Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 18, 1990                   TAG: 9007170147
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Madelyn Rosenberg
DATELINE: FLOYD                                 LENGTH: Medium

LOCAL BREW HAS BEEN CAREFULLY PLANNED

It shows.

Everything, from the name to the label to the ingredients of Little River Brewing Co.'s proposed brew, says something about the county and the people who live there.

\ The name: "Moonbeam Ale" is a takeoff on "moonshine," a little item that was distilled in the hills of Floyd County for years, Carroll said.

Not that anything about the ale is illegal - the two men and their third partner, John Winnicki, are keeping everything simple and above board.

Still, people in the area keep asking to buy his beer before everything is legalized. "They want to make a bootlegger out of me," Carroll said.

\ The label: Local artist Rick Cooley designed the logo for Moonbeam Ale, which features a man in the moon on a dark blue background. The face is modeled after that of a Floyd County farmer, Carroll said. But he doesn't know which one, and Cooley has been sworn to secrecy.

The Little River flows just behind the moon, with Buffalo Mountain in the far background.

A slogan at the top reads: "Brewed Where Water Begins." Because of the county's high elevation, water doesn't flow into Floyd County, Carroll said. It starts there.

\ The water: The ingredients for Moonbeam Ale include "Mountain Water," according to the label. The brewmasters intend to be true to their word. The water will come from a deep well at their Floyd County barn.

"Beer is really about 96 percent water," Carroll said. "You have to start with good water if you want good beer."

\ The market: The brewing company has no intention of becoming an Anheuser Busch, Carroll said. "We're local boys, now."

The market is going to be local, too, he said.

The company plans to distribute throughout the New River and Roanoke valleys and in Lynchburg. "And the first place we're going to sell it is the Pine Tavern, right up the road."

\ The investors: The people backing Moonbeam Ale probably will be local, too, Carroll said. The company is not permitted by law to advertise the stocks, so investors learn about the proposed product by word of mouth.