It’s no surprise that Cornelius has a growing and creative craft brewery scene. Some of the established local breweries include Ass Clown Brewing Company and D9 Brewing. Although each are less than a decade old, they’ve already made a lasting impact on locals. Ass Clown’s name alone is sure to take people by surprise and D9 has found a sustainable way to combine serving great beer with serving the local community.
Ass Clown Brewing Company was founded in 2011 by Matt Glidden. The brewery is filled with cozy nooks and seating spaces for customers to relax and try some adventurous brews, like the Bacon Oyster Stout, or stick with one of their classics, like the Ass Clown IPA.
Seeing the creative brews on the menu, it’s hard to believe that this all started in a garage. Matt got his start in brewing by experimenting at his own home; as his love for brewing grew so did his aspiration of starting his own brewery.
Since Matt is behind the brews he gets to be as creative as he wants with what he makes (hence the Bacon Oyster Stout). One of his favorite things about owning his own brewery is that he is able to alter and constantly improve upon his recipes, which he says he never stops doing.
You’re probably wondering about the name, it was basically something Matt and his friends said a lot and when it came time to name his brewery he thought, “Why not?” And yes, he does get funny reactions to the name every now and then, “sometimes when we’re placing an order with a distributor, they’ll think we’re just messing with them and we have to explain that we are a real place.”
Just a short ride away is another local hot spot, D9 Brewing. D9 is a large and open brewery, allowing plenty of room for events, which they host frequently. Since their inception in 2014, D9 strives to not only provide customers with high-quality brews, but they also use their events and taproom as a way to help local charities and initiatives. The brewery shows off their commitment to the local community by showcasing it in the brewery's name itself. D9 comes from the congressional district the brewery is located in -- District 9.
D9’s Head of Taproom and Community Engagement, Jackie McGrew, explained the brewery’s mission to help as being born from the founders’ desire to use their love of brewing for good. “I’m not even sure if they realized it was going to be this big,” said Jackie, referring to how their curiosity to merge two things they loved now results in over a dozen calls a day requesting fundraising help.
Jackie is the woman behind deciding how to best utilize D9’s resources to collaborate with charities and locals in need. She’s been with D9 for the past four years, so she has seen the brewery’s capabilities, resources and aspirations grow since the early days.
With the amount of people that reach out to Jackie searching for help, it can be overwhelming being in her position at times. That’s when the support of her family, friends and fellow D9 members becomes crucial to her.
This year Jackie has added one more task to her plate: Choosing the talent for her favorite D9 event, the annual Summer Concert Series. “The music is completely different than what we’ve ever done,” Jackie shared with me. This will be the fourth year of the concert series and according to Jackie, it was time to step up their game. The 2019 Concert Series is expected to draw in many new fans as well as D9 regulars.
If you’re a fan of sour beers then you’ll definitely want to stop into D9, which has a reputation for brewing great sours. If you’re not sure about sour beers, then try Jackie’s other favorite, Hakuna Matata. This was the first beer she ever tried from D9 and she’s been in love with their brews ever since.
Whether you’re a devoted craft beer fan or brand new to the world of brews, the teams at D9 and Ass Clown are willing and ready to help guide you to your new favorite. If you've been to either brewery comment your favorite beer below and click here to learn more about Ass Clown Brewing Company and here for more info about D9 Brewing’s upcoming events.
