Pigs, UNC Alumni and Beer

There’s an interesting connection between UNC system grads from the US and UK, beer and local pigs.  We’ve been working with North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University (NC A&T) to donate our spent grain from our new Pig Pounder Brewery to the NC A&T University Farm.  The spent grains (malt that has been used in the brewing process) would be used in the farm’s Swine Unit for feed.

 

The NC A&T Swine Farm Hog Statue

NC A&T Swine Farm Pasture Pigs

Sam with the Pasture Pigs – talking Spent Grain at NC A&T Farm

“The swine industry is North Carolina’s second most important agricultural industry, worth close to $2 billion annually. The Swine Research Unit includes a 250-sow indoor commercial hog-rearing environment, as well as a hoop barn, and a pastured hog operation for small-scale or limited-resource farmers making the transition to hog farming from tobacco or other crops.” – from University Farm website.

There are lots of discussions of sustainable uses of spent grain a byproduct of brewing – but the primary use is animal feed on farms.  The grain starts out as dry malt then is used as the primary ingredient in the brewing process.  NC has a rapidly growing brewing industry.

Pig Pounder Brewery – Brew House

 

NC A&T spends $50,000-$60,000 per year on feed in their Swine Program.  In some rough calculations in a meeting with the University, we determined that this could save the farm up to $15,000-20,000 per year.  Pig Pounder would provide the spent grain free of charge to the University.

That grain has an interesting story including a UNC connection as well.  We purchase our malt from Thomas Fawcett & Sons in the UK.  They’ve been malting grain since the late 1700s.

Thomas Fawcett & Sons

Floor Malting at Thomas Fawcett & Sons

On a trip to the UK to do research for the Pig Pounder Brewery and our Marshall Free House gastropub – we had the opportunity to meet the owner James Fawcett.  We were surprised to learn that James is a UNC alum having graduated in 1988.

Marty Kotis (brewery owner and UNC class ’91) and James Fawcett (Thomas Fawcett & Sons Malts owner and UNC class ’88) at Thomas Fawcett & Sons

So the farm raised pigs at the UNC System NC A&T University Farm may eat feed that originates as grain in the UK malted by Fawcett (UNC class of ’88), then used in making beer at a brewery owned by Kotis (UNC ’91), brewed by Director of Operations Sam Rose (UNC-Asheville ’07) and marketed by Jenna Lumtscher (ECU  ’07).

So UNC pigs may get fat and alums might get slaughtered! (UK slang for drunk)

 

Pig Pounder Logo

 

Daddy-O’s (or Daddio’s) on High Point Road

I just purchased the old Daddy O’s on High Point Road just a couple of doors down from my Darryl’s restaurant.  Thoughts on what we should do with it?  It’s 3 acres and a 10,000sf building.

Aerial of Daddy-O’s (far left) and Darryl’s (far right)

Aerial of Daddy-O’s (far left) and Darryl’s (far right)

Beer – Cask Ales and Drafts

At my namesake new restaurant Marshall Free House, we’ve just installed our Beer Tower and Cask Ale Hand Pumps.  The tower will serve 12 line fed chilled beers.  The LED rings will display the beer logo and name.  There will be no traditional long handles.

The cask ales will be hand pulled from a separate cask cooler set at a warmer temp.  We’re exceeding Cask Marque standards (with a separate cooler, short glycol line and hand pump all set at proper cask temp) and will control the ale from manufacture at our Pig Pounder Brewery to cask conditioning to the restaurant.

Hand Pumps for the Cask Ales in the foreground, Beer Tower in the rear

Cask Ale Handles with Chalkboard of Draughts, Casks, and Bottles plus Topic of Conversation

Looking through the LED rings that will display beer logos and names

View of the Beer Bar from Outside