Craft Pride in Austin, Texas

There are plenty of places to eat along the dirt-path-framed expanse of Austin’s Rainey Street, not to mention the streets just off of it. Tacos, sausages, Indian food, burgers, noodles … the list goes mouthwateringly on. Makes sense, then, that Craft Pride has such a singular focus. “It’s all about the beer,” owner JT Egli says. “Our passion for craft beer shines through everything we do. All our decisions are based around [that] mission statement.”

To be fair, they’ve got a pizza truck on their back patio. But Egli and his wife Brandy devote Craft Pride’s 54 taps and two casks—including selections like Jester King’s funky Saison, Das Wunderkind; Ranger Creek’s Oak-Aged Oktoberfest; and Hops & Grain’s Pilsner Del Roble—to Texas brews only, making a few exceptions in the small, carefully curated bottle shop in the back.

After visiting some family in Austin four years ago, the Eglis “fell in love with the city, went home, and packed,” Egli says. They moved to the Texas capital in August 2010, attended the first Austin Beer Week that October, then decided they needed to “honor Texas craft beer in a bar we felt comfortable and wanted to hang out in.”

Tre Miner—Craft Pride’s Cicerone-certified assistant operations manager who’s worked at nearby Banger’s and hosted tastings for a couple years at legendary local beer spot The Ginger Man—runs Tre’s Guided Flight Night, with a different theme for each monthly event, to educate anyone who’s willing to learn. “Instead of turning our noses up at would-be craft beer enthusiasts, why not invite them to join our ranks?” Miner says. “We all have to start somewhere, and Craft Pride is happy to be Texas craft beer’s ground zero.”

Regular Jason Watkins typically rides his bike to Craft Pride to meet friends after work, and thinks the bar signifies a coming-of-age for the Lone Star State’s beer scene. “Those 54 taps are getting very crowded,” he says. “New brewers and new beers are trying for a spot on the wall, and for the first time, there seems to be a market indicator for craft beer in Texas.”

Miner agrees, and looks forward to what the future will bring to his city. “I can’t help but wonder when we’ll reach a saturation point,” he says. “We will have no choice but to become more selective in the next few years. I suppose that’s a good problem to have!” ■