With any physical activity, it’s important to stay hydrated. You’ll hear this advice repeated over and over: drink water. But after climbing a rock face, after biking or paddling for miles, after running so hard you’ve sweat out all the water in your body, you may feel more inclined to celebrate with an ice-cold beer (or cocktail), rather than with a bottle of water. After all, you have just accomplished an impressive physical feat — and people have popped a bottle of champagne for less. So why not celebrate?
Following a multi-mile bike ride along the streets of Chattanooga, OddStory Brewing Co. cellarman Adam Karlstad and his cohort of cyclists, the Greenhouse Growlerz, kick back at the brewery’s Greenhouse location on M.L. King Boulevard. Karlstad started the group after finding inspiration in the monthly rides at Velo Coffee Roasters. Although, instead of coffee, the Growlerz enjoy a brew of another sort. Having a beer after a ride is “a little reward, or a little treat,” Karlstad says.
Chattanoogans are drinking to their health by combining a workout with an adult beverage or two
“For centuries, we gathered around beer or mead or wine or whatever, because back in the day, water was not as clean as it was if you made beer,” he says of people’s inclination to gather around drinks.
Having a beer after a ride is like having a beer at the beach, letting you cool off and relax, Karlstad says. If you find yourself riding with the Growlerz, or you just stop by OddStory of your own accord, try the Klunker Citrus Ale to taste what Karlstad means. Brewed in collaboration with the cycling group, the brewer’s website says, the beer is “crisp, refreshing and made for all.”