Hikers on the Georgia-to-Maine Appalachian Trail (AT) appreciate the existence of “trail towns,” and Franklin tops many lists for being a favorite of thru hikers heading north or south on the globally popular 2,198-mile path. To that end, when someone leaves the trail to gather supplies or take a “zero” day break, many choose to head to Lazy Hiker Brewing Company. Ten years ago, this gathering place for not only thru and section hikers, but visitors and locals, launched on Main Street.
Graham Norris, who originally found himself in seminary after college, is currently one of the main or “master” brewers at Lazy Hiker. The Franklin-based facility is where all the company’s beers are brewed, although Lazy Hiker’s taproom in Sylva is twice as large as the Franklin-based one.
Lazy Hiker Brewing Company opened up in May 2015 and will celebrate its 10th anniversary on June 14. Activities will include live music, games, and new beer releases all day.
Master brewer Norris has some “skin in the game” as one of the company’s 35 investors. Like most start-ups, Lazy Hiker had humble beginnings.
“A few of the folks used to meet and talk about bringing a brewery into the town,” said Norris. “Some investors were sought out and work began in 2014. The founding investors were local residents Tommy Jenkins, Ken Murphy, and Lenny Jordan.”
Regarding how the establishment got its name, it depends on who you ask.
“I would say the whole entire group of founding investors decided on that name, although I can’t say who specifically first thought of it,” Norris surmised.
And the well-known logo, which depicts a set of hiker legs resting horizontally outstretched with mountains in the distance, was the brainchild of one Sarah Culclasure, a graphic designer who was then an Asheville resident but now lives in Richmond, Va.
“I can tell you that part of the idea behind the logo was it looks kind of like a hiker trail marker sign or a directional sign … this is a very outdoor and hiking-focused area,” shared Norris. “A lot of our patrons enjoy hiking but they also enjoy drinking beer and sitting around thinking about hiking, and that’s kind of where that lazy hiking aspect came from. We like to say ‘everyone can be a lazy hiker.’ Not everyone is going to get out there and backpack 20 miles a day.”
A team of 18 employees currently make up the overall complement of workers for the company, be it brewing, serving, or in some other related capacity. In addition to Norris and Thomas Hanson Jr. (T.J.), Darron Powell is another master brewer who works on some of the more technical aspects of the beer-making process, such as yeast development and fermentation. In addition to crafting at the brewery, Powell is also an avid hiker. He completed a thru hike on the AT in 1997.
How it’s done
One of Powell’s areas of expertise within the overall brewing cycle is managing the yeast process. Yeast, along with hops, grains, and water, is a key component within the art of beer making. Lazy Hiker has a lab where yeast cells and viability counts are conducted. Forced fermentations, where yeast is grown in a hotter environment to assist it maturing more quickly, is also sometimes part of the process.
Norris calls the yeast lab “Darron’s playhouse.”
“That’s my favorite part, the science end of it,” said Powell. “I like that a lot of little small details, like yeast management and the sensory aspect of canning beer, contribute to making the product the way you want it to be.”
While hops can be acquired from numerous locations, Lazy Hiker partners with a local area hop farm for fresh hop beers each year, generally in late August or early September. Otherwise, they purchase hops from as far away as New Zealand, Australia, and Washington.
Norris revealed that fresh hops are not very often used in the brewing process, except for small-batch beers. He described how Lazy Hiker predominantly goes about utilizing the hops they do acquire.
“The majority of our hops, as is the case for most any brewer, are dried, ground up, and pelletized. You can get a lot more into a small package. We do some fresh hops seasonally right from the field. But if fresh hops don’t go into a boil or into a beer within 24-48 hours, they start to mold and mildew. That’s why they generally go through a drying and pelletizing process – so they can be bagged and stored. Dried hops will stay good and retain their flavor for a couple years normally. They can only be used once because after oils and bitterness, etc. are extracted, they are only good for compost mostly. Spent grains, how- ever, are often used for animal feed.”
As for beers they brew, Lazy Hiker normally has a range of light, hoppy, and malty regulars but there is always a specialty or season selection on tap as well. Norris pointed out some of what goes into the different varieties they brew locally.
“We’ve got about four different base malts (barley); a Canadian, English, German, and American. We probably have 40-50 specialty malts that we use in various percentages to get different profiles, colors, and flavors.”
Wheat can also be used in place of barley as the grain component of different beers, as well as oats and rye. For example, hazy IPA (India Pale Ale) beers, which are extremely popular in the United States, currently rely on the interaction of higher protein malts. With barley having a lower protein content, IPAs use more rye, wheat, or oats to make up the difference. The process then involves an interaction between the yeast, hops, and malt to produce whatever type and flavor of beer desired.
Norris explained that while hops exist in every beer, they are sometimes used to balance sweetness of the sugars derived from the malt, as well as for flavor and aroma.
Lazy Hiker brewers also have some “flavored” malts, such as caramel, chocolate, or coffee – flavoring normally associated with stouts, not pilsners or IPA.
Varieties on draft and in cans
In terms of volume produced, Norris demonstrated some of the processes for testing out new beers before going into full-scale production.
“The brew system we have is comprised of 15-barrels where we can brew about 500 gallons at a time, or 1,000 gallons for double-batch production. But the pilot system is a one-barrel system, so it’s about 30 or 40 gallons. We use it a lot for special events, partnerships, or collaborations with organizations where we can do a special beer with them and let them be involved with that,” explained Norris.
He added that the system is also used to experiment with different flavor-profile ideas that would not be attempted on a larger scale. One example he remembered was when actual small Christmas tree branches were included in the brewing process to establish a seasonal beer. Additionally, he mentioned the Bartram 250-year celebration coming up in June, for which a specialty beer will be included as part of the festivities. There is also a plan to achieve a unique beer with Cowee School Arts & Heritage Center sometime in July. Main Spring Conservation Trust is another organization that collaborates regularly with Lazy Hiker, usually around September, to generate a specialty brew.
Regarding year-round brews, Norris said there are six always available: Trail Mate (a golden), Slack Pack, Trail Candy, and Twenty Mile (IPAs), as well as Wesser Evil (a porter), and Amblin’ Amber Ale, all of which are available in cans. Bourbon barrels, purchased from Moonrise Distillery, in Clayton, Ga., are also used to store and age some brews, depending on the taste and texture brewers are striving for.
“We tend to be a little bit more malt heavy in the wintertime and a little bit lighter and IPA-focused in the summertime … We’re starting to move into our busier season where we’re typically going to be brewing three-to-four times a week. The fermentation process takes about two-to-four weeks, depending on the beer; a little bit longer for lagers, probably six-to-eight weeks,” he explained.
From a distributing standpoint, Norris relayed that about 30-40 kegs are normally kept at the Franklin small cold room. A larger cold room is also utilized to store up to 400 kegs, plus canned beer.
Beers are generally stored at between 36- and 38-degrees Fahrenheit. Regularly, kegs are transported to the Sylva location, and a distributor for North Carolina will pick up pallets from Franklin and deliver them to a warehouse in Asheville. Lazy Hiker also distributes a limited amount of product in northeast Georgia. Many regional grocery stores stock Lazy Hiker beer.
In addition to being a location where patrons can imbibe responsibly, Lazy Hiker also strives to maintain a welcoming atmosphere for all, not just hikers. Trivia is every Wednesday night, karaoke every other Friday, and live music regularly. When it comes to policing alcohol intake, the brewery is both legally responsible and also socially cognizant of its reputation, assured Norris.
“I mean, we take that seriously and do what we can to make sure people have a good time responsibly. We’ve always prided ourselves on being a family-friendly environment and we want to keep it that way.”
Norris and his team welcome Franklin residents and visitors alike – hikers or not – to stop by and enjoy the fruits of their labors, or just be lazy.