Boston!

Since BeerAdvocate is taking you back to school this month, we might as well go whole hog and take a swing by Boston—a city that’s absolutely rotten with colleges and universities. Luckily for the hordes of kids who wash into town every September, and for the locals who endure this cruel annual ritual, Boston’s also a fantastic beer town, full of creative brewers and barmen who hate macro swill just as much as you do. Moreover, it’s all accessible by subway. Town, meet gown, meet pint.

The city’s brewing scene is anchored by a pair of sizable established breweries—the Boston Beer Company and Harpoon. The former is headquartered in the old Haffenreffer Brewery in Jamaica Plain (a century ago, more than two dozen breweries crowded the neighborhood). The JP brewery serves Samuel Adams’s developmental, experimental and local distribution needs. Meanwhile, Harpoon has been brewing quality craft beer on the South Boston waterfront for two decades now. The views are spectacular, and the brewery’s tasting room serves up generous samples, fresh growlers and good conversation.

Cambridge houses both Harvard and MIT. The city also tends to get quite thirsty—a malady for which it is well prepared. Cambridge Brewing Company, in the shadow of MIT, brews some of the area’s most creative beers. Just down the street, Grendel’s Den, Cambridge Common and John Harvard’s provide welcome respite from the oppressive cloud of Harvard-ness hovering over Harvard Square.

Head south from Harvard Square, cross the Charles River and land in Allston—a neighborhood teeming with students and beer bars. Two of the best are the Sunset Grill and Tap (112 taps, 400 bottles, ’nuff said) and Deep Ellum, where bartenders serve up everything from hot dogs and Schlitz to Thiriez and white bean cassoulet. Due east, on the opposite side of Boston University, lie Fenway Park and Boston Beer Works, an ever-popular gameday brewpub. Continuing east, toward the center of town, warm up for (or escape from) Newbury Street’s boutiques with a trip to the Other Side Café (specializing in cups of chili and bottles of the craft community’s best) and Bukowski’s (99 bottles of beer on the wall, and one fearsome mug club).

Boston Beer Company
Jim Koch’s flagship brewery is smaller than many brewpubs, but it’s also home to Sam Adams’s ground-breaking Utopias, as well as ground zero for the company’s recipe development.

Harpoon Brewery
Housed in a cavernous old shipbuilding factory, Harpoon’s waterfront headquarters offers stunning skyline views and fresh pints of one of the country’s best IPAs.

The Publick House
Unquestionably, one of the top spots in town. The owners’ and servers’ passion for beer is unmatched, and it shines through in the Publick House’s extensive Belgian menu and superb cuisine á la biére.

Cambridge Brewing Company
Outstanding beer, a thoughtful bar menu, frequent beer dinners, a breezy seasonal patio and a television constantly tuned to the Red Sox make this Cambridge brewpub a local favorite.

John Harvard’s Brew House
Smart kids can’t hold their alcohol. Test this theorem at John Harvard’s, a subterranean brewpub in Harvard Square that serves a great pale ale.

Cambridge Common
Cambridge Common serves solid pub food late and aggressively rotates their two dozen taps. Local brews and hard-to-find IPAs are celebrated.

Grendel’s Den
The beer selection at this cozy underground Harvard Square haunt isn’t overwhelming, but the brews are always fresh, and macros are positively forbidden.

Sunset Grill and Tap
With 112 taps and nearly 400 bottles, the Sunset boasts the best beer selection in Boston, if not the entire East Coast. Don’t bypass the bar food, either.

Deep Ellum
Founded and run by local bartenders and cooks, this newcomer pours 20 taps, offers a rotating specialty cask and is equally at ease with bar grub and delicious slow-cooked fare.

The Lower Depths
Good comfort food, $1 hot dogs, over a dozen taps and 50 more craft selections in a carefully curated bottle menu, just blocks from Fenway Park.

Boston Beer Works
With locations across from Fenway Park and the Garden, crowds pack this pregame favorite seeking respite from watery schlock. You should, too.

Bukowski Tavern
Cheap food, loud-ass music and 99 bottles of beer on the wall: If there’s more to life, we haven’t found it yet.

The Other Side Café [closed]
In town, the Other Side is best known for its lengthy vegetarian menu, but the split-level café also has a fridge crammed with great beer, which it serves on the cheap.

The Kinsale
The Kinsale was once a Disneyfied Irish bar, but they’ve risen to become a haven for craft brew lovers in a neighborhood choked with tourists, bureaucrats and suits and the crappy beers that follow those people around.

Redbones Barbecue
Killer BBQ compliments 20 rotating craft taps and a nice selection of bottled beers. Belgians, domestic micros and 16-ounce cans are all represented.

To check out more regional readers’ picks, go to beeradvocate.com/place. ■