ASHEVILLE, N.C. — DSSOLVR has broken ground in downtown Asheville, renovating and reviving the 5,500 sq. ft. 1920s space at 63 North Lexington Avenue in the historic Tyler Building. The brewery will feature a mixed production and taproom space with exposed brewing equipment and 20 taps, a 1,000 sq. ft. barrel cellar for aging and packaging of wild fermentation, and 1,500 sq. ft. of office space, as well as an exterior courtyard. They anticipate opening their doors to the public in late 2019.
“We’re very happy to call the Tyler Building the home of DSSOLVR and plant some roots down in Asheville,” said Vince Tursi, co-founder and brewer. “It’s such a unique building downtown with a history of innovation and unique Southern architecture, not to mention those beautiful oak doors! That’s a vibe we’ll definitely be continuing with both the design and our brewing. We’ve got lots of additional treats in the works for the space, but more on that later.”
DSSOLVR’s design and approach to the space will foster an industrial, rustic aesthetic with a heavy dose of street art, influenced by the partners’ upbringings in skateboard and tattoo culture. Design plans will keep as much of the original structure exposed as possible, both on the interior and exterior, including refinishing the aforementioned 16’ oak front doors, as well as maximizing natural light.
The space will merge style with practicality through its open floor plan. Plenty of room will be dedicated to production needs, hosting a 15 bbl brewhouse with a 3 bbl pilot system, as well as fermenters ranging from 3-30 bbl, widening the spectrum for styles and quantities available. The brewery will also be using serving tanks to maximize freshness for the taproom, as well as immediately leaning into canning and bottling.
The dedicated cellar space for wild fermentation will be 100 percent wood-fermented, comprised solely of malt from within 500 miles of Asheville, only local and hand-picked fruits and herbs, and utilize only proprietary yeast and bacteria. Prioritizing diverse ingredient sourcing with local and regional influences, it is a continuation of the arc of DSSOLVR’s travels and collaborations throughout much of 2018. Their itinerary has included locations throughout the East Coast and Midwest, cultivating unique styles that earned them early recognition as one of 2018’s best new breweries by Hop Culture Magazine.
“We’ve had the honor of working with friends to spread the good word about DSSOLVR prior to our opening, and we can’t wait to finally host all of them to continue that sense of community,” said Mike Semenac, co-owner and designer. “We’re brewing styles across the board, mainly things we think are interesting or challenging, to push ourselves as well as provide an exciting product for both our friends and the general public.”
Multiple barrel-aging projects are currently in motion close by (including with Good Word in Atlanta, Resident Culture in Charlotte, Zillicoah in Asheville and Newgrass in Shelby) that will see bottles in six plus months. Additionally, releases in the next few weeks span the Southeast and North, including Atlanta with Good Word and Cherry Street, Richmond with Ardent, Nashville with Southern Grist and Vermont with Good Measure. Plans for touring, brewing and starting new projects will continue over the coming months and information about projects and releases will be shared primarily from their Instagram page.
About DSSOLVR
DSSOLVR is a brewery and taproom slated to open in the heart of downtown Asheville. In a conscious effort to make the most surreal beers we can, we’re committed to representing equal amounts of Old World and New World brewing methodology. We are big proponents of unusual and locally-sourced agriculture/malt, lagers, cask ales and wood fermentation/aging, along with the sticky/juicy/drippy/soft hop-jams. We have heavily invested in wood and barrels, utilizing proprietary yeast strains and unusual, locally-sourced ingredients. Up-to-date announcements about releases, collaborations and works-in-progress can be found on Instagram and their website, dssolvr.com.