Tap Handle #747: Gatlinburg Brewing

February 13, 2020

Tap Handle #747: Gatlinburg Brewing

Tap size: 11.25"
Rarity: less than 10 seen
Mounting: 3/8" ferrule on 5/16" anchor bolt

I've known about this tap for a couple of years, but it only just recently became available to me thanks to a couple of club members and owner Steve Wilson. It features a bear dressed for the outdoors, with a camera in one paw and a big frothy beer in the other. As if the character wasn't unusual enough, he also possesses a long white beard and mustache. The bear's ears poke through his hat and his tail pokes through the seat of his pants. On the back of each shoe that the bear is wearing are the initials GBC. At the base is a large round area where a label bearing the brewery name is found, on both the front and the back. There is no label for the beer variety; the tap is used for all of the brewery's beers (I'll be profiling their Don't Feed the Bears Brown Ale). There's currently one on the secondary market but the price is extremely high; other than that one, I haven't seen another.

Click through to read more about Gatlinburg Brewing and to see more photos of this tap of unusual character...

Gatlinburg Brewing Company was founded in Gatlinburg, Tennessee in 2016 by Steve Wilson. Some time before, while at a concert, Wilson tried a Sierra Nevada Torpedo instead of a Pabst and was instantly hooked on hoppy beer. Over the ensuing months Wilson enjoyed so many different beers that he gained over 40 pounds. He started to wonder why there wasn't a locally brewed beer, and decided to to take his passion for craft beer to the next level by working towards making his own. The next few years involved a lot of learning, brewing good beer, great beer, and garbage beer. He quickly found himself not just home brewing with friends, but also brewing professionally with respected brewers. Wilson's family was all in and worked hard to help support him.

For the first few years, Wilson brewed inside of Bub's Burger Barn, which changed its name to Farmer's Burger Barn in 2017. The name change didn't help business, though, as Farmer's closed, leaving Gatlinburg Brewing without a home. After scouting locations, they found a spot in the historic downtown and went to work on preparing the space to be a brewery and taproom. Equipment was ordered and installed, and Gatlinburg Brewing finally re-opened in early 2019. The taproom is brand new with a clean, modern look. The unique round building with huge floor to ceiling windows offers a great view of the downtown area.

The bar itself is medium size and made out of poured concrete that is painted black. Foods (mainly pizza) are prepared at the bar and then are cooked in a large New York style pizza oven. The kitchen also turns out a number of different salads as well as some brew-friendly appetizers, including breadsticks, cheese bread, chicken wings, and pretzels with beer cheese. The taproom has between 8 to 10 beers on tap, as well as an Ace Cider and a Nitro Coffee, with growler fills available. Live music is also a regular fixture of the taproom. Limited edition 750 ml bottles were produced by the brewery that featured stunning photographs of the local Smoky Mountain scenery on the label, with each bottle numbered and signed. The brewery also participates in local festivals such as the Foothills Farm Fall Festival and the Don't Feed The Bears Festival.

In late 2019 the brewery began to work on a installing a second location in Sevierville, about 15 miles north of the current brewery and near the Tennessee Legend Distillery. Gatlinburg Brewing is partnering with Tennessee Legend to obtain used barrels for a barrel-aged beer program. The new location is expected to begin brewing soon.

Gatlinburg Brewing's Don't Feed the Bears is a malt-forward Brown Ale with great drinkability and flavor complexity. It is bready, chocolate, roasty and nutty.