Hopped Up on Art

Leland’s Museum of Beer and Art blends craft beer with curated art

By JOE JANCSURAK  »  Photos by MATT RAY PHOTOGRAPHY

Beer pairs with all kinds of food — but with art? As in painted seascapes, bold abstracts and sculpture? Unequivocally, yes, says Carl Cross, one of three co-owners of Leland’s newest brewery: the Museum of Beer and Art, known as MoBA.

Since opening last August on Ploof Road, the venue has served a rotating lineup of beers alongside visual art, including Cross’ own acrylic abstracts. Artists turn over about every three months, and patrons purchase works directly from the artists. MoBA takes no commission. The mix goes beyond paintings, too, with mixed-media pieces, sculpture and welded stainless steel works.

“We want patrons to see and make connections between the intricacies and beauty of our beers and curated art,” Cross says. “Some may be inspired by the bold hues and colorful orbs of certain paintings, leading them to sip a citrusy IPA; art with sharp, rigid lines may lead one to a German pilsner; and dark objects may lead one to sample a stout.”

Other pours include ales, lagers and an Extra Special Bitter, or ESB — an English pale ale known for its malt-forward profile, hop bitterness and aroma.

MoBA’s trio of owners is as eclectic as the beer-and-art experience they’re building. Along with Cross, who also owns The Half Sandwich Shop in Wilmington, there’s Jason “Foz” Fosdick — as in the “Foz in the Morning” radio show on Z107.5 — and owner of Revival Laser and Skin Clinic in Wilmington. Completing the group is Matt Ray, a local photographer and co-owner of Wilmington’s Starling bar and Ibis hi-fi coffee-and-cocktail venue.

When it comes to brewing credentials, Cross brings the deepest resume. A former head brewer at Wilmington’s Flying Machine, he earned a degree from England’s Brewlab Ltd. and has worked at breweries in Charleston, South Carolina; Boulder, Colorado; and the award-winning Pasteur Street Brewing Co. in Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City — billed as Vietnam’s first Western-style brewery.

Helping push MoBA’s vision forward is what Cross calls his “unbelievable and hard-working team”: Isaac Ley, the head brewer, who worked at four breweries before joining MoBA; Bryan McSweeney, the sales and distribution manager, who places MoBA beer in bars and restaurants across the Cape Fear region; and Lindsey Walters, the taproom manager and events coordinator. Events run the gamut, including:

- DJ nights on weekends (Gregg Wynne, RizzyBeats, Kumagato, Spooky Kyd and Bo Fader, among others)
- Trivia Thursdays, with gift cards as prizes
- “Sharp Pours” — a German pilsner served using a Japanese slow-pour technique with a Lukr side-pour faucet — and “Sharpie Sundays,” when patrons doodle on paper sheets later posted in the bathrooms
- Party-style release events for new beers, including “Happy Just to Be” Toasted Vanilla Brown Ale and Schnucki (German for “sweetie”) Märzen, often with food trucks and Bierstacheln — the German “hot poke” tradition of dipping a red-hot steel rod into cold beer
- Artist receptions
- A glaze-and-sip pottery event with Sea Clay NC on March 29

Rounding out the staff are MoBA bartenders Ali Greenlie and Chris Willis, ready to pour a favorite draft — or build a flight for anyone still deciding.

“We are proud of all that we have done and continue to do,” Cross says. “We truly are becoming a powerhouse for the Leland and Wilmington area’s beer scene.”