Seems pretty quiet here. Hit Toppers today for some local bottles. Of course, Lewis and Clark at their sort of new location. Enjoying Blackfoot right now. But what else???? Dive next to BF looks like it has some interesting taps. And I know the saloon (windbag?) had decent burgers and solid tap line up. But am I missing anything? Here through Friday at 3. Have the evenings open is all, so really can't travel too far from Helena. Cheers
This town has so much potential, even with all the arcane laws. I've visited maybe four or five times in the past three years. It needs more breweries. Based on the volume of growler sales at Blackfoot on Wed, I would say its desperate for more good beer. And with the recreation options and cute downtown, this place could be really nice. Someone, get the brew going here!
Having grown up in that town and as a regular visitor, I could ramble on the subject ad nauseum. But the simple explanation is demographics. Helena is full of people who appreciate good beer. But the demographic makeup of the town is seriously lacking in the 18-35 range. Economics (state gov. being the primary employer), lack of a sizeable college, and being off the beaten path/not really being a recreational destination in the same way as Bozeman, Whitefish, Missoula, etc. are several factors as to why the beer scene seems underdeveloped. While they are nicely represented on the production side (Blackfoot and L&C), there's very little in the way of craft-centric bars and I don't seeing that changing markedly until Helena starts attracting a few more people that stay out past 9pm. FWLIW, it's been interesting for to me to watch Blackfoot River go from a small, out-of-the way curiosity to a place that despite building a new taproom is constantly packed. And they've done a great job of balancing a new facility with keeping the small town unpretentious atmosphere of the old taproom. That said, I think Blackfoot River's success in Helena has more to do with appreciation for the quality of the business itself rather than expanding market. Anyway, hopefully I'm wrong and Helena sees some great new ventures. Some other options worth checking out are Riley's (downtown, good taps and darts), Miller's Crossing (live music/next to Blackfoot), and the Marysville House.
