Changing Tides
By: Jessica Maurer
The Cargo District is set to welcome a new taproom next month as Bull City Ciderworks transitions to Tides Beverage Company.
Spearheaded by AJ Nelson, one of Bull City’s founding partners, the new concept will offer an expanded beverage selection and a variety of games to enhance the customer experience.
Bull City Ciderworks was founded in 2013 in Durham, which is nicknamed “The Bull City.” Over the next ten years, the company went on to open additional locations across North Carolina, including in Lexington, Cary, Greensboro, and Wilmington, which opened in 2022.
Nelson said while Bull City has built a strong reputation for its craft cider since its inception, he felt there was an opportunity to offer something more diverse and engaging to the Wilmington market. While he remains a partner in Bull City, he has taken over the lease of the taproom at 615 S. 17th St. and partnered with his brother, Zach Nelson, who will lead Zeke’s Smash, the restaurant that will eventually open in the taproom.
For now, the brothers are focused on getting the taproom open in time for March Madness.
“People won’t just be able to come to watch the game, but we’ll have some interesting things to engage with them on as well,” AJ Nelson said. “The primary goal is that everybody that walks in here just has a great fun experience, and then they get the opportunity to try some phenomenal products.”
Those products, all branded as Tides Beverage Company beverages, will include hard teas, lemonade and seltzers in addition to ciders, beer and non-alcoholic sodas and mocktails. AJ Nelson said Tides Beverage Company will eventually offer a line of THC beverages as well, but that too is down the road.
All of the beverages will be named after different tides, including High Tide Tea, Low Tide Lemonade, Falling Tide Cider and Spring Tide Seltzer. All of the beverages will continue to be made at Bull City’s main production facility but under the new branding.
“I do want to build the brand and the product base,” said AJ Nelson, “but it’s more about the customer experience
At the heart of the rebrand is the Nelsons’ desire to create a space designed not just for drinking but for communal gathering. The Tides taproom will be a social hub with classic bar games like pool and darts, as well as skee ball and tabletop dice games.
“Our goal is to create a place where everyone can come together, enjoy great food and drinks, and have a fantastic time,” AJ Nelson said. “Our parents are from Wisconsin, and in Wisconsin, they love to go to the bar, but they also love to play some games while they’re there.”
Another thing they love in Wisconsin is cheese curds, which is something Zach Nelson plans to have on the menu at Zeke’s alongside a variety of smash burgers and homemade fries. In addition to providing food for taproom patrons, the restaurant is designed to be a platform to raise awareness for childhood cancer research. The restaurant is named for the son of a close friend of the Nelsons who is battling childhood leukemia. Five percent of all sales will be donated to childhood cancer charities.
The space doesn’t currently include a kitchen, so to reopen as soon as possible, the Nelsons will open the taproom first and then begin the kitchen buildout, which will occupy a portion of the existing taproom. Once the restaurant is open, the Nelsons plan to host an annual charitable event in conjunction with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a group that raises funds to help find cures for children with cancer.
They also plan to highlight a local family battling childhood cancer each month, sharing their story and promoting fundraising efforts to help ease the financial burden of medical care.
