Pittsburgh Breweries - 2018

Grist House is a solid spot. I haven't had a ton from them but their hoppy stuff is consistently very good. Hitchhiker has come a long way in recent months and are getting there. Dancing Gnome is above average so long as you stick to their hoppy beers. Releases depend on the beer. I never go because I'm not about to wait in line for canned IPAs but if they are releasing regular stuff, you should be able to get it without much trouble, even later in the day.

Pro tip...if you do get Dancing Gnome cans, wait 2 weeks before drinking any. They love to release their IPA cans too green. They are substantially better with a little time on them.

Roundabout beer runs circles around Cinderlands in every way possible. But yes, avoid Strange Roots. They are wildly inconsistent and their experimental stuff is usually not very good. I have had a gem or 2 but you have to wade through 10 piss poor offerings before finding one.

 

Thank you guys! I appreciate the information. I will be driving in, planning on hitting a few places on the way there and back. I wasn't planning on spending any time waiting in line, but I love Narrow Gauge stuff so that may change my mind.

Sounds like I have quite a few options. The fest is at Mr. Smalls, so I will most likely frequent Grist House, but I should have some time in the early afternoons to get out and explore a little before the shows start.

Cheers!

 

Maybe, but do they even serve food? Roundabout beer is nowhere good enough to drive into the city for just that. But catching an awesome brunch with a decent beer at cinderlands... absolutely.

Have a safe trip, and if you have any BA abraxas or fuzzy you’re dying to share... just let us know!

 

Nice write up. I went to Rusty Gold after golfing at Lindenwood last year... nice place right on the main street. They had a band playing though, and man, it was loud as hell... I couldn't hear anything (now I feel like I'm 70 years old). Cobblehaus is the closest brewery to where I live. They do some interesting styles, which I appreciate, but honestly, I haven't had many winners there. That said, I'll keep giving them some business every so often.

 

Well, I do have a Fuzzy and some other SP in the fridge. I live in the SW part of MO and have much better access to Prairie, American Solera, Ozark Beer Company, etc. I'm in the membership clubs for both Prairie and AS. Thought I might bring a few member bottles on the trip to crack open or trade.

 

That's why I put beer after. Cinderlands does have damn good food.

The thing with Roundabout that everyone overlooks is they don't jump on the latest trend, they don't pump out 32% BA stouts with a side of diabetes, and they aren't pumping out a kolsch with coffee any time soon. But they make good, clean, well-made beers that are approachable. They have rock solid lagers, easy drinking IPAs, and basically do any german style extremely well even if they aren't the most thrilling beers. Hell, outside of Heini's, I don't think they've ever done a beer over 9%.

 

Maybe someday I will give them another shot!

 

What are shubrew release lines like? Thinking about checking out their magic mushroom release but am not much for waiting in lines for any significant time.

 

Last time I went to one for their RIS, I was the only person there. I live pretty close.

 

I thought about going for the first time for the Nintendo one a few weeks back but couldn't. I heard it was pretty lengthy especially because people in line for cans could also order drafts, so this caused the line not to go as fast as it should. I'm not sure on how long it took, but I got the sense it was an hour or more. That said, that seemed to be a highly anticipated release and I think was more of a "one-off" situation. Magic mushroom has been released before and I wouldn't expect a line of any length, but this is coming from someone who hasn't been there first hand.

 

Great thread! I am visiting Pittsburgh next month and have taken everyone's input into account. Looking forward to checking out some beer around town.

 

How's this Enix brewing in Homestead?

 

Hi all! Heading to Pitt next weekend. Anyone ever gone to Grist House's Saturday can releases? How long do cans usually last when they release a beer?

 

I need an app on my phone that tells me to fuck right off every time I think about giving Strange Roots yet another chance.

The beer is mediocre as fuck, they dropped their flights in favor of over priced tasters and the service there is miserable. I think this past weekend was the last chance they were getting from me.

If Hitchhiker and Dancing Gnome always had a decent sour for my wife, I'd probably never bother going anywhere else at this point. Tried Underscore Mango at DG and holy shit, that stuff is dangerous.

Also stopped into Grist, Hop Farm and 11th Hour. I like 11th's Kolsch.
Grist is always good, but nothing ever really knocks my socks off.
Same goes for HF. Margot is a tasty sour. The coffee porter is okay but a bit thin. Their IPAs and lager are pretty meh.

 

Just hit it up last week finally. Very nice building, average beer. Not worth a dedicated trip, but worth a stop if you are in the area. Kitchen wasn’t open yet when I was there.

I was in the area to finally try the much talked about brew gentlemen “double mex”. What a let down. It wasn’t bad, it was a fine beer, I just don’t understand why people would wait in line for it. (It certainly was no BBA GNVP.)

But that’s been my experience with every BG beer. Everyone has been telling me that while their other offerings are pedestrian, double mex was the standout. Maybe my expectations were too high.

 

Thanks for all the tips. I only managed to visit Brew Gentlemen, Dancing Gnome, and Insurrection during my visit plus Piper's pub on Monday (since all breweries were closed or one we found opened at 4PM). Was nice to see a couple brew gentlemen beers on draft at Piper's.

Brew Gentlemen lived up to my expectations in terms of excellent stouts and hazy beers. I assume they are using similar water for both the hazy beers and the stouts because the stouts reminded me of Tree House. If I had planned better I would have brought my Monkish growlers with me to fill (or other similar quality 750ml growlers). I have yet to test my drink tank and how well it travels in checked luggage but I don't trust the seal in luggage the same way as I do for the German flip tops. I found the hazy IPAs to be up there with the best. Lower alcohol versions reminded me of Transient and the hazy double IPAs were like drinking Monkish/Tree House.

Dancing Gnome was also quite good and getting close to Brew Gentlemen in terms of quality. I'll see if the cans I picked up this weekend mellow out as suggested in a few weeks before fully judging them. By the time I got to insurrection I had all I wanted of hazy beer so I didn't try their hazy doubles.

Piper's had a great tap list of local and import beers and excellent atmosphere to spend a couple of hours.

Another note: as someone who has never visited Pittsburgh before there were some crazy intersections and freeway changes. We've gone around a lot of cities but this was one of the more difficult to navigate. Thankfully we didn't miss any turns. My husband managed to get where we wanted to go with my navigation.

 

Not much of a secret but Lorelei is a good spot if for no other reason than they’re different. Exclusive focus on German/German style lagers on tap plus 2-3 locals. The also have a relatively small, but nice selection of funky bottles. You can grab beers there and then hop over to Bird on the Run for hot chicken, Muddy Waters for oysters & a lobster roll, or Kahuna for poke. Kelly’s is a block away if you want a dive with craft beer and great Mac & cheese. Lots to do in that area of Shadyside/Sliberty

Edit: meant to quote and respond specifically to @EersandBeers

 

Some places that come to mind, in terms of either personally enjoying or I've heard good things about:
- Independent / Lorelei
- Smallman / Federal Galley (Federal had like 3 different years of CBS on draft when I went)
- Coughlin's Law / The Summit (Mt. Washington)
- Butterjoint
- Vintage Estates (hell of a trip for you, but hey, it's your birthday)

One brewery that's been on my radar that could make sense for you is Four Points Brewing in Charleroi. They're relatively new but I've heard they're churning out pretty good stuff already.

 

If your up for a juant then Pig Iron in Cranberry might be new to you. The have a pretty big draft selection with an emphasis on local, and food is pretty good. As a bonus for your travels there is now a HO1K beers just down the road in Warrendale, and Bac'n is next door to them. Also nearby is Stick City Brewing in Mars. Never been or had there beers but could be worth checking out while in the area.

 

Another vote for Vintage Estate in Boardman, OH. Depending on where you live in WV, it might be a trek, but you can also visit Noble Creature in Youngstown.

 

Not going to be in time for this weekend, but I see a new brewery, Devout Brewing is having a Grand Opening December 21 in Export. Coming out strong with 7 barrel system feeding 16 taps.

 

@EersandBeers How'd the weekend go?

 

@EvenMoreJesus Oh we used GPS. And I am used to navigating with GPS while my hubby drives. But it was still more difficult than the usual city. Just like Atlanta this past weekend, Google doesn't always know the roads split some places. Add to that some traffic lights that are really long and a few streets we had to drive through that were one lane in each direction and slow moving and it made for a not so fun driving experience.

At Insurrection I ended up drinking their hoppy red. Hubby had the imperial breakfast stout. It was a well-made hoppy red, though not the sort I would usually seek out. But after all the haze it was a welcome change. We also ended up eating at Onion Maiden and had some lovely vegan food.

 

@dar482 does great reviews, great one for Master Blend!

 

Boy, I really wish Hitchhiker would calm down with their wacky experimental shit. I'm fine with a few, but the last time we went there were three different versions of Whole Punch. I've never had a Whole Punch that wasnt miserable.

That Breakfast Superhighway they release, conditioned on fruit loops, was maybe the worst thing I've ever had.

Their stouts are becoming increasingly diabetic.

Is this my punishment for asking Andy to me make a Czech pils?

I tried to talk him into reviving the Cultured Creature series. Now I'm afraid he will, but they all be Bacon & Eggs/Tulip petal & potato peel/peanut butter pancake.

 

What are everyone's thoughts on Four Points Brewing? It is close by and I haven't checked it out yet, was considering it tonight.

 

Passing through this afternoon. What brewery, not too far of the main drag, would you guys suggests if I only have time for one stop?

 

Oh it would help to let you know know I prefer fruit forward ipas and big beer of most types.

 

Just dropping in to say how much I love 11th Hour's kolsch.

 

I've avoided bocks for a while, but Dancing Gnome's was tasty. As was their coffee stout. Perfect thickness. Missed the cream ale on tap, but there were cans. Figured on the off chance that it's not good, we can flip it on the DG name alone.

Shout out to DG for nice, clean bathrooms.

Speaking of nice bathrooms, we're at Brew Gentlemen now. Mmmm....

 

I know the hazies pay the bills at DG, but I really do enjoy their other offerings when they have them, especially the stouts (agree on the thickness / mouthfeel). I'll have to get my hands on the bock; I couldn't tell you the last one I had to be honest, similar to you.

 

Speaking of 11th hour, seems like their quality has continued to improve from the sense I get. I'll have to get back over there once my 6mo is a little older; I was there in the spring and loved the atmosphere/place (and the beers weren't bad, I did not have the kolsch).