Local website and podcast Well That’s Cool will team up with Wilhagan’s to provide Tuscaloosa with a different kind of beer drinking experience this weekend.
Well That’s Cool will host their second annual Suds of the South event this Saturday at Wilhagan’s from 4 to 7 p.m. Suds of the South started last year as a way to bring the tastes of southern brewers to Tuscaloosa.
“It’s really a celebration of southern brewing,” said Bo Hicks, co-founder of wellthatscool.com. “A lot of people don’t really think of the South as being a hot spot in the brewing world, but we’ve got more and more craft brews coming on the market that are great, and I think they’ll hold a candle with any region if people give them a chance.”
Everyone who attends will get a keepsake 3 oz. beer glass and the opportunity to try beer from every brewery that comes to the event. With 12 breweries being showcased on Saturday there will be a lot of familiar faces with everyone returning from last year, as well as some new ones.
This year organizers are starting a tradition of bringing in one brewery that isn’t from the South that they call the “sympathizer.” This year’s sympathizer will be Bell’s Brewery from Galesburg, Mich.
Suds of the South is not only an opportunity to try beers from brewers that have never been sold in Tuscaloosa but also to try new types of beer. Good People Brewing Company from Birmingham is bringing a beer called “Funky Dark Farm House” ale, a sour beer.
“Really it’s all about educating the public on craft beers,” said Michael Sellers, co-owner of Good People Brewing Company. “For so long the beer market has been dictated by conglomerates, and the craft beer has recently had a resurgence.”
Last year Suds of the South was held in the front section of Little Willie’s, which offered less space than there will be this year with all of Wilhagan’s being used for the event. Wilhagan’s is not only ideal for the event because of its size but also because of the number of taps available and their efforts to make craft beers more accessible.
“The people that will be coming to this event want to try different beers, and that’s really become a target market for us,” said Bill Lloyd, owner of Wilhagan’s. “We try to keep a nice variety of beers here, a lot of them that you can’t get from other places and this gives me an idea of what the local palate is.”
Tickets are on sale online at brownpapertickets.com and at Wilhagan’s, The Alcove and Spirits Wine Cellar for $15. If there are any tickets left on the day of the event, they will be sold for $20 at the door. Well That’s Cool recommends getting tickets early because last year’s event sold out, and people had to be turned away at the door.
Proceeds from the event will go to the organization Free the Hops, a lobbying organization that pushes for changing and loosening the restrictive laws Alabama has on beer and breweries.
“This is a tasting; we call it a fest, but it is run exactly like a beer tasting,” Hicks said. “We’re not about people coming and slamming as many 3-oz. beers as they can. It’s about trying these different styles and educating the public on what Free the Hops is all about.”
Attendees are encouraged to bring a designated driver, who will get into the event at no charge. The event will have craft root beer and ginger ales available, as well as free bottles of water.
“I’m really excited to see a diverse group of people show up,” said Christopher Crotwell, writer and co-host of the Well That’s Cool podcast. “Tuscaloosa is the kind of town that can be sort of gerrymandered socially, and beer, as we proved last month, is the kind of thing that we can all get together on supporting.”
