Devils Backbone Sneak Preview Event at Blue 5 Recap!
Leaning in to get a better snapshot of the tap handles, I noticed Devils Backbone Assistant Manager and representative Brian Coe had momentarily appeared behind them. Over the festive clamor during the brewery’s distribution kick off event at Roanoke’s Blue 5 Restaurant Thursday night, he noticed me attempting to take the picture, and remarked how great they looked.
I couldn’t have agreed more.
Of course, I imagine he was speaking to the tap handle’s design. Carved wood with a rough around the edges, weather and time beaten look, they had a worn and hand crafted created feel, down to the letters in each beer’s name having been etched and burned into the front. They looked as if your grandfather had carefully and lovingly fashioned them decades ago in his woodshed out back. I was instantly reminded of the brewery’s Nelson County location – a cozy building of sturdy but weathered looking wood and the perfect ski lodge feel to it, nestled within the naturally gorgeous mountains of the Blue Ridge.
But as answered him back in agreement, I was thinking less about design. After months of anticipation, those tap handles meant Devils Backbone beer was on draft here in Roanoke, finally. Stepping back from the bar, I stopped again to take stock of the whole scene. The line to taste each of the four beers Coe was showcasing was growing, and there were plenty of folks interested. I overheard more than a few comments about how drinkable and good the brewery’s Vienna Lager is, the Hefeweizen pleased those not completely sold on the style before, and the Milk Stout, making a rare appearance outside the brewpub’s walls, ran out early.
As I left the event, I took another quick look at the pictures I took of those tap handles. With distribution right around the corner for the brewery, I have a feeling that seeing them at your favorite spot for a beer is going to be a regular and welcome sight for myself, and for quite a few other lucky beer lovers in Roanoke.
If you didn’t get out to the Blue 5 event, watch out for several others coming up in February to get you ready for the brewery’s distribution to Virginia and Roanoke. Check them out here on the BeerRoad. Until then, check out some snapshots from Thursday night’s event below!
The Beer Road 