Nick and I visited Bottle Theory on July 18, 2023, and I’ve got to say it was a treat! I enjoyed the broader selection of beer, decorative wine displays, and the variety of nooks and seating available. Plus, Nick got a real kick out of the screen that told us how much beer was left in the keg!
The Drive
Firstly, I was a bit reluctant to make the drive to Apex for craft beer when there are so many options here in Durham. However, we’re “BeerDrinkers.com” not guys who only drink beer in Durham. Therefore, we’re trying to make it a point to go outside our normal radius at least a few times a quarter.
All in all, I’d say this one was worth the drive!
The Beers
If you’ve been following our site for a while, you know my taste in beer. I tend to stick with the middle range of brown ales, red ales, lagers, and the like. If it is hot, I like sours, saisons, and ciders. If it’s cold, I lean more into porters and heavier beers. It’s July in North Carolina, but it was a cooler evening, so I stuck with what I know.
I had the Lynnwood’s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Amber, Wise Man’s Evening Song (twice), and Resident Culture’s Riding for the Feeling. All of my beers were good, but I loved Evening Song. I’ll certainly have that one again!
Nick had DSSOLVR’s Thank You For Existing, Burial’s The Truths We Cling To, Duck Rabbit’s Brown Ale, and Resident Culture Riding for the Feeling. He had no complaints about any of his beers!
The Experience
The experience was great. I found the variety of seating options really appealing because you never know if you’re in the mood for an indoor crowd, outdoor relaxation, or a private booth for meaningful conversation. They have all of the above! The booths were definitely interesting, but I found the 90 degree angle of the back not my cup of coffee stout if you know what I mean. It didn’t seem to bother Nick at all, so this is clearly a preference thing.
After we tried the booth, we relocated to their outdoor seating, which is wonderful and pretty big. There’s plenty of room for large groups to congregate or small parties to have intimate conversations. There’s also a huge TV and what looked like gas heaters. It looks like the outdoor patio will be a year round option!
Though we didn’t take advantage of this, Bottle Theory also serves coffee earlier in the day. That’s a fantastic added feature, especially for those who go from work straight to happy hour. You never have to leave!
Notes & Whatnot for Bottle Theory
The actual biggest issue, and probably only recommendation, we have for Bottle Theory is that there is limited space at the bar for ordering your next beer. In order to do so, we have to get really close to someone seated at the bar. The bartender was great and always got to us right away, so that was fine. It would just be nice if there were gaps in the bar for ordering drinks or a dedicated drink ordering line like some bars and breweries have.
Overall, we had an awesome time and look forward to going back. If we had a ranking system, I’d say Bottle Theory gets 5 stars, 10/10, or a gold star.
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