I had really hoped to be able to try a few more Southern beers while I was visiting the Memphis area.  From what I had read online, many local brews were available around town but I had a very hard time locating them.  

I visited the Oxford, Mississippi, area and had hoped to try the brews from the Oxford Brewing Company, which had recently opened. It is unclear from their website, if they have open hours or if they do tours.   I had also looked on Untapped to see what was around and noticed that several people had tried their beers. Unfortunately, however, when I arrived in Oxford, I couldn’t find the beer anywhere.  I did find a nice restaurant on the square, Irie, which promised me the best selection of craft beers.  They had about 20 craft beers on draft, so the selection wasn’t bad, but most were the typical craft brews. I did get a Lazy Magnolia (another Mississippi brewery) Black Creek.  This was a good solid porter without an overwhelming coffee flavor. Lazy Magnolia is best known for their signature beer, Southern Pecan, which was also available on draft here. I have had Southern Pecan and it is a very good beer; however, I have a tree nut allergy so it is not really an option for me.

In Memphis, I was able to visit one brewery– more to come on that in a separate blog.  However, I had to try Ghost River, as this is now Memphis’ signature brewery.  Ghost River Golden Ale was very easy to find and was served at several restaurants and hotels, including the Peabody. The Golden Ale is very average and probably why it is so readily available as it pairs well with most foods and will appeal to a large audience.  I found that it was quite good with the wasabi peas served at the bar in the Peabody, which I enjoyed during the evening duck walk. I would have loved to try some of the other varieties of Ghost River; however, they didn’t appear at any of the locations that I visited. I am hoping that the other brews appear to a more selective palate. 

I also had a very unimaginative brew from Alabama while having a fried catfish meal at the Flying Fish off of Beale Street in Memphis. I tried the Amber Waders of Grain from Blue Pants Brewery in Madison, AL.  They also had another brew from this brewery in the bottle, but one was enough for me. Hopefully, it was more inspiring than the very weak amber ale. 

Overall, I was surprised at the lack of good, local craft brews in the Memphis area.  With Ole Miss in Oxford, you would have expected a much more lively craft brew scene there too.  Maybe I just didn’t know where to look….