Puerto Rico Craft Beer scene..

You can add Lya's Cafe to you list and Jibaro Ale to the brews to look for.

https://scontent-b-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/t1.0-9/1903009_700000590041329_134932446669965668_n.jpghttps://
www.facebook.com/LyasCafe?fref=photo

 

www.facebook.com/IngenieroMicrobrewery

 

any recommendations where to find good bottles around the San Juan or Gurabo area? I'm in town for a couple of days from Nor-Cal. Thanks!

 

I'm also interested in any recommendations where I can find great bottles in the San Juan area.

 

I never really found a great spot. I went to a couple of smaller liquor stores, and some bigger markets. Lots of random bottles, but nothing that really blew my socks off.

 

La Taberna Lupulo in Old San Juan is the place to be. Great tap list, awesome staff. I was there every night on my PR vacation this past summer. I had a couple of very good beers from Boqueron. Nothing else local blew me away, but it seems to be a growing scene.

 

Thanks for posting this. Will be spending a week in PR this year and was a bit worried. Will be following this thread.

 

Yeah, you can try this one also, if you're going to do some serious surfing.

http://rinconbeerco.com/

And also:

Puerto Rican Breweries

• Barlovento Brewing
• Boqueron Brewing Company
• Dacay Brewing Co.
• FOK Brewing
• Ingeniero MicroBrewery
• Old Harbor Brewery
• Red Dragon Breweries

 

Most definitely. Thanks for the info.

 

I've been living in GA for a while but I'm from the island and spend all Xmas breaks and most summers there so I'll drop my .02 in here for anybody visiting soon. The craft beer scene has been, in fact, growing pretty nicely over the last few years. However, it is still a work in progress. Iv'e known some beer aficionados that visited the island recently and when I asked them they only had "bad reviews" about the local offerings. These were mainly due to high expectations. I was there a few months ago and from what I saw the local breweries are still offering the basic stuff, so no Barrel aged, Imperial stouts, saisons, belgians, etc....yet. Keep in mind that most of the local brewers started from scratch with only homebrewing experience so the fact that they are actually making progress at a relatively fast rate is really impressing. That being said, some of the basic offerings are really nice.

I have liked everything that I've tried from Boqueron BCo. and Dacay. Some of my friends from the island have told me that Ingeniero is also doing some really good stuff (specially their Porter, Porter Rican). They also released a Chocolate-Marshmallow stout in collaboration with Barlovento (another early stage local company). I heard this one is really good too but never had a chance to try it. Old Harbor has been producing for 10 years or more as a BrewPub in Old San Juan but their stuff can be found around the island on either bottles or draft.

In terms of Bars: "La Taberna Lupulo", as it was mentioned above, is a really good spot in old San Juan with a great tap list including the locals and all the US selections that get imported. "Taberna Boricua" is also another good bar in San Juan to find the locals and they host (or get the a keg on day of) some of the releases too.

"Palmas Station" right in between Catano and Bayamon is another good stop. It is a weird Gas Station/Biker Spot/Restaurant/Bar but I guarantee it is a good time with good food and good brews. Iv'e seen a lot of bottles available "to go" of the local companies here too.

Around the island: Taska Gau in Ponce, and The Beer Box in Aguadilla are good places.

I don't know the current status about Brewery visits/tours but my guess is that this does not exist yet (I could be wrong). As mentioned Old Harbor is a Brewpub/Restaurant and I'm almost sure you can fill growlers but bring your own if you are planning this because theirs [empty] are ridiculously expensive. Boqueron Brewing Co. also has an open window on Saturdays that you can get growler fills.

Hope that helps a little.

 

Cool thread I lived in PR until I was 8 , I follow these guys they seem to get all the info on craft beer in PR https://www.facebook.com/CraftBeerPuertoRico, https://twitter.com/CraftBeer_PR

 

BUNS Burger Shop and The Place in Condado have pretty decent craft selections. Love spending time in PR.

 

This thread is actually quite helpful. Thanks to all that have commented. I will be in PR next week for 10 days and hope to check out a few of these spots. We will be road tripping the island and making stops in San Juan, Arecibo, Isabella, Aguadilla, Rincon, Moca, Mayaguez, and 4 days in Vieques. If anyone has any suggestions other than what is listed above, lemme hear em.

 

A few updates:

Taberna Lupulo and Taberna Boricua are still the two places to hit in San Juan.

Palmas Station is still in the same location but it is now a stand alone Bar and Grill. Huuuge with great food and most of the locals and the stuff that gets imported should be available there.

Saw some of the BoxLab offerings (the brewing operation at The Beer Box in Aguadilla) being on tap at their ""tap room"" recently so thats another brewery with product available. A farmhouse and a strong ale.

I've been told that kegs from Red Dragon (from Rio Grande) have been around (They have a saison and some belgians)

Another spot around the area that you'll be is Bros Brewhouse in Aguaga (route 115). It's a tiny bar and the homebrewer's hangout spot. They'll have some of the locals on tap.


I see that some of these places are active in Social media so if you have a Facebook make sure to start following them to get an idea of what will be available and the hours. Also checking the check in activity on un tapp d also helps.

Sounds like you'll have a good trip. I love that NorthWest coast region and the capping at Vieques should be on point.

Have fun!

 

Thanks so much. Do any of the breweries allow/ encourage sharing of any sort? I would love to bring some Chicago brews to give to owners/bartenders or whoever is around that wants to try something that they might not otherwise have the opportunity to.

 

I'm not sure the status of "Brewery visits" since most of those operations are very small. But if they do I'm 100% sure that they'd be thrilled to share/try new stuff. Same for the bars, specially in Beer Box and Bros Brewhouse. In San Juan is a different story since the bars are in the middle of the touristy area. But I'll guess that you'd be fine in Taberna Boricua. The brewer's association crew and the head brewer's are usually there hanging with the owner on the back patio.

I believe Pipeworks have some PuertoRican roots somewhere so if you take something from them that'd be a good conversation point.

 

Was at Taberna Lupulo last night. Certainly worthy of the accolades. The FOK Bomb was a nice local stout and there was a marzen from Cervecera de PR. I notice BA does not have these breweries listed. I'll do some research and add them, as the beers are pretty good.

 

Just got back from there and I'll add Barlovento Brewing Company to this thread

The Galeón IPA‬ was pretty great although it was a bit more like an English Bitter than an IPA

Also heard that Old Harbor closed

 

Also, THIS place http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaura...irilo_Pizza_Rustica-San_Juan_Puerto_Rico.html had a mostly local tap list including the above mentioned beer as well as a few FOK beers

2 Locations, one in Ocean Park and one on Old San Juan

GREAT food too

 

Heading down to Puerto Rico on business next weekend. I'll certainly be looking to stop in at Taberna Lupulo. Anyone know if they carry any Surly or Bells?

 

Bell's - Yes. Oberon is year-round there and you can find relatively fresh Two-Hearted every now and then.
Surly - No

The other brewery that I can think of that is there but not in Texas is Terrapin. They had regular Wake n Bake at Lupulo when I was there in January. Other than that just the regular big distro guys (Stone, Boulevard, Founders, Smuttynose, Victory, Harpoon, etc.).

 

Sweet! Thanks PJ! The Terrapin would be a nice bonus...I had their Hopsecutioner on a Disney trip with the fam a few years ago. Would certainly like to try the Wake n Bake.

 

Also worth stopping for a drink of 4 is La Factoria. Its Right down the street from Lupulo and they have fantastic craft cocktails. I suggest the old fashioned made with the Don Q gran añejo.

 

Helping out @guinness77 on another PR thread I found this nice list that might be helpful to leave in here https://foursquare.com/top-places/san-jaun/best-places-craft-beer (posted Feb 2016)
The Old Harbor restaurant is closed though.

 

Seems like Tallgrass started distributing to the island early this year.

Also found out about a good store in Ponce. https://www.facebook.com/gulfponcebypass/ A decent option for those who might need to pick up something while in the South side of the island.

 

I am originally from Mayaguez, and went back to visit in 2015 after not having been there since 2013. I do like that there is a craft beer scene, although it's called "artisinal beer" instead. It's funny, because I found a LOT of good selections at gas stations as well. There is one on Route 2 in Mayaguez that even had the latest Stone Enjoy By.

Rincon Beer Co was always great as well and would give you a great selection of local and US brews.

Honestly, I had a few of the different brews and I feel like there is some work to be done from most of the PR Breweries. But with some time and effort, they'll get there. I'll be going in May for Memorial Day weekend and am excited to see what changes for the better might have occurred.

 

Just wanted to thank everyone who provided all the great information in this thread so far. Was initially wondering if there was any scene in P.R., and it sounds like there's a very promising and burgeoning scene for sure. I went from somewhat skeptical to pretty darn excited.

The wife and I will be flying into San Juan on the May 1st, and will spend five days on P.R. and five on Vieques. Plan on hitting as many of the places mentioned as possible, and trying as much of the local fare as possible.

Since we are going to be staying in rural areas for the most part, I was still wondering if there's a bottle shop in San Juan anyone would recommend for stocking up purposes? And I can't forget, any suggestions on the best local beach beers?

Thanks again all, and cheers!

 

The main (and I think only one) distributor has a store in San Juan. Check this post (http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/rincon-puerto-rico.386392/) for more details about it.

If you don't mind AALs then Medalla Light is the way to go. Classic lame and cheap lager but your $ will stay in the island. I can't think of any local craft options that you could get enough of to stock up for the beach. Maybe Bell's Oberon or Terrapin Hi-5 are your best beach options.

 

@stephens101 Stock up before you go to Vieques, I'll tell you that much.

Not sure what part of San Juan you are staying at, but 24 Market actually has a decent cooler with singles of craft beer bottles. Check the dates though on some, I'd say. I actually was at 24 Market last year by accident. Our flight back to New Jersey got cancelled and we figured we'd try our look on Avenida Isla Verde and walked into that place. Decently surprised to find Enjoy by 7/4/15 on June 30th.

6150 Av. Isla Verde, Carolina, 00979, Puerto Rico is the address, just in case.

If you actually were to go in, you won't find the cooler immediately. It's somewhere in the back, and don't be confused if it looks like a bar/convenience store, it definitely had a cooler with craft beer in there. Pretty decent selection.

 

Did 24 Market have any local craft singles? I'll be in the area all next week and in walking distance. Thanks for the tip!

 

@socon67 - I honestly can't remember if they had any of the PR beer. The day we went to 24 Market was our 8th day on the island so by then we had tried almost all of the PR beer and were just hankering for some good options from the "mainland".

 

I actually serediptiously found SN Otra Vez at one of the small grocery stores in Isabella. That (plus a few bottles of Rum, and the absolutely pristeen beaches) kept me quite happy for the duration of my stay.

I didn't see any PR beer at 24 Market. As has been said, La Taberna Lupulo is where you are going to get the best selection of available stateside crafts and locals (Stone/Prairie/Bells/Boqueron/Rincon etc. etc.). Plus, it's just a really great place to get your drink on. As an added bonus, the bathrooms are "post-gender", so you don't have to worry about whether you're in the right one...but you will.

 

Had a great time here which unfortunately needs to end. Taberno Lupulo did not disappoint; great beer. I has a "Red Dragon Saphira Saison" that I don't see on BA but was a nice beer.

 

So, I just got back from Puerto Rico. I stayed by my hometown, Mayaguez and found plenty of options to keep me entertained for my duration. One thing I did notice was that the "local" craft beer scene at least in bottle form, isn't as prevalent as last year. I could hardly find anything, but I could find beers like Bear Republic, Stone, Sierra Nevada, Founder's, and others pretty easily.

Because the weather was hitting 100 consistently, I stuck with Founder's All Day, Terrapin Recreational Ale, and Founder's Mosaic for the most part. They did have most of the Bell's too.

I checked dates on everything and everything had a bottle date of February 2016 or later - so that was nice to see as well.

Went to a gas station that actually had Founder's Mosaic and Bell's Two Hearted Ale on tap as well.

 

Few updates as I'm researching a bit before my trip next week...

Pimenton pizzeria in Carolina seems to be a newer hot spot for beer on the island. looks like they have a great relationship with the distributor since they got one of the two Lizard of Koz kegs that hit the island. The other one went to Rincon Beer Company.

Oskar Blues now distro the island. All of their regulars and seasonals available.

Lagunitas also entered the market.

 

Any update on the Puerto Rico craft beer scene? Actually headed there next week.

Being with the family, probably will only get to go to one or two of the breweries. Looking at Ocean Lab since we are staying in San Juan and possibly Rincon Beer Company since we're planning a day trip there.

 

La Taberna Lúpulo in San Juan is probably as good as it's going to get: http://www.latabernalupulo.com/ I can't remember, but I believe it's now under "American" ownership, so it might be even better now.

It's been about 2 years since I've been to Rincon Beer Co but they do a pretty decent job of having local and "US" taps there. I think one time they had Stone Enjoy By there. It's hit or miss.

Just recently it seems like Puerto Rican beer started canning... it's a bit away from Rincón but for an extra 10 - 15 minutes south, you can hit up the Victory Gulf Station. If you try looking them up on Facebook, all you are going to see are macro options, but that's just because my people... well, we drink Medalla and Heineken because it's much, much cheaper. But last year, I visited and was able to get some Bell's, Founder's and Bear Republic. The place is literally a gas station, but with a great selection of stuff and for not a bad price. Boqueron Brewing just released a Blonde Ale that should be available there.

EDIT: Crap, I totally forgot about Beer Box. This might be a better bet than Victory since it is technically "on the way" to Rincón but they open after 5 PM. The Victory Gulf is open 24 hours.

 

Thanks for the info @beertoro. So would you say it would be safe for me to Uber to Ocean Lab from Condado, particularly if I decide to venture out on my own and leave the family back at the hotel?