Here’s a brewery with a really neat story behind it: Olde Mecklenburg Brewery and Restaurant in Charlotte, North Carolina. This past weekend found me working in Fort Mill, South Carolina, about 10 miles away from OMB as they abbreviate it, but my hotel was a scant .9 miles from the brewery itself-walking distance for sure. How did that happen? I’ll never tell.

I dropped by Olde Mecklenburg Brewery for dinner and a few beers the first night of my stay-I liked it so much I came back for more the following night. Olde Mecklenburg Brewery has a wonderful setup, with a full bar area and separate lounge area, a restaurant hall, and a massive bier garden complete with an outside bar building.

On both nights when I visited Olde Mecklenburg, I walked from my hotel, which was so close fater all. When I'm out beer hunting and visiting breweries I don't like to drive; drinking and driving is never a good idea. OMB is in a pleasant area of South Charlotte and I enjoyed the walks back and forth.

My second beer on night two at OMB was their Dunkel. I had finished my dinner of a Teller Plate ($12): your choice of two sausages (tonight I chose a pair of Nurnberger bratwursts and a Hungarian Gyulai), a roll, mustard, and two sides (I chose rotkohl and Kartoffelnsalat, German potato salad). Everything was delicious, though curiously the potato salad was served cold instead of warm. Now it was time to move out to the Biergarten and enjoy the warm evening.

Here’s what the brewery says about Olde Mecklenburg Dunkel:

Winter has met its match in the form of this classic Munich-style dark lager. Smooth, with caramel and roasted malt flavors courtesy of Dark Munich and Carafa malts, Dunkel offers an easy-drinking finish to even the coldest, darkest days of winter. It may be freezing outside, but the conditions inside this bottle of Dunkel are always absolutely perfect. Enjoy it all winter long.

Olde Mecklenburg Dunkel has an alcohol content of 4.9% by volume with 28 IBUs. I paid $4.95 for a 16-ounce glass. Six-packs run $9.99 each.

My glass of Olde Mecklenburg Dunkel arrived a medium brown color with a soft nutty nose. Taking a sip I got a smooth malty palate with light chocolate and dry toasted nuts and a faint hoppy finish. I think the beer needs a tad more hops but only a tad. Overall, a very tasty drinkable Dunkel that I would love to buy again.

I found Olde Mecklenburg Dunkel truly delicious, and was glad I returned to the brewery for more of their beer. German food, German beer, great prices, a beer hall....yeah, this place rocks, and you know next time I'm in Charlotte I'll be back for more.

And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.

*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.

(B)=Bottled

(D)=Draft

(G)=Growler

 

 

 



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