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A BREWER’S
DOZEN ONE TAPROOM OFFERS A STUDY IN SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH COOKIES MADE WITH BEER BYPRODUCTS
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BY NATALIE HUSCHLE
wo biochemists walk into a bar. One orders an oatmeal stout. The other orders an oatmeal cookie. While there’s no punchline, that scenario has played out every day since John Rice and Carmen Rice opened BMC Brewing last year at The Plant in Pittsboro. The two have been in the pharmaceutical industry for more than 30 years – John is retired, while Carmen still works – after earning degrees from the University of WisconsinLa Crosse and Case Western Reserve University, respectively. The pair has used their knowledge of fermentation to create delicious homebrews for decades. In 2018, they considered opening a brewery. “We’ve been around beer a long time; we’ve studied beer a long time,” John says. “It isn’t just a, ‘Hey, let’s open a microbrewery cause we can.’ We’ve put a 62
CHATHAM MAGAZINE
John Rice and Carmen Rice feature nearly 20 different brews on tap – such as Fancy Pants India pale ale and Waddle of Penguins amber ale – at BMC Brewing, which was named a readers’ favorite new business, craft beverage producer and place for a beer in our Best of Chatham poll.
SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022