Favorite breweries

At the moment:

Sierra Nevada
Stone
Founders
Blue Mountain
Hardywood

 

Based upon local availability:

Sierra Nevada
Founders
Great Lakes
Ballast Point
Troegs
Flying Dog

 

Treehouse
Hill Farmstead
Trillium
Foundation
Bissell Brothers
Austin Street
The Alchemist
Night Shift
Jack's Abby
Maine Beer Co.

 

TOP 10:
Avery
Prairie
Evil Twin
Founders
Cigar City
Jackie O's
Westbrook
Wicked Weed
Crooked Stave
The Lost Abbey/Port

 

Ones I would will search out specifically either through cash purchase or trade....
Toppling Goliath
Tree house
New Glarus
Three Floyds
New Belgium
Victory
New Holland
Shorts
Founders
Rhinegeist

 

Forgot Prairie Artisan ales

 

Aww jeez. In no semblance of order:

New Glarus, Wander, DeGarde, Troegs, Bend Brewing, Chuckanut, Brooklyn, Unibroue, Selkirk Abbey, Boundary Bay, Smuttynose, Genesee, Iron Goat, Selin's Grove, Jackie O's, Skookum, Bale Breaker, Icicle, Machine House, and so very many more.

 

Sierra Nevada
Russian River
Firestone Walker
Stone
Lagunitas

I know I might have a Cali bias going now hahaha cheers. One Love

 

Favorite breweries: Hill Farmstead, Trillium, Tree House

Favorite big breweries: Stone, Lagunitas

Favorite local breweries: Southern Grist, Bearded Iris

 

In North Carolina:
Wicked Weed
Foothills
Nationally:
Stone
Alesmith
Founders
Epic

 

Geographically (from east to west) off the top of my head and only including ones I've been to:

• Bissel Brothers (among coolest brewery tap rooms I've been to)
• Hill Farmstead (most remote with best surrounding)
• Trillium (great selection)
• Wicked Weed (some of the best bar food and all around beer line-up)
• Cycle (hipster bro! And their BA stouts are epic)
• Cigar City (some of the most curtious staff)
• Founders (coolest bartenders)
• 3Floyds (brew pub I visit on highest frequency and one I consider my 'home' brewery... Awesome bar food and beer).
• Half-Acre (my favorite place in Chicago)
• Toppling Goliath (Mecca of the Midwest)
• Russian River (best sours and a cool local in Sonoma)
• Cantillon (Europe, obviously... You can smell in the air what actually makes it into their beer. History is awesome).

 

Toppling Goliath
Potosi
New Glarus

 

Cigar City
Bruery
Stone
Russian River
Lost Abby
Alesmith
DFH

 

For the breweries I consider my favorites, I don't necessarily go by just who's beers I've given the highest average ratings to or whatever. There's a lot of breweries that put out a ton of great bears that I enjoy. While that's certainly a factor, to be one of my favorites, I'm looking for a certain character, uniqueness, individuality. Something irreplaceable by other breweries. Here's an incomplete list, maybe I'll think of some more later...


Hill Farmstead. I don't know that you can do much better for a "destination" brewery. Willy Wonka's factory, but for beer, nestled in the farmland of northern VT.

Allagash. No brewery chases fewer trends than Allagash. They have a concept and they stick to it, which in the long term has much more value to a brewery than making sure they have an entry in whatever this year's hot style is. They're not stagnant by any means, but they innovate within their own identity. And it also helps that they don't make a bad beer.

Jack's Abby. Total homer on this one, they're ten minutes from my house. That said, they offer a combination of availability, affordability and quality that's been somewhat lacking in New England regional-ish breweries. And the tap room is great.

 

There are way to many to name. I will give it a try though:

Lagunitas
Stone
Surly
Firestone
Pipeworks
Revolution
Founders
Three Floyds
Two Brothers
Dogfish Head
Wicked Weed (only had it once, but memorable)
Double Mountain
Pfriem (sp?)

...and any others that I have not tried yet!

 

Damnit! Forgot my homies at Deschutes!!!! Pfriem and Logsdon, you too!