For Immediate Release

November 4, 2016

Brewing for Greenways Collaboration:

Wedge and New Belgium brew a traditional German ale to benefit Greenways

Release party on Tuesday, November 15, $1/pint goes to Friends of Connect Buncombe

ASHEVILLE, NC – November 4, 2016—Wedge Brewing and New Belgium Brewing have teamed up for a neighborhood brewing collaboration to benefit greenway non-profit, Friends of Connect Buncombe (FOCB) with a take on the traditional German ale, a Dunkelweizen. On Tuesday, November 15, join the breweries for a release party at the Wedge that starts at 5:00 p.m. Both breweries will have the beer on tap and for every pint of the Wedge/New Belgium Dunkelweizen sold, $1 will be donated to putting greenways on the ground in Buncombe County.

5:00 p.m. Bicycle Beer Delivery – meet at Wedge for a group ride delivering Dunkelweizen to New Belgium

6:00 p.m. Release Party at Wedge – Brewers talk beer, FOCB talks greenways, Blue Dragons rock music, beer pours

“It was a pleasure getting to take part in the creation of this beer with Ian Leightner (Wedge brewer) and Alex Dwoinen (New Belgium brewer), and an even greater pleasure having New Belgium as our neighbor,” says Andy Shepard, Wedge brewer. “I’m excited by the thought of continued collaboration and brewing more beer in the future. Love, Andy xoxo.”

Brewed in the heart of the River Arts District at the Wedge, Dunkelweizen is a take on a traditional German Dark Wheat Ale, using a decoction mash to bring out malt character reminiscent of chocolate banana bread. Freshly cracked black pepper compliments clove notes from the yeast, with a tart, clean finish. Enjoy this hearty fall beer, and help support Friends of Connect Buncombe. ABV: 6.3%

“We are so grateful for the support and leadership of the brewing community,” says Suzanne Molloy, President of Friends of Connect Buncombe. “Imagine one day when our neighborhoods are connected by greenways to local breweries and gathering spots for all of us to enjoy. Working together we can make a difference in our communities.”

ABOUT WEDGE BREWING CO.

Wedge Brewery brews good beer in the classic styles. They use the best sourced ingredients to make beer we can be proud of. The brewery size and production allow them to be a throwback to the neighborhood brewery. Learn more at www.wedgebrewing.com.

ABOUT NEW BELGIUM BREWING

New Belgium Brewing, makers of Fat Tire Amber Ale and a host of Belgian-inspired beers, is recognized as one of Outside Magazine’s Best Places to Work and one of the Wall Street Journal’s Best Small Businesses. The 100% employee-owned brewery is a Platinum-level Bicycle Friendly Business as designated by the League of American Bicyclists, and one of World Blu’s most democratic U.S. businesses, and a Certified B Corp. In addition to Fat Tire, New Belgium brews thirteen year-round beers; Citradelic Tangerine IPA, Ranger IPA, Rampant Imperial IPA, Shift Pale Lager, Slow Ride Session IPA, Snapshot Wheat, Sunshine Wheat, 1554 Black Ale, Blue Paddle Pilsner, Abbey Belgian Ale and Trippel and a gluten-reduced line, Glutiny Pale Ale and Glutiny Golden Ale. Learn more at www.newbelgium.com.

ABOUT FRIENDS OF CONNECT BUNCOMBE

A Buncombe County non-profit, FOCBs goal is to see a system of connected trails for public usage to foster and promote tourism, economic development, health, recreation, diverse and safe transportation options, and connect community and the cultural heritage and beauty of Buncombe County. Catalyzed by Highland Brewing Company and New Belgium Brewing in 2015, Brewing for Greenways is an on-going, multi-brewery effort to raise money and awareness for the planned public greenway network that will connect Buncombe County. To date, Brewing for Greenways has supported a $15,000 feasibility study for the East Asheville greenway. Learn more at: www.weconnectbuncombe.org

View the Complete Press Release

New Belgium, Wedge Join Brewing For Greenways

In September 2012, Buncombe County adopted a comprehensive Greenways and Trails Master Plan to guide regional greenway development in the County. On Thursday, November 5th, Friends of Connect Buncombe, a local nonprofit, introduced and bestowed a new brand identity to reflect this initiative to create trails and greenways in Buncombe County and its municipalities which can come to represent the entire system while preserving the greenway/trail names of individual municipalities and communities. This new identity can be expanded and shared to serve as a creative vision for a connected system of trails and greenways for public usage to foster and promote tourism, economic development, health, recreation, diverse and safe transportation options, and connect with our community and the cultural heritage and natural beauty of Buncombe County.

The branding process included a broad based input effort. Over the summer, geographic and thematic input meetings and research into the history of Buncombe County were initiated. The brand name is an easily recognizable, concrete name and reaches to the nexus of why Asheville and Buncombe came to exist and will allow for a wide array of marketing components that will satisfy a variety of needs and desires of the county. The brand system is flexible and easy brand extension can be employed for many adaptive uses.

The new brand logo draws upon the existing Buncombe County government logo by incorporating dark blue mountains and two evergreen trees set in the foreground of a trail. The brand is named in honor of the Buncombe Turnpike which once served as one of the finest and most used roads in Western North Carolina and brought prosperity and innovation to our mountains. Branding colors are all based upon colors found in nature.

David Gantt, Chairman of the Buncombe County Commissioners, said, “This new brand system powerfully connects our past to our future and we are grateful for the leadership and support of Friends of Connect Buncombe in catalyzing our efforts. Let’s all embrace and start using the brand.”

Friends of Connect Buncombe partnered with other greenway advocacy groups and selected Arnett Muldrow and Associates to carry out the development of this new branding and marketing initiative. The costs were covered by donations from members and sponsors and by in-kind services provided by Arnett & Muldrow and Associates.

About Friends of Connect Buncombe Friends of Connect Buncombe is a nonprofit formed for the purpose of advocating and raising funds for the implementation and construction of greenways and trails in Buncombe County. We are a collaborative organization supporting all of Buncombe County. The goal is to construct a system of connected trails for public use to foster and promote tourism, economic development, health, recreation, diverse and safe transportation options, and connect with our community and cultural heritage and beauty of Buncombe County. The Greenways and Trails Master Plan was adopted by the County Commissioners in September, 2012.

Event Location and Thank You

We would like to thank all of our sponsors for helping us put together our November 5th Debut Countywide Greenway and Trail Celebration. In particular, we appreciate the support of DoubleTree by Hilton Asheville, for hosting the event and thank their staff and chefs for creating such a wonderful event.

Press Release from Friends of Connect Buncombe:

Friends of Connect Buncombe Greenways Branding