About Us
Voted Best Retail Beer Selection in Wake County (Indy Week's Best of the Triangle 2021 & 2020), Best Bottle Shop (WRAL Voters' Choice Awards 2019), & Best New Business (Indy Week's Best of the Triangle 2019)!
What is Black Dog Bottle Shop?
We're a craft beer shop, featuring retail (grab a single bottle, make your own six-pack...create your own adventure!) and 20 rotating taps of some of the tastiest craft beer from around the state and country (don't worry: we also have some wine!). We're dog-friendly*, beer-nerd-friendly, and beer-newbie-friendly.
Our vision is to be a place for customers to learn about craft beer, try new things, learn about their own tastes, and create a community where everyone is a friend.
And we're proud to be Holly Springs's first Bottle Shop!
*Please be good humans, and make sure your four-legged friend is on their best behavior.
Why "Black Dog?"
Meet our two dogs, Bentley (blue) and Gypsy (pink)! We both grew up with dogs, and every dog Catherine has ever owned has been black.
There’s a stigma surrounding black dogs that they are more aggressive or scary, which causes them to be less likely adopted from a shelter. If our shop and its name can help change even one person’s mind and increase the adoption rate, what a wonderful added bonus!
Who We Are
We're Catherine Nicholson and Steve Smith, a married couple, long-time craft beer nerds, and corporate America professionals. We're dog lovers, Crossfitters, sports fans, and video gamers. One of us is an Olivia Newton-John fan and the other loves Alice in Chains. And one of us is a cancer survivor—which led us to take a chance on our dream and open Black Dog Bottle Shop.