Hell On Horse Creek Brewing

Saturday I went to a new to me brewery about 30 minutes from me. As I walked up to the bar I was greeted by the owner/brewer/bartender with, “Welcome to Hell!” And he gave me a run down of the beers.

Hell On Horse Creek Brewing is located in downtown Madison, NC and opened in October of 2019. It is in an old funeral parlor and it’s said that there may be ghosts inside. I did not experience one though.

They specialize in session beers. Many are smoked. They brew on a 3 barrel system and the beer is served straight from the brewery tanks.

The brewery is dog friendly. That’s the owner’s dog on the couch, but there were a few other furry friends that came by a little later.

I got to try a bunch of their beers! Vaquero’s Fire, a pale ale, was up first. It smells malty with a touch of cayenne. It’s light bodied with some hoppiness. There is a kick at the end from the cayenne pepper. It’s not too spicy, but enough to let you know it’s there. Some rye comes through as well.

Curmudgeon, an English Bitter, has caramel and malt on the nose. The taste follows really closely with some toffee in there too. It is medium bodied. Check out the lighting the owner helped me with for the picture!

Wraith was up next! It is one of the smoked beers. A smoked Helles to be exact. I got mesquite and bbq on the aroma. It has a light body and the smoked mesquite flavor is strong! There is a sweetness in it too. I’m this would be the perfect beer when eating barbecue!

Creme Reaper is a sweet milk stout with reaper peppers. On the sniff I get a lot of the reapers! On the taste the lactose tries to come through. I’m sure the lactose calms the pepper down leaving just a bit of spice on the end. I get some mesquite in this one too.

Lastly, I had Sir William of Marzen. Obviously this is a Marzen beer. The scent was malty and a little like dirty gym socks. The taste is smooth with a malty background. It is not hoppy at all. There isn’t a lot going on, but it’s a nice brew and let’s the malt shine.

Hell on Horse Creek Brewing is a super cool spot with a local vibe. Madison isn’t a very big town, but I would put this brewery on your list to visit. It is an easy day trip from the Triad and I know I’ll be back!

If you go, look for my sticker on their wall! Cheers and have a great week!