Scott Vaccaro learned to brew like a pro at the biggest institutions in California brewing, but the Captain Lawrence Brewing Company, which he founded nearly eight years ago, is strongly rooted in his Westchester County, N.Y., hometown.
Mark Alston, his wife Kileen, and their crew have served up the best brews available in Utah alongside Cajun food since 2002. And while Utah’s craft beer drinkers don’t have it as good as some, things have changed a lot.
In the narrative, Jenny Shank, a self-reported non-beer geek, gives craft brewers a gentle (and hilarious) ribbing … so we decided to ask her what was up with that.
Located in North Hampton, N.H., Throwback strives to source as many of its ingredients from local farms as possible. That includes using locally grown hops, malt and adjuncts.
Ted Rice bounced from New York to California to Miami before finding himself as a brewer in New Mexico. Things clicked for him after he fell in with a robust community of pros and homebrewers. Together, they’re pushing what Rice calls “a Southwestern regional flavor.”
In the spirit of the gallery district, Bottlecraft has original artwork throughout the shop. Beers featured in their special flight offerings are also displayed as art, lined up on small wooden shelves.
For Jason Spaulding and his wife, Kris, sustainability is about leaving the world in better shape than when we found it. Acting on that commitment, Brewery Vivant is one of 21 breweries that have signed on to raise awareness of the Clean Water Act.
For anybody who still needs proof that beer brings people together, head to Lexington, Ky., and sit down at Country Boy Brewing’s bar. Grab a pint poured from one of their 24 taps. And chat with your neighbor, ask them what it’s like to be into craft beer in Lexington (here’s a hint: It’s getting better all the time).
Steve Bradt came to the Free State Brewing Company looking for a side job. That was 25 years ago, and Bradt is still at Free State. He went from working behind the bar to running brewing operations at a company that has since added a production brewhouse to its original pub.
Tørst isn’t your average beer bar. Owned by Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø, the man behind Danish gypsy brewery Evil Twin, Tørst offers no wine or spirits, and puts a premium on hospitality and glassware.
Nick Davidson didn’t leave his beloved robots out of the equation when he opened a brewery in his native Evansville, Ind. Tin Man Brewing Company, named after one of Davidson’s first toy robots, occupies a three-story, gray-painted brick building in the historic Lamasco neighborhood.
Filmmaker Kevin Romeo is taking a deeper look at the beer culture in his home state, with his project, The Michigan Beer Film, slated to premiere in September, and produced by Romeo’s company, Rhino Media.
Alpine Beer Company looks like you might imagine a small brewery in a small mountain town might look. The location is unassuming, snuggled in tight next to a quaint bookstore. The scenery is Southern California in all its glory. This was a dream location when McIlhenny opened it in 2002.
Scott Baer began his brewing career in the tasting room, pouring pints at Santa Barbara, California’s Telegraph Brewing Company. He hustled his way into Telegraph’s brewhouse, and then into the brewery’s top spot, by never being content with what he knew.
Aces & Ales is an oasis of sorts for people in the Capital of Second Chances looking to drink something beyond mass-produced macrobrews. And as Las Vegas’ craft scene has grown to four main breweries, Aces & Ales has been there to support them.
The four owners of Brooklyn Brewery, the 11th-largest craft brewery in the country, are taking their operation overseas to Sweden, where they plan to open a waterfront bar and brewery with a 250-person capacity by 2014.
Before Prohibition, Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood was the heart of the brewing district, and it is emerging as a must-visit for beer drinkers once again. A driving force behind that revival is Market Garden Brewery & Distillery, which was opened in 2011.
Linus Hall began brewing beer in college because he wanted to cut down on long-distance beer runs. He got hooked once he discovered that he could make beer that was as good, or better, than the stuff he’d been buying. Hall, a former engineer, founded Nashville’s Yazoo Brewing Company a decade ago.
Since opening in early 2008, Thirsty Monk has become more than just a world-class Belgian bar, adding a second floor for American craft selections, and a second location in South Asheville with a nanobrewery. They’re also working on expanding their brewery space and adding a third-floor rooftop deck.
In December, when the Brewers Association named Schell’s on their list of breweries they do not consider “craft,” Marti took to the internet. His protest letter to the Brewers Association went viral, and became symbolic of the strong reaction many had to the list (which the organization has since redacted).
There aren’t too many places in Wyoming like Thai Me Up—the cozy, dimly lit Jackson Hole, Wyo., brewpub that pairs West Coast IPAs with Thai food and two big-screen televisions featuring kung fu flicks. Actually, never mind Wyoming; there aren’t many places like Thai Me Up anywhere.
Hardywood Park’s founders, a pair of Northeastern transplants, were blown away by Richmond’s thirst for experimentation, and set up shop there; they landed in an unproven market, opened a brewery focusing on Belgian ales, big Stouts and unique IPAs, and can’t push enough product out the door.
The Pony Bar, with spots in Hell’s Kitchen and the Upper East Side, exclusively sells American-made craft beer, at $5 each on draft. But more than just a cozy spot for trying affordable pours of the best that US craft has to offer, Pony Bar is about forging a sense of community.
Michael Brawley is one of many independent retailers who were shut out of the much-anticipated release of a one-time shipment of Westvleteren XII to the US.
