So I visit Montana twice a year, I find it hard to find fresh beer anywhere but at the brewery. There doesn't seem to be many bottle shops even in the big cities. Are there certain grocery stores that are better than others I should be looking for? Pretty much everything I get is around five to six months old, sometimes more. I know there is good beer up here, I just don't know how to find it. Thanks in advance.
Billings is a dud. Just go to überbrew when your there. Missoula has the best beer distribution in the state, summer sun, wordens, and orange street food farm have the best selections. The main problem in MT is the distributors. Not pulling out of date product and certain distributors have complete control over the selection of the entire beer and wine sections. I think most craft beer drinkers here almost find it more convenient and cheaper to just go to the local brewery. You know what your getting, you know it's fresh and your probably enjoying it with a friend . I would suggest to try breweries anyway your district in Texas probably gets everything we get plus some.
I've pretty much been sticking to a rotation of scotch ales. There are a bunch up there and they are done well. I'd like to try more, I guess if I'm not in Missoula, I'll be getting in on the breweries. Thanks for the input y'all
Only if they use pints. The majority of taprooms are only allowed to serve 48oz a day. That's what happens when your one of the most drunk states. We have a seriously bad drinking and driving problem.
I forgot to add that as a negative point. Every single brewery I went to gave me some raffle tickets to provide when reordering as a way of keeping track of how many beers I'd had. So weird.
Because state law only allows them to serve 48oz. Some breweries purchase liquor licenses which allow them to stay open as late as they want and serve as much as they want. And those are limited to a certain amount per county. Which means if you own one they are worth literally 1 million dollars in the right towns. Small breweries can't afford those. If they over serve the 48oz they could basically get shut down and lose their licenses. Are laws are archaic and aren't up to date. But honestly 48oz is not a terrible limit.
It's been 4 years since I lived in Bozeman but I used to shop at Rosauers. They had the best and freshest selection in town.
Sorry if I'm bringing up an old thread. I'm living in Kalispell and noticed that a lot of people go to Super 1 and get Kettlehouse Cold Smoke. It is a scotch ale. If you drink IPAs then you will probably find a lot of them that aren't outdated. IPAs are all the rage out here... Sadly.
