We believe in traditional values
40 YEARS IN THE MAKING
Since the beginning the Weeping Radish has brewed beer according to the Bavarian Reinheitsgebot Purity Law of 1516 which states that beer must be brewed using only four ingredients: Hops, Malt, Yeast and Water. No additives, chemicals or preservatives may be used.
Uli Bennewitz came to North Carolina in the early-1980s and decided to open a microbrewery similar to the ones he’d left behind in Bavaria. The only problem was that it was illegal in North Carolina for a brewery to sell beer directly to the consumer. Working with State politicians Uli changed the law in North Carolina allowing microbreweries to sell their beer on site. A movement was created. North Carolina is now one of the leading microbrewery States with over 120 open and many more under construction. In 1986 The Weeping Radish Restaurant and Brewery opened its doors. At that time there were less than 100 breweries remaining in the United States, now there are thousands again.
Since the beginning the Weeping Radish has brewed beer according to the Bavarian Reinheitsgebot Purity Law of 1516 which states that beer must be brewed using only four ingredients: Hops, Malt, Yeast and Water. No additives, chemicals or preservatives may be used.
As demand for micro-brewed beer steadily grew over the decades, Uli knew it was time to build a bigger brewery. The much loved Manteo location was just too small. In 2001 groundbreaking began on The Weeping Radish Farm Brewery in Grandy, NC. This new project, 35 miles north of the original location, would include a restaurant, butcher’s facility, and farm as well as a larger brewery. Despite the best efforts of over a dozen regulatory agencies, the business opened its doors and brewed its first batch of beer in 2005!
Scenic Brews
For over three decades we have pushed the envelope on what was possible for a small business. From changing the law allowing brew pubs in North Carolina, building the first brewery and butchery, using exclusively sustainable local pork in our restaurant, to growing barely for our beer on our own farm, this has been a dynamic chapter in our lives that we will look back on with great pride.