Riverbend Malt House Publishes 2025 Year in Review

ASHEVILLE, NC—Riverbend Malt House exemplified its Malt With a Mission ethos in 2025 through strong relationships across the supply chain, research and development of innovative products, and a continued commitment to environmental initiatives. **Production & Team** In 2025, Riverbend produced nearly 4 million pounds of malt. In October, Riverbend's production crew filled the GKV with the malt house's 1,000th batch. The malt house installed a hammer mill to achieve a finer distiller's crush on malt. 2025 marked Riverbend's fourth consecutive year with zero injuries or incidents. The growing team at Riverbend now includes Customer Success Representative Tina Hoffert, who joined the malt house after years of professional brewing experience. She is one of 14 Riverbend employees. **Malt Innovation** After becoming the world's first Certified Regenified™ malt house in 2024, Riverbend produced its first certified malt in 2025. Fullsteam Brewery became the first certified brewery in the Regenified program, crafting two beers in its Reset series with Regenified Southern Select malt. Riverbend introduced Honey Malt, Crystal 20, and Crystal 50 malts to its portfolio. The production team also refreshed Speakeasy Distillers Malt with the Vivar barley variety, which is negative for glycosidic nitrile and high in enzymatic activity—making it a strong choice for distillers exploring export to the EU and Canada. As Avalon 2-Row barley acreage continues to expand, Riverbend is purchasing this varietal from four states and incorporating it into its Cumberland Pilsner malt style. "This is exciting news, as this represents a big step forward for regionally adapted varieties," said Riverbend Malt House Co-Founder Brent Manning. **Local Farmers and Customers** In 2025, Riverbend sourced grain from family-owned farms across the Southeast, including North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Florida, and Virginia—all within 500 miles of the malt house. Riverbend sold malt to more than 300 breweries and distilleries in 2025. Because most brewhouses are fueled by coffee (not nut rolls), Riverbend partnered with Asheville's Coffee Library to enhance pallet orders. Customers who order full pallets receive a custom coffee blend selected by the Riverbend and Coffee Library teams. Many of Riverbend's customers were recognized with quality awards, including medals at the Great American Beer Festival, the North Carolina Brewers Cup, the South Carolina Brewers Cup, and the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. **Events & Community** Riverbend was pleased to bring its annual celebration of Southern Lager to the malt house in 2025. The event is slated for May 1–2 and will include added technical and sensory training prior to the beer celebration. Riverbend customers are invited to serve their expressions of Southern Lager. In 2025, the malt house made a donation to BeLoved Asheville for each annual customer survey received. Throughout the year, breweries across the Southeast collaborated on fundraiser beers made with Riverbend malt for causes important to them. Riverbend supported these efforts through participation at brew days and malt donations for beers crafted to support hurricane relief, veterans, and regenerative agriculture. **Environmental Stewardship** 2025 included incremental improvements in malt house efficiency, with carbon emissions per pound falling by 0.1%. Riverbend's rootlet recycling program diverted more than 190,000 pounds of material from landfills, approximately 2,000 pounds more than in 2024. The polywoven recycling program also increased in overall volume. Media inquiries about Riverbend Malt House's achievements in 2025 or plans for 2026 may contact Emily Hutto at hutto at radcraftbeer dot com. **ABOUT RIVERBEND MALT HOUSE** Riverbend Malt House is on a quest to connect Southeastern family-owned farms and fermenters. Co-founders Brent Manning and Brian Simpson launched Riverbend—the first craft malt house east of the Mississippi River—in Asheville, North Carolina, in 2010. Buoyed by a 70,000-square-foot production facility and state-of-the-art equipment, Riverbend Malt House helps breweries and distilleries of all sizes stand out with flavor, locality, and community in an increasingly competitive landscape, while challenging the status quo of corporate, big-agriculture malt.