#TSCSUMMIT Spotlight: Palmetto Brewery – Charleston, SC

Palmetto Brewery was originally founded in the 2^nd half of the 19^th century. It lasted nearly 60 years in the historic city of Charleston (we have some excellent photos on our website). While it was able to survive the devastating earthquake of 1886, it finally fell to prohibition in the 1930’s.

The modern version of Palmetto Brewery was founded under the old name by Ed Falkenstein in 1993. A chemical engineer by trade, Ed found inspiration to start the brewery while on a wind surfing trip in Oregon. During his trip he visited Full Sail Brewery in Hood River, Oregon, and came to the conclusion he liked the way their beer tasted (craft beer had not yet made the splash on the East Coast like it had in the Pacific Northwest), and with his background understood how to do it. As the story goes, Ed simply stated to a friend on the trip, “this is what I do”. Consequently, Ed left behind his career with Miliken in Spartanburg, SC, and moved to Charleston with his wife, Barb, to start a brewery. 20 years later Palmetto is the oldest and largest brewery in South Carolina, selling 55,000 cases of beer through our distributor partners in Charleston, Hilton Head, and Columbia. We’re currently undergoing some exciting renovations to our courtyard and tasting room which will allow us to properly host visitors daily, give tours, continue our rapidly growing Friday Night Loading Dock Concerts in conjunction with Awendaw Green, and provide an incredible venue for private events.

Why Charleston?

This is where I grew up. I’ve lived and visited different places around the country and world, but I can honestly say it’s my favorite place to be. We’re fortunate to live here, and lucky to have so many folks excited about visiting. It’s a place for everyone; history buffs, art enthusiasts, wildlife advocates, beach goers, golfers, fisherman, boaters, music fans, food fanatics, old folks, young folks, etc… It’s just a great city.

Palmetto Espresso Porter. We use the coffee from our neighbors at Charleston Coffee Roasters, and it’s absolutely exceptional.

We have a special release fermenting as we speak called ‘Brown Hound’ (a tribute to Ed’s first brewery dog). It will be available in early April!

We’re totally new to the event, and really just want to see how we can interact and network with other folks to build mutual advocacy for our brewery and their business. We’re the local beer in what I would consider as ‘southern’ a city as you can find, so it should be a great fit!