Hello, I am driving from New Hampshire to South Bend to watch the Irish. Any advice on where to get the good stuff would be appreciated.
There's a Belmont walking distance from where you tailgate. Hopefully, it's good enough for you. And I'm referring to it being off 23. A little further up 23 is Blarney stone. Not as good bomber wise, but they usually have cases of Gumball sitting on the floor.
Thank you. I am coming in on I-90 and plan on some short side trips. Bells possibly. Three Floyds brewpub on Friday.
I haven't been there but I've heard good things about Bare Hands in Granger. If you're going to 3 Floyds make sure to stop at 18th Street. Also - Shoreline is doing a big barrel aged bottle release Saturday.
The Belmont Beverage mentioned above is not too bad. But your best bet is City Wide Liquors - best selection of any place in the area. One location is about 3 miles east on Edison, and the best location is downtown South Bend about 3 miles the other direction on Jefferson. The Jefferson St. location has lots of higher gravity beers in their chilled wine room. If you are looking for a pint and good food, Crooked Ewe Tap House and Brewery, Bare Hands Brewery, and Fiddler's Hearth downtown SB are all great choices.
I would echo the City Wide on Jefferson recommendation. If you need to go elsewhere, then try Belmont and Blarney Stone. If you are in Kalamazoo, hit Tiffanys or MegaBev on W. Main for some MI distro. I think MegaBev is the better bet at this point. Also, The Livery in Benton Harbor is right off of I-94 and US 31, so that may be a good stop on your way to South Bend. They still have select bottles available as well.
If you make a stop in Kalamazoo there is Bell's and Arcadia. I went to both recently and they were both phenomenal and definitely recommend going there. Beer was $3-5 at their taprooms which is insane being from the Chicago area. Bell''s and Arcadia are also walking to distance from each other. Also about 20-30 minutes away from Kalamazoo is Dark Horse in Marshall which has a cool chunk of land.
The City Wide Liquor on the corner of Grape Rd and Edison Rd, 5 minutes east of campus, is by far my favorite bottle shop in the area. The one downtown is alright but it has a smaller selection. The best local brewery is Bare Hands, and it's not even close. This is in Granger, IN-about 15 minutes northeast of campus and 5 minutes from the I-90 Capital Rd Exit. They don't have much of a food menu and the building is a glorified pole barn, but man do they make awesome beers. I would probably rate them second only to FFF in Indiana. Other local breweries are: Crooked Ewe -10 minutes away (haven't been, heard mixed reviews) South Bend Brew Werks- 5 minutes away (Mediocre reviews), Iechyd Da Brewry in Elkhart, IN - 20 minutes (Great beer and awesome pub atmosphere), Evil Czech Brewery (avoid) Enjoy your trip and stay warm, the weather is turning on us.
Close is a relative term. I have friends who live in Chicago, Boston, LA, Detroit, and 45 minutes is close to them. For Bare Hands, I would say 15 minutes is well worth it.
I didn't mean "close" as in its geographic proximity to campus. I was saying that Bare Hands is the best local brewery and all the others aren't "close" to the same quality... sorry if that wasn't more obvious.
Got it. Yes agree, Bare Hands has the best beer, but if looking for good food along with it, my opinion is that Crooked Ewe has the best food to with their great beer.
I agree on Bare Hands but was a bit surprised by the bartender that drank more beer than I did while I was there.
