515 Brewing Company

In a small older strip mall kind of hidden and un assuming . Inside is an ordering bar they serve flight or pints ,lots of seating with a patio on the west side , sight of the brewery are visible from the several table thru out ,they sell snack food and have rotating food trucks . This a smaller brewery with a passion for beer , The beer is well made small batch . The bar has live music and is laid back

I'd been wanting to come here for years now, but hadn't gotten around to it yet. In my defense, I have two young children.

Anywho, my wife and I came in here on a random Friday afternoon, right before it got busy. It's a very nice place, good sized with plenty of seating.

The beer was great, the guy serving it was great, everything was great. We each had a pint, and brought some home with us.

This might be my favorite brewery in town.

 

 

 

Large taproom that gets loud when it fills up. They have sound deadening material up so I could just imagine how it was before. Service was efficient and prompt. The beer is the best beer I have had in Des Moines. Really nice fresh hop pale ales. I could drink a lot of Mediocre. Also really liked the stout but did not try any of the Belgian styles.

 

Great experience here, especially after a couple of middling experiences at Confluence and Kalona earlier in the day. 515 was a laid-back comfortable place with some good to great beers.

Walking in, we immediately felt welcomed and were offered samples. Service was very friendly and knowledgeable, they liked to chat about beer and local food.

Beer selection was good, the Mediocre APA was mosaic forward and easily drinkable. The surprise hit for me was a cucumber basil saison.

Friendly crowd and cozy comfortable tap room, with a patio outside and right along a bike trail. Fun place i'd return to again.

Edit: 2nd visit in 2018, a couple NEIPA's were noticeably oxidized, and the excellent cucumber basil saison wasn't nearly as good as the last time. Still worth a visit, though somewhat inconsistent.

For the past 5 years I've been coming to Des Moines, and as of May 2016 (my first visit) and beyond, this is hands down the best brewery in the area. As far as newer Midwest brewers go, 515 ranks right up with Narrow Gauge in "St. Louis", and they deserve a lot more press than they're currently getting.

Visited the 515 on a Friday night. Small Parking lot, but more parking by the other buildings. Lots of locals but not terribly crowded. Plenty of tables but only about 10 seats at the counter. Very nice selection (13 offerings) and generous samples. The staff were friendly and happy to chat about their brews. No 64oz growlers, but they do have 32oz's. After a few samples I settle on their Passe and Hopitits C. Passe was a good choice for the first round; light bitterness, not terribly hoppy. Hopititis was a great follow up; very hoppy, wonderfully bitter and citrusy/piney, like a grapefruit and a pine tree were shredded and dumped in the bottle... wish I had a LARGE growler of this!
If I ever find myself in the Des Moines area, I'd definitely make a stop at 515.

Best hoppy beers in the Des Moines area, friendly staff,reasonable amount of taps, plus they hold a bottle share every first Wednesday of the month. Try passe, or oj IPA, love those beers.

 

 

Great beer. Cool vibe...usually have food trucks...the Meh series is amazing

 

This is the best brewery in Iowa right now! OJ IPA and Lil Tart are awesome! Not yet able to buy any of their beers but onsite. Sorry no growlers either......Maybe some day. Best kept secret in Des Moines.

 

 

Really great beer and usually a decent selection including some guest taps. Hours need to improve though....they arent open enough.

Really small brewery that I am really excited for to get bigger!

 

 

A great place to stop and share a beer. They seem to have something new most weeks and always have a nice variety of beer styles. Bring in your own food, or some food vendors available at different times. Only downside is that it can get a little loud when crowded and is open Thursday - Sunday.

 

Except for lack of food. Everything a brewer aspires to accomplish!

This place has the best beer in the Des Moines area at the moment. Everything here is solid, their hop work stick out. Mediocre, Passé, and OJ IPA are great.

No food, but they have frequent food guests, food trucks etc...

Growler fills available now, though it's only for some of their beers.

If you are in the DMI, this is a must stop if you like hoppy beers.

I love the OJ IPA. I only wish they had it all the time, and I want to be able to bring it home.

The best beer they have on tap is from other brewiers. The staff provided good service and it had a nice atmosphere.

 

 

 

 

Went to 515 with my family during a recent trip to Des Moines. The brewery is clearly very new - it has a rustic unpolished feel to it. I enjoyed the atmosphere though - very laid back, and had very nice and friendly service. The beer was decent but not overwhelmingly good; the ipa's were solid but very sweet, and the undead red was great! The pumpkin was weak and the mexican wheat was good for the syle but not my thing. Overall I would recommend this brewery; it is not anything out of this world, but it was a good experience!

Large comfortable tasting room with couches, bar stools at high top tables and a short bar. Lacks decoration, but the space is roomy and can comfortable seat 30 plus patrons. Had 8 beers on tap day I was there and a flight of 4 was $8.
Tried their Belgian and OJ Wheat IPA. They don't typically fill growlers but kindly obliged when I mentioned I was visiting from Chagrin Falls Ohio for the US Youth region 2 soccer tournament. Staff was friendly and knowledgable. I would definitely visit again if I were in the area.

Atmosphere: The outdoor sign and the decoration inside was very nice. The atmosphere was good aesthetically, great signs, etc, some sound buffering would be great.

Value: Great brews.

OK, when I took an alternate route home from work to pic up some photos, I was shocked to find a micro (or nano) brewery a mile from my house. After not being able to make it for a few weeks my baby schedule worked out and I made it down. I knew from FB a buddy from high school was one of the owners.
The tap room is fairly spacious, with lots of dining tables throughout a concrete-floored space. The decorations are sparse, with one wall covered in bicycle gears, and the opposite wall has atop shelf adorned with one of the owner's personal bottle collection (which his wife was happy to have out of the house).
I went the week after the grand opening, so most of their house brews were out. They had a stout, a red I think, and tapped just that day was their DIPA. The DIPA was rather nice, a good amount of floral and citrus notes, with a good amount of hop bite and malt base. After that came the stout which was creamy and smooth. There were guest brews on tap from Confluence and Back Pocket. I chatted with Brandon a while and got the mini tour (since it's a small operation). It's great to see local talent getting their business going. I hope they become a Des Moines staple.