Beers from Fonta Flora Brewery rarely leave North Carolina, but it still seems like the entire craft universe is head over heels for this crew:

• They’re one of Thrillist’s 32 Hottest Breweries in America!
• Craft Beer & Brewing named them a Breakout Brewer!
• Their beers regularly land on ‘Best Of’ lists from Bloomberg, Gear Patrol, Hop Culture, and Forbes, just to name a few.

And, what better way to check out the hype than through a tasting flight? That’s why today, we’re bringing you a curated bundle of three Fonta Flora brews!

With this well-rounded set of different styles, you’ll get a quick, comprehensive taste for why everyone’s flipping for Fonta Flora. Here’s what you have to look forward to:

Lake James ICE (Heritage Corn Lager) - 6.5% ABV x 2 cans

As with any tasting, it’s best to start with the lightest, cleanest beer and work your way up. That’s why we suggest beginning your Fonta Flora revelation with Lake James ICE.

To make this ultra-crushable Lager, the brewers mashed locally sourced two-row barley and three varieties of heritage corn. Then, they upped the ante with decoction — an old-world technique that adds depth through separating and boiling just a portion of the mash before returning it to the main brew. Finally, they gave the beer a sparkling texture through “spunding,” a process that re-captures all of the CO2 expelled during fermentation.

The extensive and arduous methods are so worth it — every sip is unimaginably crisp, quenching, and rife with smooth-flowing notes of fresh masa coated in sweet n’ zesty Key lime juice. Its impressive ABV for the style makes it an ideal Lager for wintertime, too!

Oak Stand (Schwarzbier) - 6.5% ABV x 2 cans

Next up in your tasting flight, we recommend Oak Stand. This Schwarzbier is similar in gravity to Lake James ICE, but has a bewitching kiss of darkness.

Fonta Flora paired up with their friends at Home Place Beer in nearby Burnsville, NC to make this quaffable Dark Lager. Mashed with locally sourced barley and specialty grains, it takes on a blackness that flows with flavors of roasted hazelnuts and dried fruit leather. 

That’s not all — the brewers steeped the beer on white oak, harvested right from their very own Whippoorwill Farm property! This imparted distinct notes of vanilla and soft, woody tannins to the brioche-like malty backbone. And the mouthfeel is ultra-crushable and bubbly-dry, thanks to the brewers’ use of spunding. 

Hulihee (Rye IPA) - 7.2% ABV x 2 cans

Last in the lineup should be Hulihee, Fonta Flora’s Hazy Rye IPA. Hopped like a New England IPA but drinkable as a West Coast crusher, this tasty hybrid can hang whenever, wherever.

To craft it, Fonta Flora mashed locally sourced barley and rye grain malts for a soft and silky mouthfeel punctuated by subtly spiced, bready notes. Then, they hit the brew with loads of Simcoe and Mosaic Hops, imbuing every sip with peach sorbet flavors. Finally, they double dry hopped it with more of those same hops for whole new layers of grapefruit and earthy pine!

From start to finish, Hulihee is a heck of a good time. It sits pretty at 7.2% ABV, though there’s almost no notion of it in the taste. Which is probably for the best — if you’ve already gone through the previous two brews, this is definitely the one to close the show!

We hope you’ll have as much fun tasting through these special beers as we did! Outside of North Carolina, experiencing a diverse Fonta Flora portfolio like this is pretty much impossible.

With Tavour, it's easy to beer it forward! Just head over to Tavour.com/gifts to send a gift box or gift card to the craft beer lover in your life. Cheers!