15 May Floyd County Brewing Company – None Shall Pass!
by Mark E. Lasbury for Indiana On Tap
Lots of breweries have slightly irreverent attitudes in name, theme, or beers. Often it is of a “stick it to the man” or a “talk to the hand” bent (Drew Fox at 18th Street just can’t seem to keep his middle fingers down when there is a camera pointed at him). Other times, breweries will poke fun at current cultural trends, politics, or just about anything that represents the norm. Heck, Burn ‘Em Brewing’s motto is, “Comforting the disturbed, disturbing the comfortable.”
A good number of breweries in Indiana go the opposite direction. They have a definite theme and show reverence and fidelity to that theme. Noble Order does a Norse mythology shtick, with logos, and beer names to match. St. Joseph’s and St. Benedict’s have Catholic themes; they both nail their theme, but it must make naming beers more difficult. On the other hand, Metazoa is just as wedded to their theme of animal rescue. They have animal shaped flight boards, their taproom is sponsored by Endangered Species Chocolates, and they donate 5% of their profits to animal charities.
TwoDeep has a running inside joke with comedy movies and TV. They have had beers named to reflect scenes or characters in, such as the Mr. Papagiorgio oatmeal pale for Seinfeld, and Great Gam Gam session wheat from the movie Beerfest. Perhaps more intimately, their fermenters are named Clark, Ellen, Audrey, and Rusty of the Family Vacation franchise. Foothills Brewing from North Carolina also give a tip of the hat to movies with Sexual Chocolate, named for the band in the Eddie Murphy comedy, Coming To America. But no one has taken a movie theme to heart like Floyd County Brewing in New Albany has. Their theme is both irreverent and deeply reverent at the same time.
The logo for Floyd County Brewing Company cues the drinker into what they might be in for if they visit – but I think the name underserves the rocking brewpub. You have to know these things when you’re the king. image credit: Floyd County Brewing Co.
Owner Brian Hampton opened FCBC in September of 2015, and I think they have had a line out the door ever since. Every detail from the time you enter until you leave screams tongue in cheek medieval England, most of it with a wink wink nudge nudge, if you know what I mean (tip of the hat, FCBC spells “medieval” correctly on their zipped hoodies). Of course, the medieval period could be kind of a downer, so they lightened it up by including Monty Python and the Holy Grail into the theme.
I asked Brian if he decided on a medieval theme for the brewpub when he first conceived of the brewpub, and when the Holy Grail aspect came into focus. After all, the name, Floyd County Brewing Company, really doesn’t provide any clues as to the atmosphere of the place once you enter. He said that he fell in love with the British public houses and British humor by watching television as a teenager (including Benny Hill, still one of my top five funniest humans born in the 1900s). Brian has studied the public houses of Europe and how they were the link between medieval home brewers and commercial brewing. He brought that love and knowledge to the bar when opening a brewery that could act as a gathering place and give people a glimpse of the past.
His research also told him that humor was one of the niches that had been most ignored in branding craft breweries. Here is where his love for Monty Python and other British humor could play a role. Brian said FCBC is a place to escape the norm for a brief moment and experience “something completely different.” And if you’re going to include British humor with a medieval theme, then you better make it Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
The bar at FCBC has great wood accents. You can also see the dungeon in back with the fermenters and the torch wall sconces. Look at the crowd – and this was a weekday afternoon! photo credit: Floyd County Brewing Co.
The sconce lights on the walls have colored streamers blowing upward to look like flaming torches. Shields with noble crests hang on the walls, as does the head of the Rabbit of Caerbannog. The fermenters are visible from the bar, although they are inaccessible behind the iron gates of the dungeon, while above the toilet is a metal sign with John Cleese in costume announcing that, “I fart in your general direction.” Patrons have offered stuffed killer rabbits and medieval weapons for the brewpub to display, but for the most part Brian likes to do the décor himself, and they strictly avoid licensed artwork.
Of course, Brian does have a license with Python Pictures to show the Holy Grail movie once a year, and they have Python trivia on random nights. Their wonderful kitchen gets into the act by serving English dishes like bangers & mash, fish & chips and bubble & squeak (& is apparently a crucial ingredient in British cooking). The tabletops and bar are made from rough-hewn boards with bark and such; everything is a throwback and adds to the mood. The beer names follow suit, calling up either Python or medieval Europe. The Gogmagog ESB refers to a giant in English folklore (perhaps derived from the Bible), while they have a very nice red ale called Arthur of the Britons, and a Brave Sir Robin saison. The Killa Wabbit pale wheat brings in both Monty Python and Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd singing opera.
All of this would make for an interesting experience by itself, but the reason that people come back is that the beer, the food, and the people draw you back in. Head brewer Jeff Coe is a Siebel Institute trained home-brewer turned pro who has honed his skills at several breweries, including a stint across the river at Against the Grain in Louisville. His beer runs the gamut of styles, although he doesn’t feel the need to confine himself to medieval beer types. He brews the kinds of beers that he himself would like to drink because he finds it hard to objectively critique his products when they happen to be of a style that he is not fond – makes sense. That said, Jeff does like Belgians, but has rated high marks for his barrel aged beers, so the board is changing all the time.
The bierbus is just one of the things that makes FCBC unique. What do you think owner Brian Hampton would answer if asked, “What… is your favorite color?” photo credit: Floyd County Brewing Co.
His American brown (although it might actually be better described as a London Brown) is called the Braun Jovi. This is a nice, sweet brown, a beer you could put away 8-10 pints of and be ready for more. The Der Verlag is a barrel-aged amber based on their Braun Jovi base beer, and named for an upcoming TV mini-series pilot that filmed some scenes in FCBC because it is so unique. It had excellent tannic edges, along with tons of vanilla and spicy phenols. The ESB was perhaps the best beer on the board; exceptionally drinkable and just enough hop to excite the back of the tongue. Walter was ticked that she missed the NEIPA, called Cloud 10. Apparently the patrons blew through twelve kegs (over 1500 pints) in just thirty days.
The short time that the NE IPA was on tap gives you an idea of how popular FCBC has become. The front stoop with the British phone booth has become a nice place to have your beer on a summer evening when the bar and restaurant are packed. But if you follow the stairs up and out the backside of the bar, you’ll find a wonderful two-story biergarden. There is room for a band, fire pits, a half buried Volkswagen Beetle, and of course the “bierbus” is parked nearby. Iconic in the age of slick beer vans, the bierbus is an old Volkswagen bus with a beetle top welded onto the roof. Think yellow English double decker bus shrunk down to a manageable level. Brian bought it from a hippie community in Arkansas called Hippie Hill. Think of it as a nod toward a London double decker bus that they can take to brewfests.
Brian told me that the brewpub itself is the key to the FCBC experience. Floyd County Brewing is about the food, the beer, and the atmosphere. If you were to drink FCBC beer somewhere else, then you would only be getting part of the experience. This isn’t OK for Brian and the FCBC crew; their objective to is to bring people into the brewpub for a complete and unique experience. They want you to get your beers straight form the brite tanks and your food straight from Chef David Stewart’s kitchen – giving them flexibility in beer and food that keeps it interesting for everyone. If you want FCBC beer (and you should), you will have to make the trip to New Albany. And why wouldn’t you, it’s a fun place.
Here is the Big Four pedestrian bridge between Jeffersonville and Louisville. From the bridge you are less than half a mile from Red Foot Brewing or Flat 12 on the Indiana side and only a mile from Apocalypse or Against the Grain on the Kentucky side. photo credit: Vincent Lighting Systems
FCBC is a good enough reason on its own to travel to the southeast region of Indiana, but Walter and I had a heck of weekend traveling and drinking on both sides of the Ohio River (traveler’s tip – take the south 31/2nd St. bridge, otherwise you pay $4 a crossing). New Albanian Brewing had a very good pizza, and Walter has always bee enamored by the Hoptimus. We were sorry to hear that they might not make the Beak’s Best ESB anymore, but then we crossed the street to Donum Dei brewing and quickly got lost in a couple of pints of the Unicorn Wee Heavy – nice.
The north side of the river by Jeffersonville also has a lot to offer; the new pedestrian bridge across the Ohio has led to a renaissance in Jeffersonville. The Parlour Pizzeria, the Pearl Street TapHouse, Flat 12-Jeffersonville, and Red Yeti (home of Red Foot Brewing – try the rye stout) are all great places to get craft beer. The Big Four Station Park would be a wonderful place to hold a brewfest – is anyone out there listening?
Across the river in Louisville is a great craft beer scene that is as tight knit as anything in Indiana. In fact, it is nice to see a good camaraderie between Indy and Louisville. Most of the beerslingers that we talked to know Indianapolis and Indiana beer. Monnik was Walter’s favorite of the weekend, but Mile Wide, Apocalypse, and Akasha have a lot going on. A special shout out to Rick Stidham for really making us feel at home during our visit. He took time out from his Sunday afternoon at home to shoot the breeze with us and talk Inditucky/Kentuckiana beer.
So – you can spend a good deal of time in New Albany and Jeff, and then walk off your beer on the pedestrian bridge into Louisville. What do you find there on the other side within walking distance – Against the Grain, Goodwood, Akasha and Bluegrass Brewing. It would take much to lose the entire weekend walking back and forth across the river to Louisville and Indiana breweries, taprooms, and craft beer bars – Walter and I did. And we’re going back to do it again. We can’t get enough of Python and good beer; we still have a few places in Louisville to try, and we might try a few silly walks if given a chance.
Walter’s words of wisdom – How long can two guys at the bar argue the merits and demerits of different weather websites? The answer, if you’re interested….. is three hours.
(Credit for the title of this article to our friend Andy Bremmer of Jeffersonville – who spends more time at FCBC than Cathy knows.)
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