiting Asheville, North Carolina, in November 2006, Timmons drank his first bottle of Weyerbacher Double Simcoe Ale, and he has never looked back. You can read his ongoing local beer coverage at charleston.thedigitel.com, CHSBeer.org and on Twitter via @CHSBeer.