Highland History
Highland History
ASHEVILLE – Highland Brewing Company was founded in 1994 by retired engineer, Oscar Wong. It was the first craft brewery in Asheville since Prohibition and has grown to become the largest family-owned, female-led brewery native to the Southeast.
Wong immigrated to the United States from Jamaica in the 1960s to attend the University of Notre Dame. While there, he studied structural and civil engineering and took an interest in home brewing between study sessions. After graduating, he opened his own engineering firm. The business was a success and allowed him to sell it and retire at a young age. He had been a home brewer in college and decided to open a brewery in Asheville for the start of his second career.
Wong and his family enjoyed vacations in Asheville for many years and felt connected to the creative community of independent thinkers and doers that had long called the region home. After a few years of retirement, Wong was ready for his next challenge and when a local brewer reached out about an opportunity to start a craft brewery, he was ready for the adventure, but only in Asheville. Highland Brewing Company was founded on April 21st, 1994 and became Asheville’s pioneer and first brewery founded in the city since Prohibition and the third oldest craft brewery still in operation in the state of North Carolina.
Brewing operations began in a rented space in the basement underneath what is now Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria in downtown Asheville. The first brewing equipment was made from old Sealtest dairy equipment that Wong retrofitted to fit the brewery’s needs. Those tanks are still used by the brewery to store spent yeast, trub, and hops. Highland brewed in that basement for 13 years as beers like Gaelic Ale, Black Mocha Stout, and Oatmeal Porter grew into the region’s favorite brews.
In 2006, Highland moved from the downtown basement to the former home of Blue Ridge Motion Picture Studios in East Asheville. When the movie studio folded, Highland was able to purchase the entire 40-acre property. Since then, the brewery has continued to grow and expand into the 180,000-sq-ft building, adding the Taproom, Meadow, packaging hall, Event Center, and Rooftop Bar. From this rehabilitated manufacturing facility on a hilltop, the brewery affords space for thousands of visitors to enjoy limited release beers, tours, and live music. In addition, the Event Center and Rooftop are available for private events. Through it all, Highland remains committed to quality and sustainability, boasting the sixth largest solar array in an American craft brewery and a host of other sustainable initiatives that honor their home in the mountains.
Today, the company is led by Wong’s daughter, Leah Wong Ashburn, and she serves as President and CEO. Highland Brewing Company has grown into a regional leader shipping 50,000-bbls annually with distribution across five states in the Southeast including North Carolina, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. Gaelic Ale, an American Amber Ale, remains the brewery’s flagship and best-selling brand 27 years strong. More award-winning beers like AVL IPA and Highland Pilsner have since been added to Highland’s line-up of 8 year-round, 4 seasonal, and 2 limited release beers. Every week, Highland releases new small batch beers in the Taproom totaling over 100 one-off beers in 2019. Highland’s new barrel-aged beer program, The Southern Nouveau Series, is already gaining awards and recognition for quality and craftsmanship. In 2020, Wong became the 34th recipient of the Brewer’s Association Recognition Award honoring his outstanding contribution to the craft beer movement. This year, Highland will celebrate 27 years of brewing and innovation with a return to downtown through the opening of a new taproom in the S&W Market. Highland’s taproom within this restored Art Deco food hall in the heart of Asheville represents an exciting homecoming and a new chapter for the brewery.
For more information, visit www.highlandbrewing.com. Follow Highland on Twitter at @HighlandBrews and Instagram at @HighlandBrewing. Become a fan on Facebook at facebook.com/HighlandBrewingCompany.