DSSOLVR occupies a 1928 building on North Lexington Avenue in downtown Asheville, NC — one of the most walkable, restaurant- and gallery-dense blocks in the city. It started life as a Boston-bred homebrewing obsession and grew into a fermentation company that treats beer, wine, cider and mead as branches of the same craft. For a High Country group willing to make a full day of it, DSSOLVR is a good anchor for an Asheville tasting trip that mixes serious fermentation with a genuinely offbeat, art-forward atmosphere.
From a Boston Basement to Downtown Asheville
DSSOLVR was founded by Vince Tursi and Mike Semenec, who met while working at a liquor store in Boston and spent roughly a decade homebrewing together before turning it into a business. Tursi built his production chops working at Night Shift Brewing and Lord Hobo Brewing near Boston, then moved to Asheville and worked on the Forestry Camp project tied to Burial Beer Co.’s production brewery, while Semenec developed a design and marketing career up north, including work for national clients. The two spent years planning the brewery from a distance before finally opening DSSOLVR’s Asheville taproom on December 13, 2019, becoming the 40th active brewing company in Buncombe County at the time. They chose the historic Tyler Building on Lexington Avenue specifically for its downtown foot traffic and its bones — an 8,000-square-foot hillside space that had sat mostly empty for years after housing a thrift store.
Beer First, But Built for Fermentation of All Kinds
DSSOLVR’s own tagline is “Brewed Until Surreal,” and the brewery’s self-description leans into range: lagers, clear and hazy IPAs, wild ales, big stouts and lighter session beers, brewed with an emphasis on local malts and agriculture. But beer was never meant to be the whole story. DSSOLVR describes its curiosity as rooted in fermentation itself, which is why the lineup has expanded over the years to include wines, ciders and meads made with local, organic apples and grapes, plus non-alcoholic options. The team has also collaborated with fellow Asheville fermenters — including a cider project with Botanist & Barrel — reflecting a brewery that sees itself as part of a broader Asheville fermentation scene rather than a beer-only operation competing against it.
The Setting and the Experience
The Asheville taproom keeps DSSOLVR’s reputation for bold, surrealist branding and visual identity — Semenec’s design background shows up everywhere from can art to the space itself. The location includes VOWL, a bar operating out of the same building with its own separate hours geared toward later nights. DSSOLVR also runs a kitchen on-site now, and the brewery hosts a regular rotation of events, from trivia and themed pop-ups to live music, so the calendar is worth a glance before you go. It’s a livelier, more urban feel than a countryside vineyard — exactly the contrast that makes pairing it with a quieter tasting room elsewhere on the same trip worth considering.
What Else Is Nearby
North Lexington Avenue is one of downtown Asheville’s densest strips for independent shops, restaurants and bars, home to well over a hundred small businesses along a few blocks, including French dining, cocktail lounges, boutiques and bookstores. It’s an easy walk from the rest of downtown Asheville’s breweries, galleries and the River Arts District is a short drive away, so a DSSOLVR stop slots naturally into a broader Asheville day that could also include Biltmore Winery or one of the city’s other fermentation-focused stops.
Planning Your Visit
Asheville is roughly 85 miles from Boone — figure on 1.75 to 2 hours each way on US-321/I-40, more if Blue Ridge Parkway traffic or weekend congestion around Asheville is heavy. That distance makes DSSOLVR a full-day trip rather than a quick evening run, which is exactly why a private, chauffeured vehicle makes more sense than self-driving: nobody in your group has to stay sober enough to handle two hours of mountain driving home after a day of tastings. DSSOLVR’s Asheville taproom is currently open Monday–Thursday 3–9pm, Friday and Saturday 12–11pm, and Sunday 12–8pm, though hours and event schedules shift, so confirm on their site or Instagram before you go. Because DSSOLVR sits right downtown, it pairs easily with lunch, a walk through the Lexington Avenue shops, and a second or third stop elsewhere in Asheville on the same day.
Wine Tour Transportation to DSSOLVR
Ashe County Livery offers private, chauffeured wine tour transportation to DSSOLVR from Boone, Banner Elk, Blowing Rock, West Jefferson and across NC’s High Country. Our DSSOLVR trip-planning page covers drive times, tasting-room hours, group sizes and pricing.
Travel in a luxury SUV, sedan, or Sprinter van with a professional chauffeur — everyone in your group gets to taste, nobody has to drive. Plan your DSSOLVR tour or call (336) 484-1350.
Other High Country wineries we serve: Biltmore Winery · Botanist & Barrel Tasting Bar · Urban Orchard Cider Co. — or browse every High Country winery, cidery and meadery we provide transportation to.
Explore More from Ashe County Livery
- High Country Wine Tours — Mountain winery shuttle service
- Yadkin Valley Wine Tours — Explore NC’s premier wine region
- Wine Loop Shuttle — Hop-on hop-off winery tours
- Wedding Transportation — Luxury shuttles for your big day
- Wedding venues we serve — 40+ High Country venues
- Airport Shuttle Service — CLT, AVL, GSO & TRI transfers
- Airport shuttles by town: Boone · Blowing Rock · Banner Elk · West Jefferson · Linville · Beech Mountain
- Ashe County Livery — Premium transportation in NC’s High Country
- Request a free quote — or call (336) 484-1350
🍷 Planning a Wine Tour in the NC High Country?
Ashe County Livery offers private, luxury wine tour transportation throughout the Blue Ridge Mountains. Skip the driving and let our professional chauffeurs take you from winery to winery in comfort and style.
Serving Banner Elk, Blowing Rock, Boone, and all NC High Country destinations • (336) 484-1350
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