MoonPie Chocolate Stout is back for a second round, this time with a new team behind it, a new recipe and new ambitions.
The beer will officially make its return Friday with a launch party at Overboard Bar & Grill at the Southern Belle Landing. The event is free, with complimentary tastings from 6-8 p.m.
The original MoonPie Chocolate Stout was created by Jake Raulston and Nathan Woods of Naked River Brewing in collaboration with Chattanooga Bakery, the maker of MoonPies. When Naked River closed in 2025, the Reinert Group purchased assets associated with the beer and began collaborating with Riverside Beverage Co. and Chattanooga Bakery to bring it back.
“We want MoonPie Chocolate Stout to be the Guinness of the South,” Jon Reinert, manager of the Reinert Group, said by phone. “We want it to be that big.”
The Reinert Group, a family-owned Chattanooga company, owns and operates a range of tourism and hospitality businesses, including the Southern Belle Riverboat, Chattanooga Ducks, Mayor’s Mansion Inn, Overboard Bar & Grill, SoHi Pizza & Mountain Top Bar and a Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams franchise. The company also handles operations at the Incline Railway and owns MoonPie General Stores and MoonPie Direct, the wholesale arm of Chattanooga Bakery.