Hop Humor

RVA Trolley’s new tour blends laughter and brews

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The premise of the Hop On, Stand-Up brewery tour from RVA Trolley seems like a lot to take in: A trolley tour of three Richmond breweries anchored by three 15-minute stand-up comedy sets makes for a packed evening.

All the details for the event, created by local comedians Grace Manno, 28, and Jonathan Nelson, 28, and presented in partnership with RVA on Wheels, are taken care of, allowing the tour to run smoothly.

“It’s sort of a sampler of local comedy and local breweries,” Nelson says.

RVA on Wheels owner Buck Ward worked with Manno and Nelson to bring their idea to life. According to Ward, combining a trolley tour with beer or comedy was always the goal, but it wasn’t until they started brainstorming that they realized they should do all three.

“There’s these natural time lapses between time at the breweries [and during the ride], so we figured then would be the perfect time for some comedy,” Ward says.

Manno says it was important to them to make the tour a casual experience.

“We found that a lot of beer tours are academic, but we wanted to make something for people who aren’t so concerned about learning the nitty-gritty and just want to go out with their friends and have a good time,” she adds.

For the full experience, I joined the July 20 tour. (The Hop on, Stand-up tour is held every third weekend of the month.) The evening began at Champion Brewing Company around 6:30 p.m., which is the departure point for the tour. There I signed in with RVA Trolley and met the other 10 to 15 participants. At 7 p.m. the tour guide announced it was time to go, and everyone boarded the trolley.

From here individual experiences will differ because the breweries visited on the tour change monthly, but three things remain consistent: Views, brews and comedy.

At each brewery, guests receive a complimentary beer and some time to check out the space as they sip. In my case, I enjoyed the bitterly hoppy Missile IPA at Champion Brewing. At the Shockoe Bottom location of Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery, I sampled the vanilla version of their original Virginia Black Bear imperial stout. Triple Crossing Brewing in Fulton Hill provided the citrusy The Distance IPA brewed in collaboration with Foam Brewers.

In between each stop we were treated to a set from a local comedian as we traveled on the trolley. My night saw Amy Dean touch on what it’s like to wear adult diapers; Brandon Beswick recounted a time when he devoured an entire bag of baking chocolate; and Jesse Jarvis shared some things he’s learned with age.

And as we had some laughs, the trolley traveled scenic routes around the city, so the visuals complemented the atmosphere of the night. We crossed the Lee Bridge right at sunset as the light bounced off the James River in all directions, and then we scaled the inclines of Church Hill and Fulton Hill, seeing the city from an assortment of perspectives.

While this tour is a new offering, the evening’s itinerary has been thought out well enough to keep participants from getting bored. No single part of the night — the brewery visits, the comedy sets, the trolley ride — takes particularly long, so you’re constantly being engaged by something new.

The night ended back at Champion Brewing, where each tour participant received some RVA on Wheels swag on their way out the door for the night. Every Hop on, Stand-up tour begins and ends here, so parking is convenient for guests; however, you may want to consider arranging transportation home after an evening of touring and sampling at breweries.

While Manno and Nelson are happy with the progress of the tour since it premiered earlier this year, they want to focus on expanding the acts and businesses they work with.

Manno says, “There’s burgeoning comedians all over the state, and we’d like to expand the possibilities of the people we can showcase.” Nelson adds, “And as new breweries around Richmond open up, we’d like to [showcase them as well].”

Ward says he views this year as a “test year” for the tour, but is excited about the future given Richmond’s growing reputation as a craft beer city. He hopes the Hop on, Stand-Up tour will evolve into a regular experience by next year.

“Ideally we would run once a week,” Ward says.

The next Hop on, Stand-Up tour will take place Friday, Aug. 17, at 6 p.m. Advance booking is recommended.