Hi-Wire Brewing

Good beer located right in Downtown Asheville. We stopped here on a brewery tour, and tried lighter and sour beers (not my thing, but appropriate for the first stop). The beer was good, the staff seemed friendly, and there was a reasonable amount of space. I seem to remember great music playing, but I can’t be sure. :)
I really did like this brewery, there were just others that I liked more– hence the 3 stars.

Ah, how I wish we’d had time to go back. I had the Aerialist, a hoppy lager at the end of our first day sipping and eating our way around Asheville. I like a good lager and I love hops, so this was a great way to end the day. The bloke behind the bar was cheeky but friendly. Gave me a sticker as a memento when we were leaving. There’s something magnetic about the place that pulls you in from the street. Extremely unassuming, but it’s not about the digs, it’s about the beer and my Aerialist was memorable. Next time we’re in Asheville, Hi-​Wire will get another visit from me!

Best beer in Asheville, hands-​down. You can really taste the love in their brew. Try the Hibiscus Saison, if they have any. Next time, I’m bringing a growler or two with me.
As an outsider, I rolled up by myself (as I often do on business trips) and immediately felt as though I’d stumbled into someone’s basement party… without an invitation. I think, at first, the locals recognized me as someone who had wandered into the wrong place, what with my collared shirt and all. But, after I found a high-​top and settled in, the regulars warmed up; one of them even fended off a homeless guy who came over to solicit me.
I’ve easily visited 8 – 10 breweries in the greater Asheville area and this one is my favorite by far. They get extra points for the roll-​up door and garage-​style décor. I think I’ve found my go-​to brewery downtown…

Yummy beer, very cool building, and friendly bartenders makes the perfect trifecta for Brewery bliss. They don’t serve food, but often have a great food truck parked along side the building to fill your belly. They allow dogs and also frequently host great local musicians for your listening pleasure. You just feel welcome here– the atmosphere is casual vs pretentious– and it’s in a great location if you want to explore Asheville on foot. I’d give them a hundred stars if I could :)

Alright, so Hi-​Wire is my favorite brewery in Asheville and here is why.
Hi-Wire’s got some cool stuff going on that not all of the other breweries have. Their original location on South Slope is more like a second home to me. This is where I have had countless beers and made multiple friends. It is dog AND human-​friendly! The bartenders are knowledgeable about the beer and always willing to geek out with you about their original system which also happens to be the original system of the first brewery in Asheville, Highland!
Hi-​Wire specializes in Lagers which is great because not many places will make lagers. Hi-​Wire has the patients to make multiple styles of lager and make them well! Their Pale Ale is award winning and their IPA is my favorite in town. Enjoy one of their flights and try some of their seasonals! I can’t wait to try their new Coconut Stout on tap at the Biltmore location!
This place feels like a neighborhood bar with its’ rustic vibes and its’ garage door windows. It has a huge screen to watch the big game on and a little television with Nintendo 64 to play your own games! They have $ 2.50 pints on Tuesday’s but the beer will be flowing every day of the week.
See you guys on pint night at Hi-​Wire!

Their beer is good. Definitely not the best in town however a solid brewery. I go on Tuesdays when they do $ 2.50 pints. They have some great deals some days. Next door Ben’s Penny Mart serves food to-​go if you’re there and need something to eat. If doing a brewery tour its a great start on your walk down to south slope.

I’ll preface this review with a few things: 1. I was on a beer vacation, 2. this was my first time in Asheville, and 3. I was already a few sheets to the wind at this point. We hit up Hi-​Wire after some delicious and flavorful shots of Sake at Ben’s Tune up (right next door). I squeezed in and was able to get some space at the bar to order a drink. The bartender was awesome, funny, and helpful. A local at the bar told me that Hi-​Wire was one of his favorites. When I asked the bartender what the Hi-​Wire Lager was about, she told me it was crisp and cold. Haha, as most beers are, right? We had a good laugh. I remember the beer being delicious. The other patrons at the bar were all having a great time and everyone was very friendly… I guess it’s a southern thing :) We stayed for 1 beer and then moved on to Catawba. Currently, I’m back in Baltimore in a Blizzard and I was able to bring some Hi-​Wire back with me… my bottle of Hi-​Wire Lager is currently chilling outside in 2 feet of snow. Cheers!!!

Hi-​Wire is one of Asheville’s newer breweries and they really came out swinging! Their branding is genius: circus themed microbrews. The art on their labels is amazing and they have some shirts and other logo odds and ends in their small gift shop. Although this location is called ‘The Big Top,’ there’s not too much fanfare involved. It’s just an old warehouse with a new brewing facility, long bar, and a few community style high-​top tables. It’s nothing fancy, but it’s fine for grabbing a few beers and kicking back with friends.
But let’s get to the main event. The beer. This is where Hi-​Wire really knocks it out of the park. I’ve come to enjoy a few of their standard brews (Hi-​Pitch IPA is my favorite), but I’m most excited about their small batches. It’s fun to stop in frequently and see what’s new on tap.
I highly recommend stopping by either location (the Big Top or downtown) if you’re looking for a casual place to grab some really amazing brew.

Obviously came here while doing a walking brewery tour in Asheville. They have a decent selection of beer, but none of it really blew me away. I didn’t even finish some of my sample from the flight. The location is fairly small (but did see they are expanding?) My husband and his friend enjoyed their N64 and shuffleboard. We had fun, but would not come back here for the beer :-/

Had some pints and watched MLS on the TV in the corner. Nice bar staff, take a jacket this place is chilly it’s definitely got a warehouse vibe.

Love checking out the breweries whenever I’m in Asheville, went to Hi-​Wire this time. It is smaller inside but I loved the comfortable feel of the place, there were young people, older people, kids, dogs, love it. Just what it’s supposed to be, come have some beer and relax. I tried the Oktoberfest lager, it was good.

I loved this place. It’s a brewery/​bar with large roll up garage doors and an industrial feel. I tried several of their beers but their Hefeweizen was definitely on point and my favorite.
There’s not that much seating, so that’s a premium. I did like the retro video game section of the bar. We nabbed a vacuum insulated growler with the Hefeweizen to bring home. We will definitely return when we’re back in Asheville.

I loved this stop on my recent Asheville brewery tour! The Uprisin’ Hefeweizen and Pale Ale were my favorite beers of the trip. The atmosphere is great… it is a really chill place to hang out with friends. We enjoyed our seats just inside the huge garage door. They have a nice selection of several different beers… pretty much something for everyone.

I recently visited several breweries in Asheville. I have to say that Hi-​Wire was one of my favorites. Its a small, bare bones brewery. Just a small tap room and a few tables. They have a large door that opens to the street. I just liked the vibe of this place and they had a great, very good beer selection. They probably had 10 or 12 beers on tap, with a couple of beers from other breweries. They also had some free popcorn for a snack. Highly recommend a visit here if you are in Asheville. And if you aren’t in Asheville, then you need to make a trip there!

This is one of my favorite breweries in town, specially considering the less-​than-​ideal horizontal brewing system they inherited. I’m always surprised by how consistently good their beers are and their ability to keep our fridges stocked. We are all excited for their expansion!
The hours are longer than most breweries in town and the staff is one of the friendliest in Asheville.
They have old school video games and the last Sunday night I was there they had old-​school cartoon on the projector. They also have a shuffleboard and giant jenga.
There is a popcorn machine but if you’re feeling some deli the store nextdoor will walk over with your order

It’s OFFICIAL! I have been to every brewery in Asheville! In celebration, Hi-​Wire will be my 800^th review!
To be honest I was kind of saving this Brewery for last. Why? I kinda, sorta have a crush on their Black IPA. Contortionist Black IPA is simply one of the best black IPAs out there. It’s #3 on my top five Black IPA list. Only beaten out by 21^st Amendment Back In Black and Howard Brewing Lake Fever. The only bad news is that it’s a seasonal beer that’s only available in the Spring. Box of tissue please, the water works are coming! Waanh!
So you can’t miss the large open door brewery that is Hi-​Wire, smack dab in the middle of the South Slope (aka the Brewery District). Whoa! It’s really warm in here. Even with that Big Ass Fan blowing — it’s pretty damn toasty. Guess what? Once you have a sip of their beer, you won’t care. Hi-​Wire has four Flagship beers available year round. Of those, the Bed of Nails Brown and Hi Pitch IPA are hands down their best offerings
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The bartenders in the taproom are laid back and don’t mind shootin’ the $hit. One of them gave me some great restaurant recommendations.
For me, this is one of the top five Breweries in Asheville, along with Burial, Wicked Weed, Wedge and Greenman. Consistency, quality and awesome seasonals (don’t forget Lion Tamer Red Rye in the Fall!)!!
And yes, I bought the hat…

Simple, industrial and nostalgic. Kudos to the business mind who converted this garage into a laid-​back brewery; obviously you know what you’re doing! The vintage carnival theme throughout proved to be clever and
The selection of beers were magnifique, and the patrons and locals alike were awesome. The bartender was so knowledgeable in all the different beers they brewed and I was impressed with their seasonal options as well. I tried their lager and their brown ale and loved them both very, very, very much. This place is definitely a must-​go if you’re in Asheville and want to start your night out right. Or, if you’d like to chill and play some Nintendo games while you talk about the good ol’ days. Either one.

This place was popping on a Sunday night. Cheap GREAT beer. Lot’s of IPA’s. A bunch of people brought their doggies to hang out too. Fun scene and nice service.
I loved the Maneater IPA. Great name and even greater taste.

What a chill brewery. Nothing fancy, and it gave me a feeling of the good ol’ Asheville feeling of being «hip». Once you get inside and sit, you realize that where you were sitting in was just a garage. Maybe the building itself used to be a repair shop as there are other mechanics up and down the street.
Hi-​Wire brews were not bad. It’s a pretty simple minimalistic brewery, one bar once you walk in with a projector tv on the right and another normal flat screen tv. They do have popcorn in the corner. Also, if you’re a fan of shuffle board, there’s that drinking activity to get into. Honestly, if I could choose it would be beer pong in the corner. Maybe one day right?
I tried the Man Eater IPA, House English Bitter, Contortionist Black IPA, and finally the Bed of Nails Brown Ale. All of them were terrific of course.
While parking was abysmal for me, partially because I didn’t do my due diligence and look up parking lots, the visit here was amazing. Sadly due to the parking meter ticking down, I had to leave here early.

Stopped in here on our tour of as many breweries as we could fit into our trip to Asheville. This place is pretty interesting. The bar area is like a garage and some table tops, a shuffleboard table, live music area, a foosball table and a spot at the bar that has any old video game system you can imagine. That was the coolest feature of this establishment. They also had a huge screen on the wall with the football games on; I would assume they do have the EPL games on during the weekends because there were a good amount of EPL flags hanging behind the bar.
We pulled up right at the bar and ordered the sampler. This is definitely the route to go because you pretty much get one of everything on tap. Most of the beers on tap were pretty pedestrian and nothing special. The pale ale and the lagers were OK and they were definitely a beer you could sit and drink all day. You would need that especially when you get hooked into a game of Mariocart or Mario Bros on the Nintendo gaming system. The one beer that stood out to me was the Bed of Nails Brown. This beer was pretty tasty. It had good toffee and caramel notes and was very smooth. The service was what should have been expected at a dive-​y brewery, present but not great.
This place has potential for a really good time. I would suggest coming here for that factor and not so much the brews. Cheers!