There were those who watched from afar. There were those, like us here in Winston-Salem, who felt a muted version of her fury.
Then there were those who were directly impacted by, and continue to deal with, one of the most damaging natural disasters to hit our state in decades. Long after the flood waters recede (as of Sunday there were still 9 NC rivers at major flood stage), long after the news crews pack up and leave, long after we have all turned our attention to other matters — those directly impacted, our NC neighbors, will be dealing with Florence’s aftermath. Governor Roy Cooper put it best — “Hurricane Florence has deeply wounded our state, wounds that will not fade soon as the flood waters finally recede.”
Like many of you, we’ve been thinking about how to best help communities affected by the hurricane. And how to best help is to do what we do best – brew beer.
Earlier this month, the same week Florence was barreling toward our coastline, we brewed our latest Craft Happiness Project IPA. It’s called Responder, and is dedicated to honoring the brave men and women in our community who are North Carolina’s first responders in times of crisis — like the aftermath of hurricanes.
For those of you who don’t know, Craft Happiness IPA Project was started in 2017 by Foothills as a way to bring attention to all manner of needs in our community, state and region. Each month we brew a different IPA, name it based on the particular need we’re focusing on, and give a portion of proceeds to an organization that services that need.
Rarely has Craft Happiness had an opportunity to have a bigger impact than now. So we’re throwing a Release/Relief Party at our tasting room for Responder IPA on Wednesday October 10th. Members of Winston-Salem Fire Department Station #2 will be here — partly to show off their ladder truck and partly for us to show how grateful we are for the work they do.
We’ll also have our regular weekly Foot Soldier Run Club at 6pm. For every mile run that day, Foothills will donate $1 to the North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund.
Running’s not your thing? That’s OK. Beer drinking can be your thing. Because we’ll also be donating $1 from every pint of Responder sold that day – at all three of our locations – to the same Relief Fund.
Can’t make it that day? That’s OK too — we’ll be giving a portion of total Responder IPA proceeds to hurricane relief at the end of the month as well. So stop by and have a pint anytime during the month of October.
Good Beer That Does Good. That’s the mission of Craft Happiness Project, through which Foothills has donated over $11,000 (to date) to more than a dozen local and regional charitable organizations. So come have a beer and make a difference for our neighbors, who will still be dealing with Florence’s aftermath for weeks and months to come.
Must be the holidays – ’cause 
Which brings us to the NC Beer Month Challenge. The communal spirit of craft beer is well-documented, and manages to remain a brother(and sister)hood, even in the face of increasing commerce and competition. So we wanted to come up with something we could all do, big breweries and small, regardless of location or size. An important experience we could collectively share during NC Beer Month, with potential to raise awareness of our collective efforts and send a message to craft beer lovers nationwide.
We are challenging every North Carolina brewery, in fact every craft beer enthusiast statewide, to do something, anything, for their natural water resources this month, and post it online with the hashtag #NCBeerMonthChallenge. Organize a creek cleanup. Meet with your local riverkeeper. Raise awareness with your customers and friends. Heck, we don’t care if you pick up a plastic water bottle out of a creek bed you happen to be walking by. Take a picture, hashtag it, and post it. You’ll have successfully accepted the #NCBeerMonthChallenge.
But wait there’s more! Every year we try and use part of the proceeds from our Sexual Chocolate events to help our local community, and this year’s no different. We’ll have a big silent auction at the party, with proceeds benefitting Habitat For Humanity, Forsyth Humane Society, Yadkin Riverkeeper, and Piedmont Environmental Alliance. Items up for auction include:
Last year, in a nod to the culture that so richly defines our home city, we borrowed a few ingredients from our favorite Moravian cookie recipe – ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, to name a few – and created a 
2016 UPDATE: 
So what’s new at Renfest for 2015? Lots. This year features the largest number of improvements and additions to the Festival than since they first opened in 1994.
New Stage Acts for the entire season include:
There’s also a 
Foothills Brewing 
