Best Brewery Experience?

What is "EBF" weekend? Google didn't point me in an obvious direction.

 

Casey Brewing and Blending is always a good time. Their tour and tastings have more of a intimate feel to them given the limited size.

 

All of the times I've been to Ithaca Beer Co. have been my favorite brewery experiences. The food is phenomenal, the beer is always satisfying, and sitting out in the beer garden is wonderful.
Galaxy Brewing in Binghamton is also nice. Really busy and crowded but cozy, with killer food and beer.

 

Jester King is tops for me. I've been enough times now that I'm losing count. A couple visits in particular stand out as the best ever, but every trip has been a ton of fun.

Lone Pint always sticks out as a special spot, too. It's barely a barn, super small, but the people running it and their product are fantastic, and I always leave wanting to go back.

We need a list compiler from this thread. There's several weighty endorsements from good NBSers and WBAYDN denizens in here. I've definitely got Sierra Nevada NC on my list now.

 

Extreme Beer Fest

 

Sorry, the Beer Advocate Extreme Beer Fest that is held yearly in Boston.

 

Tired Hands Fermentaria is always a great time. Most people know TH for their NEIPAs but they usually have a variety of interesting styles on tap, and the food is very good. Cool aesthetic and space too. A glass of Pineal with a fried chicken sandwich is my happy place.

 

Have you been to Hidden River in Douglestown (just outside Pottstown) PA? If not, I would recommend you visit.

Cheers!

 

A couple years ago, I had been working in a brewery for 3 years at the time and I needed a vacation badly. I had worked every day for 3 straight months averaging 80 hours a week and hadn’t had more than two consecutive days off from work (and even that was a rarity) in those three years. I was feeling badly burned out and was considering quitting my job because I had lost the passion for it. I told the owners that I needed a week to myself and I jumped on a motorcycle to begin a 2,400 mile trip which included a stop in Cooperstown to visit the baseball hall of fame.

I had originally said I was going to do nothing brewery related, but I was so close to Ommegang and had some time to kill, so I decided to stop by the brewery. It was one of the most beautiful breweries I’ve ever seen. The whole area their is beautiful and the brewery was awesome. I was sitting outside watching all the happy customers with their kids playing baseball next to a hop field and it was like something out of Field of Dreams. That stop was rejuvenating for me and I kind of credit it with helping me rediscover my passion for the business.

 

For me the best brewery experience has been at Jack's Abbey in Framingham MA. Its modeled after a German Beer Hall and really its less about the brewery than about being a place to go with friends and/or family, hang out, drink beer, and eat some great food. As an added bonus they have their SpringDale brewery next door which is probably more of a typical brewery location. They've done a really good job with that place.

Stone Brewery at Liberty Station is pretty cool as well. Another place I'd probably visit not specifically about the beer but the overall enjoyment of the place, maybe it was the sheer number of beers they had on tap that I really like though . Night Shift in Everett MA is another favorite of mine. Tough call overall since there's lots of places I've enjoyed, some just because of the beer more than the experience (Trillium or Foam). Actually now that I think of it Burlington Beer Company in Vermont was interesting, very warehouse like but they made some killer food in this small spot. Not to mention their beer was awesome.

 

I remember going to Goose Island as a kid. My dad was a foreman and would take his crew there after work sometimes. I’d head over after school to meet them. I would order a Goose root beer in a mug, but my dad would always pour half of his Honkers or Stockyard stout in it after I finished it, which would earn the occasional god-natured scolding from the waitress. We would drink and watch the Cubs on TV let us down again and again...

Fast forward to 2015. I’m there with my wife and my own son (a mortal sin around these parts ). We watch the Cubs complete a 3 game sweep of the defending champ SF Giants. It had that franchise-changing feel that would prove correct. They would go on to become the hottest second-half team in baseball in a historically great division. Jake Arrieta would have perhaps the greatest second half of a season a pitcher ever has, would win the Cy Young, and the Cubs would defeat both their division rivals in the playoffs before losing a heartbreaker to the Mets.
Watching them celebrate the sweep, one of the bartender comments, “Isnt it crazy? Your son may see the Cubs win a WS.”

A year and a half later. Three generations of Cubs fans gathered in my basement on Waveland Ave. and watched the Cubs win the greatest World Series of all time.

I was sad when Goose sold. Even sadder when the brewpubs went too. But perhaps most bummed when they closed and remodeled the pub. Dated and dark as it may have been, I loved that place. I haven’t been to the new iteration, but I hear it’s pretty different...
I’ll have to go eventually I guess? Maybe I’ll take my dad?

 

Cantillon 100% is the coolest brewery experience. Domestically, I love hanging out at Foam's taproom, but never been there while they were brewing. Lost Nation's taproom is also awesome, but again, never really experienced a brew day there.

 

Ithaca's a good one. The weather was beautiful the one time I visited, and I remember drinking a bunch of Cascazilla outside in the sun.

 

Incredibly impressive, modern technological marvel of a brewery - New Glarus, plus the fabulous hilltop location and outdoor area.

Polar opposite scary old place the leaves me wondering why so much beer is brewed there - Point Brewery.

Best behind the scenes tour - an ironic tie given the previous sentence. Point Brewery (great people, fantastic stories) and Harpoon in Boston. Harpoon - a more than gracious host thanks to some informal technical consulting/collaboration followed by a visit where the staff took time out of their working day to teach my work team all about carbonating liquids.

Places to eat and hang - Jack's Abby, Earth Eagle, Stoneface

Favorite brewery so far - Allagash for the awesome tour and never seeming too crowded even though it actually is... Smuttynose was high on the list as well, but the beer inconsistencies and understandably indifferent staff have overcome the pleasant surroundings and well-built brewery.

 

FTFY

Haven't been there yet, but I'll be in Philly for a pool tournament in April. Thanks for the tip!

 

You should check out the Sierra Nevada Mills River Brewery to see what a modern brewery with the latest technology is today. They have the latest GEA Huppmann system, with more vessels in the brewhouse that conserve energy and maximize throughput. There are computer controlled valves throughout the brewery.

Ayinger has a very automated brewery too.

 

T'was definitely a shame. Loved the look and feel of the old Clybourn. Not that I wouldn't drink here or anything, but just not a fan of the look:

 

I was waiting to see if anyone would mention this. My wife and I were visiting my college roomie in Rehoboth a couple years ago and drove to Milton for this. In addition to what you said, the tour guide was a theater major who was very entertaining in his description of everything and fielded all questions very knowledgeably. We were so impressed with everything that we subsequently went to the brewpub in Rehoboth to sample the various "experiments" that they try out there.

 

I might be a bit biased, but New Glarus is second to none. Being on top of that hill offers an awesome view, overlooking the swiss inspired town/countryside below makes for an awe-inspiring beer tasting experience. Not to mention their immaculate landscaping in their courtyard is a perfect place to walk around with a Belgian Red in hand on a warm summer day.

They must have dropped a pretty penny on that place. Everything from the courtyard, to the waterfall by the front entrance, to the pristine brewery indoors. All of it is very picture-esque. One of the best breweries to visit in the country.