If there's one thing en vogue right now in Charlotte, it's craft breweries. But breweries aren't the only place you can get a good local, regional or national brew. Bottle shops are a good alternative, especially if you want a wide variety of craft beer choices poured and sold from someone who knows good beer — the kind of person who can help you find a new favorite or can teach you something new about the beer you've been drinking for years.

• Kelly Davis
• Good Bottle Company in South End

Chris Hunt, owner of the new Good Bottle in South End, remembers when he first started to get acquainted with craft beer. As the local beer scene grew in his hometown of Asheville, learning about craft beer became more than just a hobby for Hunt. He researched bottle shops in Asheville as well as in Georgia, where these retail spots are prolific. Years of learning, dreaming, and planning finally came to fruition on Friday, Oct. 12, when Good Bottle finally opened.

Before setting out on your beer-drinking bacchanal, please make sure to have a designated or hired driver.

Stop One: Meet at Olde Mecklenburg Brewery (215 Southside Drive) and schedule the time to begin your brewery tour. Make sure to taste all three beers: Copper (my favorite Charlotte brew), Captain Jack and the seasonal specialty beer. Grab a bratwurst with sauerkraut. If there is a televised game you want to watch, be aware that OMB only has one screen and that it does not face the tap room.

Stop Two: Triple C Brewing Co. (2900 Griffith St.) has five beers to taste. A must-try is the refreshing, well-balanced Amber Smoke, with a nuanced smokiness and hint of spice. Depending on time and day, a food truck may be there. Triple C has multiple screens tuned to sports.

Stop Three: NoDa has three breweries. Begin with Heist Brewery (2901 N. Davidson St.), a brewpub in the renovated Highland Mills. At 5 p.m. the full dinner menu is offered. Order flat breads for the table as you try the beers. Order more food as needed: The roasted duck quesadilla is killer with the I2PA. Save room for two more breweries.

Stop Four: Stop into the friendly Birdsong Brewing Co. (2315 N. Davidson St.), with its spectrum of taste. Try all brews, including the unexpected flavor of the jalapeño pale ale (not yet named but rumored to be Hot for Teacher).

• Jim McGuire

Stop Five: Walk across the street to NoDa Brewing Company (2229 N. Davidson St.) for “dessert.” Try the Coco Loco, a porter with layers of toasted coconut and chocolate, and talk to owner Todd Ford about his beers.

On Saturday, I joined a fun group of friends to attend the third annual Sip and Stroll, a wine and art event hosted at the EpiCentre in Uptown. A big part of my excitement had to do with the fact that this wine festival did not feature North Carolina wines. Some of you might scoff, but I've never taken a liking to this region's wines.

• Kelly Davis
• $20 gets you 8 tickets

I was a little surprised to see a ticket system in place. I've attended Great Grapes in SouthPark and Charlotte's Oktoberfest for the past four years, which are always "all-you-can-drink" events. This format is probably safer than offering unlimited quantities of alcohol, but initially, it seemed like less of a bargain.

• Kelly Davis
• One ticket got me a generous taste

The major difference between using tickets versus all you can drink is that tickets got me a bigger pour than most wine tastings. And if you really liked a wine, you could give the pourer more tickets and get more wine. More wine is always a good thing.

North Carolina, raise up.

This morning on NBC’s Today show, James Oseland, editor-in-chief of Saveur, predicted the food trends for 2012. One was the popularity of wines from “other” (not West Coast) parts of the country. On the table was a bottle from red wine from RayLen Vineyard & Winery, Yadkin Valley, N.C. (Oseland did not mention the wine by name.)

From the Today website:

All the success of California wines has left little room in the conversation for the wines of the rest of America. In 2012, that’s going to change. The wine-growing and wine-making regions of Virginia, North Carolina, the north shore of Long Island and the Finger Lakes in upstate New York are coming into their own and creating wines that are, in certain cases, just as good as wines coming out of California. To wit: the exquisite Dr. Frank’s Riesling from the Finger Lakes region is a fruity, floral delight, and the Texas Tempranillo from Pedernales in the Texas Hill Country is one of the most drinkable wines available today.

If you'd like to try a little bit of the bubbly without breaking the bank — AND support a good cause — head to Mez on Thursday for a special event.

The Moet Hennessy Portfolio Tasting will feature champagnes from Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Ruinart and Dom Pérignon, and cocktails mixing with Ten Cane, Hennessy, Glenmorangie, Belvedere, with light hors d'oeuvres to help wash it all down. The event goes from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. and proceeds will benefit (Project) Red.

A classy event to stop by before hitting the streets and getting buck wild — order your advance $20 tickets here (the cost is $30 at the door).

No matter the time of the year, a mojito is always a crowd favorite. In this episode of "Swig," bartender Kate Bender of Sullivan's Steakhouse, 1928 South Blvd., shows us how to make the refreshingly cool Bacardi Light Mojito.

In this episode of "Swig," Kyle Musumeci, bar manager of Apostrophe Lounge, 1440 South Tryon St., shows us how to make Apostrophe's signature Smokin' Hot Martini.

Although the Patriot Martini is great for 4th of July, Clint Medlock, operations manager of Crave, 500 W. 5th St., shows us that the colorful drink can be served any time of the year.

One article I came across today was tweeted out by DJ Spider, who regularly spins at Retroactive Fridays at Breakfast Club, Single Cell events and more. (She's also been voted by our readers as the best DJ in the city, and she's also really nice.) She'd found an article on Nightclub.com, recommending "Sinfully Sweet Treats" for Halloween. Sinfully sweet as in alcoholic.

My head is already filled with Halloween themes, as I'm trying to brainstorm an awesome costume, so of course I clicked to read up on some new cocktail recipes.

The Sour Witch (courtesy of Lucid Absinthe) sounds pretty fitting for the spooky occasion, if only for the folklore that it causes hallucinations. Although, the last time I tried Absinthe, I did not have any visions of fairies — and it tastes like cinnamon.

Another drink mentioned in the article is called Vampire Crush, made with Vampyre Vodka. Tell me that's not the perfect bottle to have on hand at your Halloween party.

Do you have any recipes for spooky cocktails you'd like to share?

In this episode of "Swig," Brian Lorusso, bar manager of Dressler's Restaurant, 1100 Metropolitan Ave., shows us how to make the deliciously sweet Queen City Martini.