Starting to plan a brewery tour trip...

If you're coming from Pittsburgh, you might want to stop at Selin's Grove and Bullfrog. Both are just small brewpubs but they're very charming and both make some of the best beer on the east coast!

 

I'm also from Pittsburgh.

About a year ago my wife had a conference out in Hershey, and I tagged along to hit up the three breweries in the area (Troegs, Appalachian, and Lancaster). IMO, Appalachian was better than expected, and Lancaster was disappointing. Appalachian is a bigger brewery with bigger production than I thought, and it's a big cool atmosphere in a great big old building, and they also have some pretty cool *guest* beers on draft too. It was a decent tour (they had a really old bottling line, which was kind of cool to see), and an enjoyable spot to sit down, have a few beers, and watch the Pens that night.

You need to sign up online for a day/tour at Troegs. I didn't register in time, and they were all booked up the Saturday I was there. It was a great visit, anyway. I went during the day, while my wife was at the conference. I was still in Grad School at the time, and I just took my text books/homework with me, spread out in their cafe, and worked on my stuff with a couple of pints at my side.



Took a weekend trip with a buddy to Philly about a year and a half ago, and we spent a long night at Monk's cafe. Cool spot. Great selection. Not a brewery, but just FYI. Some amazing beers and a chill friendly environment.

The next day, while waiting for our megabus departure, we stumbled across a brewpub we'd never heard of called "Triumph". We were probably too hung over from the night before to REALLY dive into what they had on draft, but we were pleasantly surprised by what we had. Cool, unique place, big space, interesting artwork, and the beer was pretty decent. I'm not saying it's a "must-visit", but if you find yourself nearby I would recommend walking in and having a pint or two.

 

I hear nothing but great things about Selin's Grove. I'm just waiting for life to take me in that general direction so that I can visit on a short detour.

 

I've done the Appalachian, Troegs (when in Harrisburg), Yards and Philadelphia Brewing Co tours.

At the new Troeg's brewery in Hershey they have self guided tours and Guided Tours (go here for info) I enjoyed their tour in Harrisburg plus you can buy Scratch beers there so it's worth it.

Yards and PBC put on good tours. PBC gives you more of a sampler than Yards but Yards has full pints($) and food whereas PBC does not. In terms of layout between the two PBC is more unique. I recommend hitting the tour at PBC first then going over to Yards to eat and get a full pint. The tour at Yards isn't totally worth it there so don't rush to get there from PBC but if you can get in on a tour for the heck of it.

Dock Street is another good brewery to visit. No tours but they have good beer.

 

If you're coming in via the Turnpike, Stoudt's is probably less than 2 miles from the exit. It's been a few years since I took a tour there, but the beer and food are well worth the stop. Also, just a few miles from Stoudt's is Union Barrel Works in Reamstown. I've only been there a couple times, but they had some decent beer as well.

If you are in the city of Philadelphia, try Nodding Head and Monk's.

 

Selin's Grove and Bullfrog are absolute must-hits and arguably the two best small brewpubs in PA. The new Troegs is also a must. If you go to Troegs, swing by Pizza Boy Brewing (aka Al's of Hampden). There are lots of places you listed that are definitely skip worthy (unless you have tons of time). Instead of Lancaster, I'd recommend Spring House Taproom or Iron Hill Lancaster, but of course you could hit all three. The Fridge in Lancaster is a cool beer bar with a great bottle selection and 10 drafts plus great artisan pizza. Bottles are a little pricey, though. Victory is also a no-brainer... great place. Sly Fox in Phoenixville is only about 15 minutes away and is worth a stop. The Drafting Room is very close too (Exton) and is one of the area's best beer bars. I was just at Yards for the first time this past weekend, and I had a blast. Great place! You could spend an entire weekend in Philly, with its plethora of fantastic beer bars. Dock St and Nodding Head are two other fine brewpubs in the city, as is Triumph. Anyway, there are a lot of choices. Check out the Beer Fly ratings and go from there. Have fun... there's plenty of great beer 'round these parts!

 

I would go to Stoudts instead of Lancaster. More interesting and better beer, just a few minutes off the turnpike. You can also go to the Iron Hill in Lancaster, from what I've heard it's one of the better ones.

 

Yeungling is actually a pretty interesting tour just because of all the history with prohibition and them being around for so long. The caves under the brewery are amazing.

 

I believe Victory stopped doing tours for now. The brewpub is a really nice set-up however, I'd recommend it, plus it's not gonna be all that far out of the way for you on the way to Philly. Weyerbacher is pretty limited on the hours they're open to the public, so keep that in mind when planning your trip. Tired Hands and Forest and Main recently opened up in the Philly suburbs, both are worth looking into as well.

 

a little heads up - if you're planning to hit weyerbacher i believe there's still some sour black and whiskey barrel left from the release last weekend. both of them are delicious, and you're no longer required to buy a whole case of everything (thank god).