I have a sneaking suspicion that the Asheville brewery bubble is perilously close to bursting. 2023 saw the closures of Eurisko, UpCountry, and Bhramari, as well as serious downsizing from some of the more prominent breweries in town like Catawba and Archetype. Still, Asheville remains a brewery haven with new breweries still popping up (I personally think River Arts Brewing is a great addition) and an overabundance of options for those visiting for the first time, which is why I’ve taken it upon myself, as an arbitrator of taste, to, in the past, list what I considered some of Asheville’s best breweries.
In 2024, I’ve decided to take this a step further, by crowning the best brewery of 2024, and though we’re only two short weeks into the new year, I know my choice.
Here was the criteria I used to make my decision:
Riverside Rhapsody Has a Flagship Beer I Crave
There are several breweries I like, with beer I consider good, that don’t have a beer or beers I actively crave from time to time (looking at you RAD Brewing…and some others). It kind of makes sense. There are hundreds of beers being brewed at any given time in Asheville, and it’s sometimes hard to differentiate one hazy IPA from another. Sure, some of the Asheville behemoths churn out multiple unique flagship beers (I’m specifically thinking about Highland and Hi-Wire here), but it’s impressive when a small operation can do that. I love the Bebop Tango from Riverside Rhapsody, a tangerine hazy IPA that sometimes I’ll get a craving for on a particularly hot…or cold day (it’s multi-seasonal!).
Riverside Rhapsody Has a Great Atmosphere
There are some breweries whose beers I find just ok that I frequent because they have a great atmospheres (Wedge, Zillicoah). Riverside Rhapsody is on the list of breweries I visit because it’s simply a great hang (obviously the fact that I actively like and crave their beer is a cherry on top). The inside is cozy with an impressive wood table centering the room and the outside is somehow cozy too: an intimate covered patio, a small backyard, a fire pit that’s perennially burning (why don’t more Asheville breweries have fire pits? I’d go for the smell alone)—it’s the perfect mix of super laid back, without ever feeling so dead it’s awkward (even when it is pretty dead, which rarely happens anymore).
Riverside Rhapsody Isn’t Made for Tourists
I’m deep enough into my Asheville tenure that I must have at least a slight disdain for tourists. I don’t hate them to the extent some locals do, but I have learned to loathe people from Florida and do legitimately find myself gravitating more and more to locales that aren’t completely overrun with bachelorette parties or middle-aged couples on vacation who will ask a million questions about a menu with a huge line behind them.
Riverside Rhapsody caters to a more locals-only crowd, probably due to its off-the-beaten-path locale—even many locals don’t venture far off the South Slope when visiting breweries. Even when it’s crowded—which again, is often anymore—it never feels like it’s a pain in the ass to get a refill or like you can’t move.
Riverside Rhapsody Has Great Music
One of my favorite ways to spend a Friday evening in Asheville and one of the most relaxing, is going to Riverside Rhapsody and listening to some live bluegrass. But even when Riverside Rhapsody doesn’t have live music (because, to be honest, they don’t have a very consistent live music schedule), they’re almost always playing bluegrass/alt-country/Americana, which I love. I was just there this past Saturday and they were playing Tyler Childers the whole time.
Bonus: Riverside Rhapsody was the only brewery with traditional Irish music last St. Patrick’s Day!
The Food at Riverside Rhapsody is Delicious and the Dorito Nachos I Just Ate This Weekend Have Changed My Life for the Better
I’ve written about my love for the Iron and Oak Briskey Company before. A plate of their pulled pork with dill mac salad as a side is my ideal dinner, but what has sent me over the edge and inspired me to name Riverside Rhapsody as the greatest brewery in Asheville for 2023 is the pulled pork, pulled chicken, and brisket nachos smothered in chili con queso, pico de gallo, and MADE WITH DORITOS that I just had this past weekend. Life truly doesn’t get much better.
AshevilleExplorer 
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