So, i am moving from Boston for a job at Grinnell College. Moving to the small town of Kellogg. What should i expect as far as a beer scene / beer culture? Are there bottle shops? Where does one purchase good craft beer? I visited el bait shop when they flew me out for my interview and was AMAZED! I am very excited to try a lot of local iowa breweries, so suggestions on those would be awesome too. Dump any and all information my way, it will be GREATLY appreciated!
I'll let someone with a more in depth knowledge of the Iowa beer scene answer in depth, but it seems from the map that Kellogg, Iowa is in the middle of the Iowa beer scene geographically. Des Moines, Iowa City, and Decorah (Toppling Goliath) are all within either moderate driving distance, or day trip distance. You could do much worse in Iowa.
In Kellogg? lol. Nothing. Grinnell has a grocery store called McNallys. They have a craft beer selection but I'd give it a 5 outta 10. You'd have to go to bigger cities to have a better collection. Newton HyVee is pretty bad. Iowa City is about an hour east. They have Hy Vee's that have good selection and Johns Grocery in downtown which is the go to spot in the state for Belgian beer and other harder to find stuff. Otherwise there is Ankeny and Des Moines Hy Vees. That's about it. As far as breweries go. Toppling Goliath is a few hours north east. Peace Tree is about an hour south west in Knoxville. Millstream is about an hour east in Amana if you like more German beers.
Awesome, thanks so much for shedding some light on the situation. I didn't think i would find any sort of craft beer spots in Kellogg, it was just a low rent area and close to my job. However, when they flew me out for my job i also was taken to dinner at the Prarie Canary where i was drinking Bells Two Hearted for like 3 dollars a pint. As a Bostonian this is an INSANE concept to me. I am very, very excited to drink a ton of local Iowa beers. Besides Toppling Goliath is there anything else i should be looking out for? I was amazed when i went to El Bait Shop as to how many beers were on that list I've never even HEARD of, let alone seen before because of our different distribution maps! What are some of the best bars in the state?
In Iowa City, the Sanctuary Pub has an informed and varied tap list. When I was there, they had TG, Stone, Bells, Founders, and many others. http://www.sanctuarypub.com/ Shorts Burgers, a few blocks away, has on tap exclusively beers from Iowa and offers 5 oz draws to make it easy to sample many. In addition to TG, they had Big Grove and Confluence when I was there for a visit. Grinnell, BTW, is a neat little town.
Coming from Boston to Iowa, you're going to be in a bit of a beer desert comparatively. However, it sounds like you're completely new to most things Midwest brews so the upside is that you've got a steep learning curve. Enjoy the journey! Sounds like you're familiar with Toppling Goliath (or at least their existence). Best advice to track them down is to hit up bars & restaurants that have them on tap and to follow their Twitter account to locate bottles when they hit stores. Be forewarned, you're gonna have to drive to the Des Moines or Iowa City areas to find them on the shelves and be ready to go when they're delivered. We're talking hours, not days, that they typically sit on the shelves. After that, it's a bit of a drop off but given your location you may want to be familiar with Backpocket and Peace Tree. Backpocket is out of Coralville right off the interstate (about a hour east of your location). Good solid lineup of German style beers, nothing real outstanding or that bad (depending on your taste preferences). Last I looked, they were the biggest brewery in Iowa. I've never been there in person but it sounds like they've got good events at their tap room and I got to experience their mobile beer garden every day last year during RAGBRAI. Peace Tree is about 45 minutes south in downtown Knoxville. Good up and coming brewery, they have a few misses but they're trying for some styles that can't be found in the area. When they hit, they get some solid gems out there. They're also a bike-friendly brewery working to become an upper Midwest player. After those, Des Moines is your next best bet. Confluence and Exile are the two biggies out of there that should hit your radar. Court Avenue Brewing and Racoon River Brewing are local brewhouses while Rock Bottom is a regional (chain) player. Any one will occasionally have a smash offering out there, usually depends on who their head brewer is at the time. If you're looking to mark off any more, there's 515 Brewing in Des Moines and Number 7 and Firetrucker Brewing out of Ankeny. As far as bars, you're clearly aware of El Bait Shop so the only other one to add to that list would be The Keg Stand out of West Des Moines. As a former resident that still gets back occasionally to visit family, that's probably the best I can offer you. My other advice would be to pay attention to @BottleCaps80 on here, he seems to be a wealth of knowledge on all things Iowa beer. Oh, and take the time to read through the Iowa beer distro news thread on here. Iowa is quickly adding more and more regional and national breweries to its distribution shelves every day. Good luck with the move!
If you're heading to Des Moines for beer, I would recommend these: Bottle shops: - Hy-Vee Prairie Trails (Ankeny) - Hy-Vee Pleasant Hill - Hy-Vee Fleur Bars: - El Bait Shop - The Keg Stand - Zombie Burger (not a bar, but good tap selection) Breweries: - Confluence - 515 Brewing - Court Ave. Brewpub - Rock Bottom (yes a chain, but our brewer here does his own fantastic brews as well)
Can I ask why you decided to live in Kellogg if you are working in Grinnell? I drive through Kellogg nearly everyday and it seems that Grinnell would be a much nicer place to live, especially if craft beer is something you enjoy.
I found a cheaper place in Kellogg that was super accommodating for my needs. I just couldn't find a place in Grinnell that kept me within my price range and a 15 minute commute each day is not really that bad at all. @SudsSavant BIG shout out for all your help! Thanks so much.
