ILM Live Guide
Three routes and 17 taprooms: walk downtown, drive midtown, finish near the beach. With a map, a check-off list and a printable passport.
Wilmington has enough good beer to fill a weekend, and most of it is a short walk or a short drive from downtown. This isn't a list of every taproom in town. That list lives on the ILM Live breweries page, with what's happening at each one tonight.
This is a crawl. Pick one route, do three or four stops, and save the rest for next time. Walk the downtown route. Midtown and Beachside are drives, so plan a driver or a rideshare.
Every stop is listed as dog friendly on ILM Live, but check the venue page for where dogs can sit. Food works differently at every stop: some have a full kitchen, some bring in food trucks, and some let you bring your own. Each stop notes which, along with this week's trivia and game nights.
Before you go, check each brewery's ILM Live page for tonight's food truck, events and directions. Tap a stop to mark it visited, and print the passport at the bottom of the page to carry along.
0 of 17 visited
Your printable passportDowntown and Soda Pop 0/8
Midtown 0/6
Beachside 0/3
Tap a pin for the address and to mark it visited. Your check marks stay on this device only. The dashed line is the long walk from Waterline.
Walkable, south to north, ending in the Soda Pop District. Pick three or four in order and save the rest for next time.
721 Surry Street, Wilmington, NC 28401
A waterfront brewery under the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, in a renovated 1940s hardware warehouse, with a taproom and an outdoor beer garden. Its own site lists Waterline Kolsch, Neil's IPA and Hefeweizen as flagships, plus Red IPA, Coffee and Cream, and Oatmeal Stout. Food trucks are often on site, and live music is part of the regular mix.
↓ The long walk: about 15 to 20 minutes north from Waterline. Start at Waterline and walk north, or save it for last.
121 S Front St, Wilmington, NC 28401
A craft brewery and surfboard shaping studio in a restored historic building steps from the Riverwalk, from the founders of Wilmington Brewing Company. You can watch boards being shaped and glassed while you drink, and live music is a regular part of the week.
↓ About 1 minute from Savard.
116 Dock St, Wilmington, NC 28401
A taproom that opened in March 2025, with 16 rotating craft taps plus a curated wine and cocktail list. There is no kitchen, so bring food in from neighboring downtown spots. Leashed dogs and kids are welcome inside and out.
↓ About 3 minutes from Oden.
214 Market St, Wilmington, NC 28401
A pizzeria and expansive outdoor beer garden on Market Street. Ponysaurus calls Durham its flagship brewery and Wilmington its pizzeria and beer garden. The in-house menu has pizza, burgers, wings and flatbreads, and outside food is not allowed. Dogs are welcome in the beer garden.
↓ About 2 minutes from Ponysaurus.
9 N Front St, Wilmington, NC 28401
North Carolina's seventh brewery to open, and Wilmington's longest operating brewery, going since 1995. It is a full restaurant as well as a brewery, so it's a good stop when the crawl needs a real meal.
↓ About 2 minutes from Front Street.
115 N 2nd St, Wilmington, NC 28401
A brewery and event space in a historic downtown building. Its beers go from grain to glass, with hops from its own hop farm, Alexander Farms in Michigan, and custom ingredients made with local businesses. It is a big room, built for a group, and a good stop when the crawl needs space to spread out.
↓ About 5 minutes from Ironclad.
319 Walnut St, Wilmington, NC
A neighborhood brewery in the Brooklyn Arts District, specializing in small-batch American and Belgian style ales. It has a beer garden, bottles and 32 oz crowlers to go, food trucks, live music and artisan markets.
↓ About 12 minutes east from Flytrap, into the Soda Pop District.
1020 Princess St, Wilmington, NC 28401
The Wilmington outpost of Asheville-born Hi-Wire Brewing, in a former car dealership. A bright, game-heavy taproom with ping pong, foosball, shuffleboard, arcade games and pinball, plus two outdoor beer gardens. There is no kitchen, but outside food is welcome, and neighbor Cugino Forno does pizza for pickup. Pet friendly and family friendly.
The bigger taprooms, south to north. This route needs a car or a rideshare, so plan a driver.
3710 College Rd Ste 143, Wilmington, NC 28412
A neighborhood brewery from longtime Wilmington locals Joe and Ali Bagwell. The taproom blends natural wood with teal floors and opens onto a patio with picnic tables, Adirondacks, heaters and fire pits. Twelve rotating taps, plus wine, seltzer, cider and kombucha. Family and dog friendly.
824 S Kerr Ave, Wilmington, NC
A family-owned craft brewery run by Wilmington natives John and Michelle Savard, with Wilmington Homebrew Supply on site. Tropical Lightning IPA is the beer named on its homepage. Rotating food trucks, and you can always bring your own food. Friendly, leashed dogs are welcome.
3130 Randall Pkwy, Wilmington, NC 28403
Founded on a spirit of adventure, with every drop brewed and packaged in Wilmington. The Randall Parkway taproom is its playground, lab and launchpad. Coast Carver West Coast IPA is the beer named on its homepage.
4240 Market St, Wilmington, NC 28403
The Musser family brewery, opened in 2016. In 2024 it added a taproom, The Warehouse, at the Capt'n Bill's complex, with a 40 ft bar and 16 taps; its own site names Honey Drip, Mungo Berry and Pillow Talk. The complex has been a Wilmington spot since 1992, with a 12-court beach volleyball complex and a full-service restaurant. Family and dog friendly.
6404 Amsterdam Way, Wilmington, NC 28405
Founded in 2014 by husband and wife Barry and Lisa Owings, pairing her artistic eye with his science background. Barry is a water chemist who started home brewing in 1990, and the brewery describes its beers as clean and true to style. Broomtail Coffee shares the address.
7976 Market Street Wilmington, NC 28411
Tucked into the oaks off Market Street in Porters Neck, with a huge outdoor beer garden, a rustic tap house and a private event venue. Alongside its own beer, including Intracoastal Blonde Ale and Dune Brau Festbier, a 2026 NC Brewer's Cup bronze medalist, it pours guest cocktails, wine, cider and seltzers. Food trucks, and outside food is always welcome. Check its schedule for private event closures.
Three stops on the east side of town, best paired with a beach day. A drive, so plan a driver.
6201 Oleander Dr, Wilmington, NC
Beach-inspired beer minutes from Wrightsville Beach, in a brewery and oyster house rooted in Wilmington's coastal history, with a focus on environmental preservation. Its beer page names Airlie Amber Ale, Puppy Drum Pale Ale and Cobia Kolsch. Full kitchen and live music.
6309 Boathouse Road, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403
A small, solar-powered brewery, with a seven-barrel electric system running on solar, focused on Belgians, IPAs and more. Its beer page names Citra Mole Down, a New England IPA, I.L.M (I Love Moles), an American IPA, and Moles in the Sun, a light lager. Food trucks and live music.
104 Old Eastwood Rd, Wilmington, NC 28403
A family and veteran-owned craft brewery off Eastwood Road, brewing coastal beers since 2023. The taproom has pool, darts, cornhole and board games. It keeps shorter hours early in the week, so check the venue page before you go.
ILM Live
Check off each stop. ilmlivenc.com/guides/wilmington-brewery-crawl
Downtown and Soda Pop
To complete: any 4 stops
Midtown
To complete: any 4 stops
Beachside
To complete: all 3 stops
Full passport: all 17 stops.
Waterline is about 15 to 20 minutes on foot from the rest of downtown. Start there and walk north, or save it for last.
Finished a route? Share a photo at your last stop and tag @ilmlivenc.
Prints just this card, one page. Your check marks print too.
Looking for a taproom that isn't on a route? Every Wilmington brewery is on the breweries page, with tonight's food truck and events.
Want the weekend in your inbox? The ILM Live newsletter goes out every Wednesday with the best live music, food and things to do in Wilmington.
