New Beer and Metal Brewery Embraces ‘Beautiful Weirdos’ in Asheville

Beer, metal brewery opens in Asheville as a place for ‘beautiful weirdos’

Trve Brewing Co. invites ‘beautiful weirdos’ to Asheville taproom

Eleven years ago, Nick Nunns designed a brewery concept where beer and metal could co-exist in a welcoming, communal space. On March 15, Trve Brewing Company ― pronounced “true” ― expanded with a second location at 255 Short Coxe Ave. in Asheville’s South Slope brewing district.

“Asheville’s full of so many beautiful weirdos and I’m excited to tell them to come hang out with us. We want to be your friend,” said Nick Nunns, a former electrical engineer who’s been a metal music fan since he was young. He said the name “Trve,” with spelling inspired by the Roman letter “u,” was to mock those who take themselves too seriously.

“When I founded the brewery, I saw a lot of parallels between the heavy metal community and craft beer community wherein everybody was being condescending about what they do or don’t like, and I’ve always found that to be off-putting,” Nick Nunns said. “I wanted to poke fun of that ― this is just beer and metal music. Like what you like and just come in here and enjoy it.”

Beer and metal taproom

Other metal-themed U.S. breweries and bars motivated Nick Nunns to create Trve Brewing’s branding on the music genre, yet people may be surprised to see the lack of metal paraphernalia in the taproom. Trve Brewing’s South Slope taproom, located on the second floor of the building, is painted black with black tables and chairs and wood accents. The side patio off Short Coxe Avenue offers picnic table seating and tabletop firepits.

“You look around this taproom and our aesthetic is like a weird Scandinavian minimalism approach,” Nick Nunns said. “The heavy metal in our interpretation is the music we play, it’s the artwork we put on our merchandise and cans.”

EJ Nunns said many are drawn to Trve Brewing because it doesn’t look like a typical taproom, nor will it conform to the mainstream. Trve Brewing may not be the place to find trivia nights, but themed gaming events, like for “Magic: The Gathering,” are in consideration.

Trve beginnings

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