I'll be traveling through Kentucky and Tennessee mid-September. My route is going to be coming down from Cincinnati to Louisville, down to Nashville then over to NC. I'm looking for breweries worth going to that fashion not only excellent beer, but cool unique places and great staff. Also looking for the best bottle shops with a wide variety. I will be beer hauling like a crazy melon farmer on this trip. Thank you all in advance!
Yazoo, Black Abbey, TN Brew works and Cool Springs Brewery in Franklin, TN about 20-25 min outside nashville. Bottle Shops - Craft Brewed and Mid Town are the best...especially Craft Brewed. In Franklin, Red Dog Liquors would be your best bet and as good as any in the Nashville area. Plenty of Growler and Pints places popping up as well.
Below is a previous thread I responded to about Louisville, KY. Yes, Sergio's is a good place to go. The bottle prices tend to be a bit higher then other places. Draft is fair priced. Cash only. For me I like Louisville Beer Store and Old Town Liquor for bottle purchases. Keg liquors is good as we'll. I have started to see Prairie Bomb pop up all over Louisville. The three floyds behemoth is all over the place right now. If your looking more to sit down and drink my top places are Holy Grale, Against the Grain, and Apocalypse Brew.
In Cincinnati, hit up Jungle Jims, a great wide representation of their distribution. Also, Party Source on the other side of the river if you want some northern KY flavor (they also have a resident brewery in there called Ei8ht Ball which is okayish), although Jungle Jims will still have a much larger selection. As for breweries, definitely check out Rhinegeist, they're newer but the venue is amazing. If you're lucky enough to catch them when they put Saber Tooth Tiger on, you'll thank me later. If you find yourself on the outskirts of northern Cincy, stop in Rivertown for some good sours. Their flagship stuff is hit or miss but their sours are very underrated.
On your way from Nashville to NC, stop by Calfkiller Brewing in Sparta, TN. Really unique place, super cool and welcoming guys that run the tiny place, and a surprising number of beers to try. It's off the beaten path, but is well worth the stop!
Calfkiller was making its way onto my list, so I'm glad to hear that./ I'm not much for Rivertown overall, and I'm not a sours kinda guy. But I'll definitely check Jungle Jims, and Rhinegesit. Heard a lot about Against the Grain, and apocalypse seems solid.
No offense to my fellow KY brewery, but I've never had an impressive beer from Apocalypse. Their taproom might be better, but every beer I've ever had from them has been weird at best. Against The Grain, on the other hand, has amazing food. Even if you don't care for their beer, their pork tacos or brisket are incredible. Holy Grale is a must stop.
Great Flood is now open as well in Louisville, and down the road from them is Cumberland. New Albanian is across the river, and, of course, Against the Grain is great as well for food and beer. Out of these four, only Great Flood does not serve food - but you can order food in.
In Louisville, here's my "must-visit" list: Against the Grain (best brewery in town w/very good food) The Holy Grale (unique beer bar w/great selection and food) Great Flood (smaller brewpub but good stuff... Brown Ale is heavenly) Liquor Barn in Springhurst has best bottle selection, but Keg Liquors across the river in Jeffersonville is fantastic Bluegrass Brewing Company is very solid as well While in Cincy I would HIGHLY suggest hitting up Mad Tree and Rhinegeist. Both are new breweries and make/can fantastic stuff. Also agree with the Jungle Jim's suggestion. JJs alone is worth a trip to Cincy for me.
I second both @Volntitan and @Mississipping on their recommendations. Want to emphasize the Calfkiller rec. Worth the 30 minute departure from I-40 to visit Dave and Don in their brewery. The guys literally hand-built the space. It's a fantastic place to hangout and drink a few beers. Plus, they often serve things there that don't see distribution. (full disclosure: Dave and Don are good friends, but I avidly support their efforts). I think Saturday is your best bet to stop by and visit them.
Calfkiller is awesome...warning though...when you are driving there you might clearly think you took a wrong turn because no way would there be a brewery off some back road. There is....
If it was me and only had one brewpub to hit in Nashville, I would pick Black Abbey over Yazoo. And the Calfkiller guys are as crazy as their beers, must hit them up.
Depends on what day with Yazoo...if they are putting up any of the Embrace The Funk stuff, you don't want to miss that.
Not sure honestly...usually the Sour brewer might make a post or something. Best to probably call. Not sure if they keep the website updated with tap listings.
