Draft Magazine's Top 100 Beer Bars in USA

Ha! You're right, I've come to care less and less about lists. Everyone's going to have their favorites, whether it be top beer cities, bars, or beers themselves. I like reading such lists, but try not to get too upset if my favorites aren't on there. Cheers!

 

Wicked Weed also is a brew pub, you look at the tap and bottle list at Minks in Philly , and the beer menu isn't close to equal. Most of Asheville follows suite here, but I still love going to Asheville, and WW is only a year old, it will most definitely get better.

 

Maybe I'm misreading this, but are you saying the beer menu at Wicked Weed far surpasses that of Monk's Cafe?

 

I think he's saying just the opposite.

 

Props to my homer, The Birch.

 

On no not at all, Monks list is one of the best I've seen anywhere. WW has good beer, but being a brew pub they don't and can't offer what Monks does, not even close.

 

So there's no room for up and comers that see the weaknesses in the areas "leading beer bars"? It's amazing the places that open up shop in prime locations to make up for having no real beer program. I simply think there's more to a beer bar than beer and a bar.

Congratulations to Bier Station!

 

I don't know which list your readin', but Three Penny Taproom is there and I rank them about as high as they get in VT. It takes way more than great beer to make a great beer bar and they hit it on all cylinders.

 

Really surprised not to see Mekong on there. Was just there and was SERIOUSLY impressed by the place. An knows his beer and is not bashful about sampling it out to you. Absolutely loved and think it is a serious overlook.

 

My biggest gripe is that they only give any detail to one bar in each of the 4 regions. I really liked reading about the places, as I used the previous years listings as a guide.

The list itself is solid (I've been to 11 of the locations). And I get their redefining what makes the list. There are many more quality craft bars in the country and the bar has been raised for what is excellent.

 

I agree on Brouwers, but the service at GD has been horrendous lately, and given the number of "stale" pours I've had their I don't think they're turning over the beer fast enough to maintain all 50 taps in good condition. Can't comment on Brew and BRew because I haven't been there.

edit: I just remembered, the last time I went to GD I stood at the bar (which wasn't particularly busy) for 5 minutes waiting to order a beer while the bartender flirted with a couple girls at the other end of the bar. He made eye contact several times, so I knew he knew that I was waiting, but he didn't so much as acknowledge my presence. I walked out and went to Commons instead, which probably proved to be a better idea.

I love the place, but this is probably the most surprising entry on the list. They've only been open for 6 months, they don't have a ton of taps (not that more necessarily equals better), and the beers they do pour are solid but nothing boundary pushing. I also think they tried to go too big too fast on the bottle side. You really need to build up a solid customer base before you can churn through 400+ beers fast enough to keep them fresh, and I saw several (popular) out of code IPAs there on my last visit that would indicate they need to dial back on the offerings or focus on stuff that isn't so dependent on freshness.

The only thing I can think of is that the novelty of their Blichmann counter-pressure bottle fill system is enough to make them stand out.

Bazi is great, but I'm saddened that they strayed from their original goal of being "the Belgian beer bar" in Portland. The majority of their tap list now is "Belgian style" things from pFriem, Upright, etc, and while they always choose good stuff from the locals I was hoping they would be the place to go for actual Belgian beers.

It was also a little disconcerting to see the vast majority of their customers drinking cocktails the last couple times I was there. It makes me wonder about turnover on the taps.

I can't fault the list without knowing what their criteria for inclusion was, but I have to admit I was surprised to see Imperial and Bazi included while BeerMongers, APEX, and Horse Brass were all left off.

 

The bars in Waterbury, VT are surprisingly absent, considering what a mecca of beer Vermont has become. I love the Philly bars named on here, but I think the Prohibition Pig, Blackback, and the Reservoir are as good or better the bars on here that I know

 

Nice! Got Monks on there (as it should be, every year), Memphis Taproom, and a local favorite of mine Theresa's Next Door! They picked some good ones in the Philly area.

 

Word up on no nod to Asheville. How can you leave off the Thirsty Monk!

Likewise, Falling Rock is always included on these lists, but really there are equally great places in Denver like Star Bar, Cheeky Monk, Freshcraft, etc.

As you can tell by my icon, I'm partial to the Blind Tiger. It was my first craft beer bar and the one that got me hooked on this sweet, sweet nectar.

 

Whoo go map room!

 

Rattle & Hum does NOT deserve to be on this list. And leaving Denver's Hops & Pie off is criminal. Also, only 3 bars in San Francisco?

 

You would think wicked weed would have been on that list right?!?