Enjoying a great-tasting beer is an American tradition. It\u2019s good on the golf course, goes well with an afternoon on the dock and is the perfect complement to a leisurely dinner with friends. Beer is even better when you can boast it was made in your own community. Smith Mountain Lake became the recipient of its own microbrewery, Sunken City Brewing Company, in May. Owner and lake resident Jerome Parnell created Dam Lager, the brand\u2019s original brew, in 2010. It was produced at a Roanoke brewery until moving back \u201chome\u201d \u2013 to the place that inspired its name.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the first time the beer has actually been brewed right here at the lake. It\u2019s something residents can take ownership of and be proud of right in their own community,\u201d said Parnell.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The 8,800-square-foot brewery, located at Westlake Towne Center, cost more than $2 million to build and consists of a brewhouse, fermentation area, canning room, tap room and outdoor beer garden.<\/p>\n

On tap at Sunken City \u2013 whose name Parnell said is a nod to the community of Monroe, which was flooded in the mid-1960s when SML was filled \u2013 are the signature Dam Lager, Red Clay IPA and an unnamed brown ale not yet in full production. In addition, brewmaster Jeremy Kirby is releasing small-batch beers each weekend as a way to gauge the particular tastes of lake-area patrons.<\/p>\n

The brewery\u2019s interior tap room is decorated in a lake-oriented theme, the centerpiece being a huge wall mural of the lake that overlays an older map of the flooded areas. Pittsylvania County author and historian Herman Melton\u2019s account of how Monroe failure to develop into an official town led to its sunken demise makes for an intriguing tasting room read and appropriate name for a grassroots brewery.<\/p>\n

A brewery in his own community was Parnell\u2019s vision but required vital partnerships. Long-time area developer The Willard Companies helped make the dream a reality. \u201cOur first conversations began almost three years ago,\u201d said Lee Willard, the company\u2019s vice president of corporate holdings. \u201cDam Lager was a big hit around the lake, and we knew Jerome was onto something. We helped in any way we could during the design phase, and then sold him the land [at Westlake Towne Center].\u201d<\/p>\n

Kirby moved to Smith Mountain Lake just before the brewery\u2019s opening to take position as brewmaster. The California native trained at the VLB Institute in Berlin, Germany, and has managed breweries in Nebraska and Colorado. \u201cJeremy and I have personalities that complement one another,\u201d said Parnell. \u201cIt\u2019s a big deal to have a German-trained brewmaster here at the lake.\u201d Kirby said he\u2019s looking forward to exploring the SML area \u2013 as soon as he can take a break from making beer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe guy has been working around the clock here since the beginning,\u201d said Parnell. \u201cHe understands that to build a brewery we have to hit the gas on all aspects \u2013 from selling beer at the bar, distributing, developing products and getting cans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sunken City is open Wednesday through Sunday year-round. Friday nights and Saturday afternoons feature live music and food vended by area food trucks.<\/p>\n

Smith Mountain Lake locals Steve and Peggy Owens said they stop by at least once a week to enjoy the atmosphere, often bringing along their two daughters. Steve said he likes the Dam Lager while Peggy prefers the Skinny Dip, a lighter, unfiltered version of Dam Lager available as a small-batch brew most weekends.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe enjoy spending time together over good beer,\u201d Peggy Owen said. \u201cThe Parnells are a wonderful asset to our community, and they recognized the importance of being family-friendly when they put the brewery together.\u201d Not only have Smith Mountain Lake residents welcomed Sunken City with open arms, out-of-town visitors have flocked to the craft brewery as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe saw close to 1,200 visitors in our first month,\u201d Parnell said. \u201cThere are two types coming from out of town: some who are beer tourists and some who are agritourist-types interested in the brewery itself. We\u2019ve had people from Richmond, Greensboro and a lot from Roanoke.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anheuser-Busch wholesalers in Roanoke, Lynchburg and Danville distribute the Sunken City brand to many restaurants in Southwest Virginia, including several at SML. As the brand goes out, Sunken City supporters hope fans will follow it back here.<\/p>\n

\u201cJerome is a believer in Smith Mountain Lake and will have all of his beers branded as \u2018brewed at Smith Mountain Lake,\u2019\u201d Willard said. \u201cThis will only serve to drive more interest and exposure to our area.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Enjoying a great-tasting beer is an American tradition. It\u2019s good on the golf course, goes well with an afternoon on the dock and is the perfect complement to a leisurely dinner with friends. Beer is even better when you can boast it was made in your own community. Smith Mountain Lake became the recipient of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-239","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","5":"entry","6":"override"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":489,"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/239\/revisions\/489"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/sunkencitybeer.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}